Of all the plans you make for retirement, few matter more than where you choose to spend your golden years. The more carefully you choose a retirement community, the easier it is to stay happy, healthy, and comfortable no matter what the future brings.

Many people assume a retirement community is the best place for seniors, as it gives them access to all the services and activities they need. But a retirement community might not be right for you if: 

1. You Don’t Like Being Served Meals

Premier retirement communities have mastered the art of cooking delicious meals with all the nutrients you need to stay healthy. But what happens if you don’t like being served meals, as we do at Deupree House’s Grille 39?

Perhaps you enjoy the act of shopping for food and cooking, no matter how much extra time and effort it takes. Or maybe you just want more control over what you eat, even if you have to go to the trouble of making sure it’s healthy. Regardless of the reason, if you don’t like the option of having your meals prepared for you, retirement living probably isn’t for you.

2. You’d Rather Not Make New Friends

Retirement communities are great places to meet other retirees, connect with them, and form lasting friendships. But maybe you’re happy with the friends you have now. Or if you do want to meet new friends, perhaps you’d rather drive to public events and other get-togethers, rather than have lots of people living with you whom you can connect with every day. If you’d rather not live among potential new friends, there’s no need for you to do so.

3. You Don’t Like Exercising with Others

Regular exercise is essential for health at any point in your life, but it’s particularly important in retirement. The more often you exercise, the less likely you are to develop chronic diseases, breathing issues, and even memory loss. Retirement communities often spend a lot of time and energy organizing group activities to make exercise fun.

Group exercise is all well and good, but what if you’d rather exercise on your own? Maybe you prefer the solitude of staying active without others around you, or you simply want to keep control over what specific exercises you do. Of course, working out on your own does have some risks and downsides, especially if you’re doing strenuous or high-impact activities. But if you’d really rather not exercise with anyone else, it’s OK to do it alone — if you can motivate yourself to do so.

4. You Hate Planned Outings

One of the best ways to stay happy and engaged at any age is to take trips to museums, festivals, and community events. Retirement communities make this easy for you by organizing regular events and activities, providing transportation when necessary, and coming up with itineraries and schedules that ensure you have the best experience possible.

But perhaps you don’t want to follow someone else’s plan. If you prefer to plan your own outings, or if you’d rather have these experiences alone or with your family, you may not want to move into a retirement community.

5. You’d Rather Get Things for Yourself

Retirement communities make it their mission to make your life as easy as possible, which is why they’ll get anything you need for you. But some people prefer driving to the grocery store or drugstore by themselves.

If that sounds like you, there’s no need to move into a retirement community and have someone do that for you. Even if you are someday unable to drive a car, perhaps you can enlist your friends and relatives to drive you, provided you can find a time that is convenient for them.

6. You Like Doing Housework

From vacuuming and dusting to mowing the lawn to making repairs around the house, there’s always lots of work to do in and around your home. When you move to a retirement community, the staff can do it for you.

But some people live for this work, and would never want to let someone else take it over. If you love working in and around the house, don’t let your retirement stop you. Just stay at your home instead of moving into a retirement community, and you can do all the housework you want.

While retirement communities aren’t for everyone, Deupree House is designed especially for active seniors who want to make the most of their retirement years without all of the obligations that go along with home ownership and living alone. And in fact, many seniors find that they’re able to live more independently while living in a retirement community like Deupree House.

Want to find out more? Think retirement living may, in fact, be for you? Schedule your visit today. We look forward to showing you how Deupree House can help you live well into the future.