The Best Independent Living Communities in Hillsborough County, FL

"We toured Keystone Place at Terra Bella. I like that very much. I thought that esthetically, it looked good, it was clean, and the staff we spoke to was very friendly. The residents appear to be happy, the ones we saw walking around. If it was me, I would have gotten into that place. It was very nice. They were very helpful and very friendly. They did a great job giving us a tour and telling us about the services they provide and the activities that are available for the residents. It was great. It was a good atmosphere."

Sunstar Village, located at 7575 65th Way in Pinellas Park, Florida, is a welcoming assisted living community dedicated to compassionate, family-centered care. Designed to support seniors who need assistance with daily living while preserving their independence, Sunstar Village offers a safe and comfortable environment where residents feel at home. The community provides personalized services tailored to each resident's unique needs, with a mission focused on dignity, peace of mind, and well-being. Whether transitioning from independent living or seeking a supportive long-term home, residents and families can trust in the warm, attentive care that defines Sunstar Village. Set within a charming residential area, Sunstar Village features thoughtfully designed apartments, including the popular "SunBeam Single," nestled around beautifully maintained garden courtyards. Residents benefit from a secure, gated setting with ample guest and resident parking, along with housekeeping, linen and laundry services, and private cleaning options. The shared dining room encourages social connection during nutritious meals, with accommodations for diabetic, kosher, vegetarian, and other special diets. Daily life is enriched through a diverse calendar of activities, including music, games, book clubs, arts and crafts, gardening, and organized offsite excursions-all promoting engagement and enjoyment. What makes Sunstar Village truly stand out is its homelike atmosphere and devoted staff, who treat every resident like family. Safety is a top priority, with trained caregivers providing support around the clock and medication assistance as needed. The community's location in central Pinellas Park offers proximity to local attractions such as Sawgrass Lake Park, Heritage Village, the Tampa Bay Automobile Museum, and Fort De Soto Park-perfect for family visits and resident outings. With a strong reputation for excellence, Sunstar Village is a trusted choice for seniors seeking comfort, care, and community. To learn more about this provider's license and review other available state reports, please visit: Florida Agency of Health Care Administration

"I like the fact that there are many people at The Barrington Senior Living. They have so many things, there are choices at lunchtime, and there is a menu in the evening. They come in and vacuum, but my brother does his own pills there. The food is excellent. The amenities are great. It seems like there is a bus service. The staff is friendly. There's a wide range of things you could do. They have poker, and a 4:00 social hour where you can have a cheap glass of wine. I thought the whole thing had a wonderful, open, good atmosphere, and it was nice. The public areas were wonderful. However, it was a little bit old. In terms of activities, I enjoyed the grand piano that the lady played in the entry area. I saw that there were exercise classes that interested me. I think they had a book club or something on books there. They had poker and billiards, maybe."

"I guess there was a miscommunication on my appointment for Saturday. There was no one there to show me around. Finally, the activity director, interrupted her pickle game to come and show me the model room and answer a few questions. I was told someone would call me next week with prices, availability, etc."

"We like the grounds, the size, and the layout of the condos at Addington Place at College Harbor. The thing we liked least was the long waiting list. Other than that, the staff was very nice, very pleasant, and very informative. They have a good activities list. We also liked its location and cost. There was a good, varied menu, and you had good choices. It wasn't just one or two things. There were a number of items available."

"I like the living space. The kitchen has been good. I also like the trees and the nature on campus."

"We visited the independent living community of Lake Morton Senior Living, and everything was wonderful. I like that they come and clean your house once a week. We are not totally disabled or anything, but cleaning the house and keeping it maintained has become very difficult for us, and it's never completely clean, so that part really appealed to me. Their rooms were very spacious, and I can see us being in there. It's big enough to put a queen-size bed. They have transportation to wherever you want to go and outings. Some people there like to gamble, so they've had an outing to Las Vegas. They offer a variety of entertainment, and they have a library, too. They'll do your laundry for you, but there's a laundry facility there if you want to do it yourself. They have a little gift and snack shop there to buy just small things. They schedule different activities, so when we were there a few days later, they were going to have a sock hop dance, time dancing, and they had Bible devotions three times a week. There is just a lot to do there. The tour we had was just amazing, and all the people were just very friendly, kind, and concerned."

"I would like to live in Ella At Encore. It's a brand new building. It got spacious apartments. The apartment was 700 square feet, so it's more roomy. Everything is new so you're getting new appliances. They got nice and big bedroom. They also got screened balconies. "

"The people at Allegro Hyde Park were fabulous and the community is lovely. The food was fine, for the two meals that I sampled there. They had an apartment ready for me that is very clean and very adequate. It's small, it's 503 square feet, but it has a bedroom, a bathroom, a full kitchen with a dishwasher, a stackable washer and dryer, and a full refrigerator. The kitchen was lovely and it has a living room so it's quite adequate for me. The staff was so accommodating. It was just my pleasure to be there to see it. I hated to walk out but I had to go back to my apartment and start packing up so I could move there already. They have so many activities. They have a calendar that comes out every month and there are so many things to do. There are lectures and classes, they have a lovely pool that's heated, and they have water aerobics. They have book clubs, a room with card tables, and every afternoon they have a happy hour from 3 to 5 in their bar, which usually draws a big crowd. I was there to see it twice and I just could not believe how welcoming the people were. I signed up yesterday and I gave them my first month's rent. What they have is an independent living and assisted care living. They all live together so that's 140 lovely units. They also have a full-time staff. Even the staff in the restaurant came over to welcome me. I went there for two lunches, and I just found the food suitable for senior living. It was fine and they tried to vary the menu every day for dinner. I just have to get used to eating food that seniors eat. The staff was very efficient and perfect. No sooner than I got there and handed them my check for me to move, my name was already on the apartment door. Each apartment has the resident's name on it so if you knock on somebody's door, you know whose door you're knocking on. I'm very anxious to move in there full-time, which I will do before this month is over, but everybody there was so lovely and so welcoming so this is something I'm looking forward to. "

"I liked Jewish Center Towers the best because my doctors are right there. The management is very friendly. It was very pleasant. I got to see how well-kept the building is and everything. I got to meet some of the very sweet residents and I just had a very pleasant experience. They were very, very courteous, very welcoming, and very informative. Everything was very clean and out in the open. I had no complaints about it. From what I could also see was the staff was there for the residents."

"Annie's Assisted Living is clean. I got my own private room here. There are only six of us. The staff is very helpful. The food is great. It's all home cooked."

"I'm at Unisen Senior Living. I think it's going to be working out. This is the best food I've ever had in my life. There's an unbelievable amount of activities and beautiful grounds. This is the first time in years I didn't want to leave. I'm in a place that I like with people who are intelligent and dynamic and don't exhibit constant behavioral problems (I'm including staff at these places, not necessarily the residents). We have probably the best cook of any facility that you could find. The food here is just phenomenal, although I think I'm trying to slip back to my recipe for pork marinade because the pork chops are a little on the tough side. I wanted a smaller one-bedroom, but they didn't have any available, so I got the larger one-bedroom, one-bath. They have a one-bedroom, two-bath, but they didn't have it available. Then they have villas where you even get a garage, and they're considerably more expensive. They have an arts and crafts room. They have an enormous library and it's been recently renovated. They have a lot of presentations and entertainment. They even have a putting green and a fishing pier. The staff here really bends over backwards. It's a gated community. They have yoga and Tai chi. Every day, they have like ten or 12 activities, including Sunday. There are painting classes. I'm taking diamond painting, pottery, regular painting, and jewelry. They're starting a series on the Andes. They just got finished with a series on Night at Earth. It's like National Geographic Quality presentation. They have a lot of people come in and give public lectures, incredible presentations, great graphics, and great speakers. You can take up to three classes for no charge at USF. Just stunning amenities. They have postal service boxes so nobody tampers with your mail. They have a concierge service, four dining rooms, a pool, and a Jacuzzi. They have people doing water therapy and chair yoga. I can't imagine anybody coming close to any of the food, the infrastructure, and the activities. They have an EMT on staff 24/7. The ice cream was really great. They're serving strawberry shortcake bars, Oreo cookies and cream sandwiches, and drumsticks. They really have good choices, like fine dining meals. You only get one meal a day, but you can take home what you don't eat. Every Sunday they have a brunch. They have cheese polentas, a choice of four omelettes, and roast tenderloin. They had shrimp cocktail, a choice of two different salads with homemade dressings, a variety of breads, a variety of butter, a choice of fish, roast beef, and chicken. They serve a lot of specialty food like quinoa or barley. You can get a baked potato or a sweet potato. All of their fruit and vegetables are fresh. Everything's made fresh every day. There is nothing that is canned. If you don't want to be in apartment buildings, there are like duplexes, but they have garages. They have outings, they go out to dinner a couple of times a week, to Trader Joe's, Publix, and University Plaza. This place is enormous. They have two elevators for every wing. Each of the towers has four wings. You are not going to be stuck waiting for an elevator. It's a shelter in place facility. If they have a big hurricane coming, you're not leaving. I've got a side-by-side refrigerator, a microwave, stove and oven, dishwasher, walk-in shower with glass doors, a washer and dryer, and three closets."

"We decided to visit Bay Gardens Retirement Village assisted living facility as it is convenient for my friend's mother's family and friends. The outer grounds were also very pretty with a nice courtyard and seating areas. The staff was able to take care of a variety of people, from those with memory issues to those less ambulatory. The building was very well maintained and appeared very pleasant throughout. The living spaces were spacious and well-designed. All of the areas were pleasant to be in. There were plenty of professional, yet friendly staff to take care of all of their needs. The dining rooms were restaurant style, cozy, warm and still fresh. There was a variety of types of food available. Choices ranged from a complete meal to snacks or lighter fare, for those who wanted it. Every dietary concern seemed to be well addressed. The activities list was impressive. From board and other games to bingo, there are many interesting things to do for the residents. Planned outside excursions include many healthy physical activities so that the seniors can enjoy everything that the region has to offer. They also have planned exercise classes and encourage physical activity. All of the seniors appeared to be very well taken care of by nice and able staff. "

"I was living in Bayshore Presbyterian Apartments in Tampa, a 62-and-over apartment building. The community is lovely, and the building is exceptionally clean. The maintenance is excellent, people are good, and they have a lot of activities. They have a library and games like Bingo and Scrabble. They have movie nights on Saturdays and day trips for those who want to go out for lunch with people. They have Christmas parties and Thanksgiving parties, which are very lovely and very well done. They have a new property manager there who I understand is really on the ball. If you qualify through the city, the place will give you food. It's not the greatest, though. The only thing that I liked was the little piece of roasted chicken they gave us. That was the only meal that I enjoyed there."