The Best Independent Living Communities in Kern County, CA

"I visited Pinewood Glen Senior Retirement Community. They'll do the housekeeping, your towels and your sheets, but you do your personal laundry. They have a chef, but I'm on a special diet and their food wouldn't be something that I could eat and it's included in my payment. The place was clean. I visited with a few of the people that live there and they were nice. It was a place that I could possibly go to, but I walk with a cane and a walker. There's a lot of steps walking around and it's two stories. The single apartments are on the bottom and the lofts are on the second floor. There were 99 apartments. The staff was very nice. She accommodated the questions that I had and answered them for me. It was a nice experience. I felt safe in the location. It was just like some other apartment building. They lock the doors at 5:00, and they have a keycard, so if you're out after that, you can come back in. It was a nice atmosphere."

"My mother was at this assisted living facility for two and a half years - both she and I were very pleased with all aspects of Hallmark. (My mother had mid-stage Alzheimer's, diabetes, and other issues.) The staff was always warm & welcoming, as well as competent. The food was varied and simply great! I often joined my mother for dinner or holiday meals. Although COVID-19 put a damper on a lot of things, Hallmark usually provides live entertainment, games, and other activities. Church services of different types are held on the premises. A beauty salon is also on the premises. I greatly appreciated the genuine caring of the staff regarding sensitive & emotional issues. My mother thrived during her stay here."

"I love Rosewood. When I first moved in, my husband was deathly ill. I just couldn't take care of him at home anymore. I was very appreciative of living here. We could get exercise and get all kinds of help. I didn't have to cook anymore, which was absolutely awesome. It lightened my load extremely well. I love the apartment. My husband is deceased now, but he was very happy here. Rosewood has all kinds of activities. They have the swimming pool and exercises every morning. There is yoga and regular exercises run by our physical therapists. Rosewood is a three-tier residence. We have independent living, assisted living, and full care. I had physical therapy here as well. We have movies, travelogues, and parties here. They also help us with our computers, phone, or whatever. We have a store we can go and buy stuff, so we don't have to leave to buy necessities. The pandemic has just done horrible things to our staff, and we are not full right now. Sometimes, if we don't have enough staff in our dining room, we do grab-and-go. If there's enough staff, we can go in the dining room again. It's really been very difficult. Overall, our staff is very good. This is a buy-in, and it's a nonprofit. If I ran out of money, they're still gonna take care of me the rest of my life."

"I went to Brookside Senior Apartment. I liked it. I loved everything about it because it was just my mom and dad. If you do have a pet, they allow it. The layout was great. They also have two bedrooms available, if you want. They cost a little more, but they give you a little extra space. I just love the set up and the bathroom because it's set up basically for the handicapped. It has rods for the bath, the tub, and the shower if needed. Everything is set up nicely. It's gated. I love that it was gated. I felt safer for them with that. There were activities for them to do. They have a potluck and bingo. Everybody is kind of in the same senior age group, which I loved. For the people that can't drive or don't have transportation, they take them shopping and to visit people. I thought that was amazing, too. Everybody was great there. My eldest daughter-in-law's grandmother lives there. That's why we got so many great reviews from them. Everybody was amazing there. The neighbors in the community kind of watch out for each other there, and I loved that. They called my daughter-in-law right away when the grandmother was out, and they knew something was wrong. So I love that it's amazing. It's just a very tight community. There were so many things my son and my daughter-in-law keep telling me. I think this is the best place for them because it's near where I live. I saw nothing that I didn't like there. It's kept close to stores, and shopping areas. Everybody seemed to be nice there and helpful. And I got nothing but great reviews for my daughter-in-law and their family and my daughter-in-law's grandmother. She loves it there and she hasn't been there that long. She hasn't even been there a year. But she's met friends and she lives alone. So that gives them peace of mind because they're really busy, and they all work. Her grandmother still drives."