Common Scams Targeting Older Adults During Senior Living Searches

A senior living search involves money, personal information, and often a stressful, emotional moment, which is exactly the combination scammers look for. Older adults are targeted heavily, and the search itself can attract specific schemes, from fake listings to referral services with hidden financial motives. This guide covers the scams to watch for, both the ones tied to a senior living search and the broader frauds targeting older adults, and gives you clear, practical ways to protect yourself and your money.

How big is the problem?

Large, and growing. The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center reported that victims age 60 and older lost nearly $4.9 billion to internet-enabled fraud in 2024, across more than 147,000 complaints, a sharp increase over the year before. The FTC similarly reports billions in losses among older adults and notes that the true totals are far higher, because most fraud is never reported. These numbers are not meant to frighten you but to make the point plainly: this is common, it happens to smart and careful people, and being alert is simply prudent.

Scams specific to a senior living search

Two schemes target people precisely when they are looking for care.

"Free" placement services with hidden commissions. Some referral or placement services advertise free, friendly help finding a community, but are quietly paid a commission by the facilities they recommend. That is an undisclosed conflict of interest, and it can bias their suggestions toward whoever pays them rather than what actually fits your needs and budget. Free advice is not automatically bad, but you should always ask a referral service directly how it is paid, and treat its recommendations with that in mind.

Fake or misleading listings. Scammers create fake online listings for communities or rentals that do not exist, or misrepresent real ones, to collect deposits or personal information. Be wary of any "listing" that pressures you to pay a deposit or share financial details before you have independently verified the community exists and that you are dealing with the real operator.

The broader scams targeting older adults

Beyond the search itself, older adults are heavily targeted by a familiar set of scams. Knowing them by name makes them easier to spot:

• Tech-support scams, where a fake "technician" claims your computer is infected to gain access or payment.
• Government and Medicare imposters, who pose as Social Security, Medicare or the IRS to demand information or money.
• Grandparent or family-emergency scams, where a caller impersonates a relative in trouble and begs for immediate money.
• Romance scams, which build an online relationship over time and then ask for money.
• Investment fraud, including cryptocurrency schemes promising unrealistic returns.

The common thread is manufactured urgency and a request for money or information. Any of these is a reason to stop and verify.

How to protect yourself

A few habits defeat the large majority of scams:

1. Slow down. Scammers manufacture urgency because pressure prevents clear thinking. Legitimate services and agencies do not rush you.
2. Verify independently. Look up the organization yourself, using contact information you find on your own, not what a caller or email gives you.
3. Guard your money and information. Never pay an upfront fee or share account numbers, Social Security numbers, or Medicare numbers to secure a placement or claim a prize.
4. Involve a trusted person. A second set of eyes, a friend, chosen-family member, or elder-law attorney, before any big decision or payment is a powerful safeguard.
5. Be skeptical of unusual payment methods. Requests for gift cards, wire transfers or cryptocurrency are almost always a scam.

For LGBTQIA+ elders who live alone or are more isolated, that trusted second person matters even more, which is one more reason to build the kind of chosen-family care team our guides describe.

What to do if you have been targeted

If you think you have been scammed, do not be embarrassed; act. Stop all contact and payments immediately, tell a trusted person, and report it: to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and the FBI at ic3.gov. If money left a bank account, contact your bank right away. And if the issue involves a care facility, contact your long-term care ombudsman, as our guide on reporting problems in senior care explains. Reporting helps you and helps protect others.

Why LGBTQIA+ elders can be at higher risk

It is worth naming a hard truth: the same factors that make social isolation more common among LGBTQIA+ elders, living alone, being unpartnered, having fewer close family nearby, also make fraud easier to pull off. Scammers rely on the absence of a second opinion, and someone with fewer people checking in has fewer natural safeguards. This is not a reason for shame or fear; it is a reason to be intentional about building in that second opinion. A trusted friend, chosen-family member, or professional who reviews big decisions with you closes exactly the gap that scammers exploit.

Searching safely

None of this should make you fearful of looking for care; the vast majority of communities and services are legitimate. It should make you a careful, informed consumer who slows down, verifies, and leans on trusted people. That is exactly the approach the Chosen Years directory is built to support, with transparent evidence and paid placement always clearly labeled, so you can search with confidence rather than suspicion.