5 Reasons to Consider Owning a Senior Care Franchise

Aspiring entrepreneurs like yourself are always scanning the market for the perfect opportunity. Maybe you’ve tried to set up a business before, or you’re already running one, but you want to try something new.

You can stop searching. Senior care franchise investment is the perfect way to open up a new business while contributing to your community.

Why? While the older population is growing and their needs are changing, accommodations for their care are not keeping up. Most caregivers are family members, and communities lack alternatives to institutionalized care.

You can make a difference by choosing to open up a senior care business in your area. Need more convincing? Check out these 5 reasons senior home care franchise investment is the answer.

What Is Senior Care?

There are many options now for families to consider when faced with aging family members. As loved ones get older, they often want to be self-dependent but are unable to do many things on their own. People often also develop several health issues or disabilities as they pass 65 years old.

While aging family members demand more and more assistance, many families have been unable to keep up with their needs. While it used to be popular for women to be informal caregivers and maintain the home, most people of both sexes now hold full-time careers. In turn, most seniors now lack family members who can offer around-the-clock assistance.

Informal care by family members is still very popular. However, this means many seniors lack the formal care required for worsening diseases and disabilities. Formal senior care options provide an alternative to informal care at varying levels of assistance.

Some families choose to send their elder loved ones to long-term care facilities. Others choose to move their loved ones into assisted living communities. The most popular option, though, has come to be in-home care.

In-home senior care is a business where personal care and healthcare professionals visit seniors within their own private homes. These professionals can be trained and certified in all different levels of care. A senior will be assigned a professional or team based on their individual needs.

Some of these professionals choose to offer their services personally, while others find an employer who can manage many clients. Senior care franchises offer a base of support for this type of care. They hire professionals who provide in-home care and assign them to clients.

5 Reasons to Invest in a Senior Care Franchise

Are you more interested in running a senior care franchise now that you understand what the industry does? There are so many great reasons to focus your entrepreneurial efforts on senior care. These reasons range from business perspectives to more humanitarian sentiments.

Business owners who have already taken the leap will tell you. Investing in a senior care franchise changed their lives. Read these 5 reasons to understand why!

1. The Industry Is Experiencing Exciting Changes

The history and trends in senior care are quite telling. Not that long ago, nursing homes were the most popular solution for being unable to care for aging parents. Further, many seniors were kept in rooms together, losing the space and privacy that they had at home.

Over time, requesting private rooms in nursing homes became more popular. With this rise in popularity and the decreasing space in nursing homes, the prices for getting private or semi-private rooms have gone up 4-4.5% each year.

Families are often disturbed by the hospital-like feel of institutions like nursing homes, and aging parents frequently beg their families not to send them. Unfortunately, the results are often determined by financial ability and the free time families can sacrifice.

Nursing homes and other care facilities still make up a significant part of the senior care market, but changes are happening. Families still prioritize caring for their loved ones at home and look for alternatives to facilities. In 1999, a Supreme Court decision called the Olmstead Decision ruled seniors had a right to be cared for in private homes.

Suddenly, there was a demand and a right to offer a new type of care that brought formal assistance to elders within their communities. While receiving only formal in-home care is much less popular than hybrid care, there is still a rise each year.

Now is the time to get involved in this industry. The trends lean in favor of senior care that offers formal in-home services, and technology is making it even more accessible and convenient to do so. Communication and collaboration between family members and providers are now more fluid than ever, creating a solid team of care for seniors.

2. There’s No Lack of Demand

According to the National Health Review, two-thirds of even the most severely disabled elderly people living in private homes receive solely informal care from family members. While done out of love, this informal care is a heavy burden for family members. This giant section of the market is open wide for providers to offer care.

When it comes to formal care, 80% of seniors who receive assistance now live in their private homes. There’s certainly no lack of demand in the market for senior care franchises that can cater to these individuals. Clearly, long-term care facilities have plummeted in popularity.

There is also no sign of this demand going down. Studies by the U.S. government show that by 2050, the number of seniors who use care services, regardless of setting, will double from 13 million to 27 million. This massive growth is due to the growing bubble of older people needing care as the population ages.

With a steeply growing population of the elderly, the increasing popularity of in-home care, and so many families desperately needing help, senior care franchises will see great success.

Regardless of where you live, it’s likely that your community could use another senior care franchise. This is especially true if you live in an area with a large senior population.

3. Franchise Ownership Is Much Easier

Aside from the turning tides and high demand, you might be wondering what is so special about owning a senior care franchise. Strictly from a business standpoint, investing in a franchise is much easier than starting a business from scratch.

To start, investing in a franchise means starting a business with a model that is already proven to work. Other senior care franchise owners are running the same business as you and all are doing well. You won’t have to reinvent the wheel.

Instead, you’ll be able to get explicit guidance on exactly how to start up the business and maintain it. You’ll be given proven guidelines and policies that help you open up easily, hire employees, and run day-to-day operations. You’ll also already have a recognizable and trusted brand, making it much easier to draw in loyal customers.

Unlike if you were to start your own private business, investing in a franchise means having access to corporate-level resources. Local private businesses often have to work overtime to run everything themselves, including marketing and outreach. They often don’t have the budget or the time to successfully handle everything they need for growth.

Running a franchise means having the power of corporate marketing experts, development teams, and other business consultants on your side. You’ll be able to take advantage of all of this without paying top dollar to outsource or hire in-house employees. If you ever need help with anything, you can reach out for guidance.

Finally, the startup cost is much lower and the margin of profit is much higher early on. The proven model of the franchise will make lenders much more eager to lend money for your business. The franchise’s guidelines will make it much easier to open up, and in turn, your buying-in costs will be much lower.

4. It’s a Great Way to Serve Others in Need

Not everyone chooses to open a business because they want to serve those in need, but it’s always a positive addition to your goals. Whether you just need a source of income, or you’re truly looking to make a difference, investing in a senior care franchise is a great opportunity.

According to Morningstar, a little less than half of men and 58% of women who reach 65 years old will require long-term care in their lifetimes. This means that about half of the senior population will require your services.

That statistic is a huge deal–millions of people desperately need your help. While other franchises can offer fast food or entertainment, senior care franchises provide much-needed and appreciated healthcare and personal care to those in need.

Families don’t want to hand off their loved ones to strangers by sending them to unfamiliar, hospital-like facilities. Families know the needs of their loved ones best and want them to be comfortable in a familiar environment.

This can be especially true for seniors who suffer from memory loss and confusion. Being among loved ones and having a stable, familiar environment can greatly improve the well-being and happiness of those with forms of dementia and other illnesses.

You can provide this amazing service with the flexibility that families need. Instead of footing the bill for 24/7 care at a long-term care facility, families can incorporate in-home care according to their budget. They can choose a plan that works best for their financial abilities and use in-home care as a supplement to the care they administer.

Bringing care to their homes, whether it is in tandem with family care or on its own, means greatly improving the lives of seniors and their families.

5. You’ll Be Creating Jobs for Your Community

Finally, opening up a senior care franchise means creating jobs in your community. In our era of insecurity, many people are struggling to find jobs that fit their credentials. Most students that graduate from a 4-year college are finding it more and more difficult to start a career.

To combat this issue, you can add more job openings that will help the unemployed find their place. You’ll also help the unhappily employed transition to a job they believe in.

Creating healthcare jobs will make you a part of the most successful sector in our economy. In fact, healthcare is repeatedly marked by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics as the fastest growing sector and makes up for 11% of all jobs in the economy.

Creating jobs for your community can help job seekers, young and old, find a source of income and a sense of purpose. Senior care franchises open up job opportunities for all levels of training and experience.

For example, senior care franchises will need administrative personnel. These people can answer phones, take down customer information, and provide education on your services.

Further, employees who directly administer care depending on the needs of the customers will be searching “senior care near me” for job positions. Seniors might need home health aides for help with hygiene and companionship. Other seniors might need registered nurses to administer medications and take care of other illnesses or disabilities.

If seniors need someone to only come to take care of the house, drive them around, and prepare meals, you can hire caregivers for those tasks as well.

As your business grows, you’ll be able to hire more and more people of all skill levels.

Open Up a Senior Care Franchise

Investing in a senior care franchise is investing in yourself, your community, and those in need. By opening up your own businesses as a franchise rather than from scratch, your expenses will be much lower and your efforts will be much less. With a successful model and extensive resources, you can easily find success and happiness in your new, growing business.

Preferred Care at Home is a leading provider of in-home care for seniors and their families. We make a difference for those who need comprehensive and compassionate care without breaking the budget or the family apart. If you feel inspired to get involved, contact us today to learn about how to invest in the franchise.

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