Last updated: May 2026
Our service is completely free to families. We are compensated by senior living communities — and we will always tell you exactly which ones we have agreements with before making any recommendation.
North State Senior Solutions earns revenue through referral fees paid by senior living communities when a family we've guided moves a resident in. This is standard practice across the senior placement industry — and it's how we're able to offer our service to families at no charge.
The fee is paid entirely by the community, not by you. Communities cannot and do not charge referred families a higher rate than any other incoming resident. Your monthly cost is the same regardless of whether you found the community through us, on your own, or through any other source.
Referral fees are generally calculated as a percentage of the resident's first month's total rate — which includes base rent plus any care level charges. Fees typically range from 90% to 120% of the first month's rate, depending on the care type and the individual agreement.
| Care Type | Typical Monthly Cost | Approximate Referral Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Independent Living | $2,500 – $4,000 | $2,500 – $4,000 |
| Assisted Living | $4,500 – $6,000 | $4,500 – $7,200 |
| Memory Care | $6,000 – $10,000 | $6,000 – $12,000 |
Figures are estimates based on current Northern California market rates and may vary by community.
We are aware that a referral fee model can create the incentive to recommend more expensive communities regardless of fit. We actively work against that bias in two ways.
First, we only recommend communities we have personally visited. We assess quality, culture, staffing, and fit — not just cost — before adding any community to our network.
Second, we will always tell you which communities in your shortlist we have a referral agreement with, and which ones we don't. If the right community for your family is one we don't have an agreement with, we'll tell you — and we'll help you reach out to them directly.
Unlike some referral services, we do not send your contact information to communities the moment you register. Other services issue what's known as a "blanket referral" — which is why families sometimes receive 30 or more calls within hours of starting a search. We keep your information completely private until you have chosen a specific community you'd like to connect with and given us explicit permission to make that introduction.
If anything on this page is unclear, or if you'd like to know specifically whether we have a referral agreement with a community you're considering, please reach out. Transparency isn't a policy for us — it's the whole point.
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