Assisted Living Communities in Chelsea, Michigan

Assisted living costs in Chelsea come in near $6,500 monthly, according to information in the 2024 Genworth Cost of Care Survey. This fee tracks hundreds of dollars beyond Michigan’s median of $5,050 and exceeds rates in many other cities in the southeast region of the state. For example, monthly expenses in Jackson run about $1,770 lower than in Chelsea, and in Flint, seniors expect assisted living fees of roughly $4,250. 

While many families use their own funds or personal assets to pay for assisted living, there are plenty of additional options to cover these costs. Some additional ways to finance assisted living costs include:

• Veterans Benefits
• Life Insurance Policy
• Long-Term Care Insurance
• Reverse Mortgage

For more information about different ways to finance assisted living, visit our Assisted Living in Michigan page.

At approximately $6,500 per month, assisted living costs in Chelsea fare moderately compared to other local senior care solutions. By contrast, seniors seeking home health care services pay around $6,101 for full-time support. On the other hand, nursing home costs trend about $3,200 higher than assisted living expenses, indicating financial benefits for those without extensive daily medical needs.

Michigan doesn’t license assisted living facilities. However, assisted living facilities may require a Home for the Aged license if they provide room, board and supervised personal care to 21 or more residents aged 55 or older. The Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Adult Foster Care and Homes for the Aged Licensing Division handles licensing and regulation in Chelsea.

• Michigan’s state sales tax rate is 6%, but that’s all residents pay. The state doesn’t allow counties or cities to collect local sales tax. Plus, groceries and prescription drugs are sales tax-exempt.
• Although Michigan isn’t considered very tax-friendly towards retirees compared to many other states, it’s mostly due to above-average property taxes. Seniors in assisted living generally don’t have to worry about property taxes. Income from Social Security benefits, Railroad Retirement benefits and military pensions are all exempt from state income taxes. Private retirement plan exemptions vary based on income and when a retiree was born. Tax breaks for seniors born before 1946 are the best.
• Seniors in Chelsea benefit from having a local hospital that’s well-rated. St. Joseph Mercy Chelsea Hospital was rated high performing in five adult procedures or conditions frequently seen in older adults, which included back surgery, hip replacement and knee replacement, hip fractures and pneumonia. There’s also a nationally ranked hospital about 15 miles away in Ann Arbor.
• Chelsea’s cost of living is higher than the national average by 4.5% and much higher than the state average by about 15%. However, health care costs mirror those of the state, and they’re lower than the national average by 14%.
• Residents may feel safer with Chelsea’s lower-than-average crime rates. Chelsea scores 12.4 for violent crime, which is much lower than the national average of 22.7 and lower than the state average of 25.3. It also has a lower property crime rate at 20.2 compared to 28.1 statewide and 35.4 nationally.
• Chelsea sees a lot of snow at an average of 40 inches per year, much higher than the national average of 28 inches. It has fewer sunny days on average with about 182 annually compared to the national average of 205 days. On the plus side, summers in Chelsea are temperate with an average high of 82 in July and a summer comfort index score of 9.2 out of 10.