When a parent moves to assisted living: the paperwork and information checklist

Assisted living is licensed by the states, and every community has its own move-in packet, so the details below will vary. Ask the community for its list as early as you can, and use this one to fill the gaps.

What the community usually asks for

Move-in packets differ, but most ask for some version of these:

• A recent health assessment from your parent's doctor or another practitioner, often on the community's or the state's own form. States usually set a window for it around the move-in date. In Virginia, for example, the physical exam has to happen within the 30 days before admission and includes a tuberculosis risk assessment. Book the appointment early.
• A current medication list and allergies, and sometimes written orders from the doctor for medications, diet or therapy.
• Insurance cards: the Medicare card, and any Medicare Advantage, supplement or drug plan card. If your parent has long-term care insurance, note the company and where the policy is kept.
• Photo ID.
• Copies of health-care documents, such as an advance directive, a health-care power of attorney and any do-not-resuscitate order. Ask the community about its policies on these.
• Emergency contacts, and the name of the person who gets the bills.
• The signed residency agreement. Keep a copy where the family can find it.

A few questions worth asking before anyone signs, drawn from a consumer checklist published by the National Center for Assisted Living, a trade group: what paperwork and deadlines the move-in process has, who does the first care assessment, what level of care the community can provide before a resident would need to move, whether there's a deposit and how refunds work, who helps with medications, and whether you can see the latest state inspection report.

Every state also has a Long-Term Care Ombudsman program, which helps residents of nursing homes, assisted living and other residential care with problems and questions about their rights. Write down your state's number. It's good to have before you need it.

The medication list

This is the single most useful page you'll make. The FDA suggests a list that covers every prescription, over-the-counter medicine, vitamin and supplement, with:

• The name and strength of each one
• What it's for
• When, how and how much to take
• Allergies and emergency contacts

Add the prescribing doctor and the pharmacy for each one. Then ask the community who will help with medications from now on, and whether there's a pharmacy it works with. Update the list whenever something changes, and keep copies in three places: with your parent, with whoever goes to appointments, and in the family's shared list.

Who can act, and where the papers are

For each of these, write down whether it exists, who is named, when it was signed, where the original is kept and who already has a copy:

• Financial power of attorney
• Health-care power of attorney or health-care proxy
• Advance directive or living will
• HIPAA authorization, so doctors can talk with family
• Any do-not-resuscitate or similar medical order
• A will and any trust (where they're kept, not what they say)
• Any guardianship or conservatorship order

The community will usually want copies of the health-care documents. Keep the originals together in one known place at home, not in your parent's new room.

One thing that surprises families: a power of attorney doesn't cover Social Security. The Social Security Administration says it doesn't recognize a power of attorney for handling benefit payments. If your parent can no longer manage their benefits, someone has to apply to Social Security to be their representative payee. A joint bank account isn't the same thing either.

If you're the person named to handle money, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has free plain-language guides on managing someone else's money. If you're not sure whether a document exists or still works, that's a question for an attorney in your parent's state.

Mail and the change of address

• Ask the community how mail works. Some have individual mailboxes, some deliver to the room, and some route it through the front desk. Get the exact mailing address in writing.
• File the change of address with the Postal Service. If your parent can do it, it can be done online for a small identity-verification fee, or in person at a Post Office with photo ID. If you're filing for a parent who can't act for themselves, USPS says it has to be done in person, and you'll need to bring a power of attorney.
• Don't rely on forwarding alone. Standard forwarding lasts 12 months. First-Class Mail is forwarded for free, but magazines and newspapers are generally forwarded for only 60 days, and most advertising mail isn't forwarded at all. Change the address directly with everyone who matters.
• Watch the mail for a few months. Statements and notices that arrive after the move are how families find the accounts, policies and subscriptions nobody remembered.

Social Security, Medicare and the IRS

• Social Security. If your parent gets benefits, the address can be changed in their my Social Security account or by calling 1-800-772-1213.
• Medicare. Medicare says its official address is changed through Social Security, so the step above covers it.
• Medicare Advantage or drug plans. Tell the plan about the move too. Plans are tied to where you live, and Medicare has rules about when a move lets someone change plans. Medicare.gov's page on special enrollment periods explains them, and 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) can answer questions about a particular situation.
• The IRS. The IRS says a Postal Service change of address may not reliably update its records. Use Form 8822, or the new address on the next return.
• Everyone else who pays or bills your parent: pensions, annuities, any veterans benefits, banks, insurers, doctors, and the state or local election office for voter registration.

The house and its paperwork

What happens to the house is a decision for your parent and whoever they trust with it. Your job right now is to know where everything is.

• The deed, and where the original is kept.
• The mortgage or home-equity loan: who services it and how it's paid.
• Property tax bills: where they're mailed, and whether they're paid through the mortgage.
• Homeowners insurance. Call the insurer and tell them the house will be empty. Some policies limit coverage when a home sits vacant for a while, so ask what the policy expects.
• HOA or condo association contacts and dues.
• Keys and codes: who has keys, the alarm company's phone number, and where any codes are kept.
• Who checks on the house, how often, and who to call if a pipe bursts.
• The car, if there is one: where the title and keys are, and whether it's being kept, sold or passed on.

Utilities, subscriptions and the rest

Pull up three months of bank and credit card statements. Recurring charges are the fastest way to see what needs changing. Then decide, line by line, what to keep, move or cancel:

• Electric, gas, water, trash and sewer
• Internet, cable or streaming, and the landline
• The cell phone plan
• Newspapers, magazines and memberships
• Meal kits, pharmacy delivery and anything else shipped to the house
• Charitable donations on autopay

Before canceling, ask the community what it already provides. Phone, cable, internet, meals and housekeeping are sometimes included, sometimes extra.

Labeling belongings

• Put your parent's name on clothing, especially if laundry is shared. Iron-on or stick-on labels both work.
• Label the small things that go missing: glasses and their case, hearing aids and their case, a denture case, phone chargers, the remote, walkers and canes.
• Make a simple inventory of what went to the new room, with a photo of each larger piece and anything valuable. Keep it with the family's shared list.
• Think twice about valuables and originals. Jewelry and important documents are usually safer with family or in the home's file box, with copies in the room if needed.

One shared list for the family

When brothers and sisters each handle a piece of the move, things fall through the cracks, or get done twice. Agree on one list and one person who keeps it current. Everyone else adds to it rather than starting their own.

A good shared list has:

• The community's contacts: the main office, the nurse or wellness director, and billing
• Your parent's doctors and pharmacy
• Who holds which authority document, and where the originals are
• Every address change: who it's for, the date it was done, and who did it
• Every account or service that was changed or canceled
• What's still open, and whose turn it is

If your parent is still deciding about a move, our guide on how to talk to your parents about where things are has gentle ways to start.

This guide is general information, not legal, tax, medical, investment or insurance advice. Assisted living rules differ by state and by community, and agency rules change, so check the linked official sources and ask the community directly. For decisions about your parent's care, property or legal documents, talk with a licensed professional in their state. Last reviewed October 2026.