Tips for Navigating Senior Living Options By Harry Cline

Tips for Navigating Senior Living Options

Everyone knows that aging is inevitable, and often there comes a time when we all must face the reality that maybe we need more help. Whether it’s moving to a smaller home or seeking out daily assistance, senior adults can have a lot of overwhelming decisions to make when it comes to their living arrangements and quality of life.
Different Housing Options
There are numerous options these days for seniors adjusting their living arrangements in retirement. You can look at relocating to a smaller house, renovate your old home, or even look to assisted living. With so many choices it can be confusing to find the right one.
Aging in Place When it comes to thinking about the future and whether to stay put, most people have no intention of leaving their homes. After all, they spent most of their adult lives there, invested hard-earned money into the place, so why should they move? However, if they want to stay, the question isn’t if they can, it’s if they should. Can they handle regular maintenance and upkeep? Can they maneuver easily throughout the home? Can they accomplish daily living without assistance? If the answer is yes, then perhaps renovating the home is the best option.
Independence is important for those choosing to stay at home. And often, it’s much cheaper to renovate an old home with a handful of modifications.

Assisted Living
On the other hand, choosing to remain at home may not always be the best financial option, especially since caregiving costs can start to add up. If you find that you regularly need assistance but want to retain some independence, assisted living could be the better solution. Not only do assisted living communities offer a variety of amenities and care options, but they also provide the opportunity for socialization.
Assisted living tends to carry a lot of stigma for seniors, and many equate assisted living with a nursing home, though they are not the same. But don’t take our word for it; go check out a handful of communities. Talk to the staff and residents, visit during mealtime, ask about social and physical opportunities as well as transportation. Best of all, these facilities come in a variety of price points. A Place for Mom notes that communities in Honolulu range in cost from $2,995 to $9,900. With so many choices available, you’re bound to find one that’s a great fit and that ensures you can maintain your independence.
Things to Think About
As you contemplate assisted living, consider your needs now and then extrapolate on what you will need in the future. It’s also important to consider how you’ll handle the home you’re in and whether you’ll plan to sell it or gift it to your children.
If you plan to sell your home to cover the costs of assisted living, you’ll need to know details on the housing market in your area, particularly average home prices (for example, average sale prices in Honolulu are around $543K). As you prepare to list your home, there are also updates, cleaning and other necessary chores that must be handled in order to sell a home. Your realtor should be able to walk you through the entire process. Remember that if the selling process feels overwhelming, you can reach out to family or friends to assist you; this is a big transition and you can always use extra help.

Settling on the optimal living arrangements as you age is a big decision and one that you should keep at the forefront of your mind even if you are the picture of health. Knowing your options and being informed on the different aspects can go a long way toward helping you put the puzzle pieces together.

Harry Cline | info@newcaregiver.org
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Royal Hawaii Spirits- A Best Realty Inc Project

Barfly| Crave Distillery crafts tropical spirits in Kalihi
By Jason Genegabus Posted September 13, 2017 September 12, 2017
Kapalama Shopping Center doesn’t seem like the place to find Oahu’s newest distillery, but that’s where you’ll find Royal Hawaii Spirits.
Tucked away on the Kaumualii Street side of the complex, owner Karel Kon’s tiny warehouse space is home to a pair of column stills that have been churning out experimental batches of rum, vodka, shochu and other spirits since 2014.

Karel Kon, owner of Royal Hawaii Spirits, offered a sample of his absinthe made with sage at the tasting bar of his Kalihi distillery. Kon specializes in small-batch tropical liquors and spirits.

A real estate broker by trade, Kon is originally from the Czech Republic and moved to Hawaii from Boston when he met his future wife here nearly 20 years ago.
“I do what I have to do,” Kon said Thursday, the first day Royal Hawaii opened for sales to the general public. “I did not spend three years of my life to make this an expensive hobby. I have about 60 recipes approved … and I have 40 labels approved (by the federal government).”
Royal Hawaii Distillery traces its roots to Kon’s childhood in the Czech Republic, where he said many families created their own liquor by taking fresh ingredients to neighborhood distilleries.
“I can remember before first grade, helping my family,” he said. “Bring your own ingredients, make appointment, buy tax stamps, make and bottle, then do what you like with it.
“It’s a very different life there. You have apricots, you have peaches, you have berries. Everybody uses different fruits, so everybody (has) different specialties.”
Kon is taking somewhat of a shotgun approach with Royal Hawaii’s offerings, bottling different spirit formulations based on recipes from his home country and a few other “secret” sources. He said he can make 99 varieties of vodka and is trying various recipes to “make a point” and figure out what local customers want.
“People are looking for all kinds of different flavors,” he said. “I don’t know what people will like, so I will have a full tasting room available.”
For now, Kon’s tasting room at 1210 Dillingham Blvd. will be open to the public only from 1 to 3 p.m. Thursdays. A visit last week found bottles of soju, gin, hibiscus- flavored vodka, cherry shochu and spirits that showcased flavors of banana, passion fruit and plum. Prices range from $16 to $18, to $50 and up for specialty releases.
While I don’t see myself buying these bottles to drink neat, I’m intrigued to see how they’re embraced by local bars and incorporated into cocktail menus. Kon’s Hawaii Gold spirit, distilled from Maui Gold pineapple and elevated with the addition of pineapple juice and 24-karat gold flakes, is unlike anything I’ve seen produced in Hawaii. I was also pleasantly surprised by his ginger-honey cordial made with locally sourced ginger and honey from Hawaii island.
Learn more about Royal Hawaiian Spirits online at

www.rhsdistillery.com      or       www.facebook.com/alohadistillery

Call 741-6641 for a private tasting