Find Senior Apartments Communities Near San Antonio, TX

Seniors usually pay for San Antonio senior apartments the same way they pay for any apartment. You’ll likely combine your personal resources to pay rent on your senior apartment.

If you’re also looking to learn about covering costs for future care needs, you might also find it helpful to learn about Medicaid and Medicare. They can both help cover some in-home care or assisted living costs.

Below, you’ll find information on private payment methods and resources that may help you obtain veterans benefits, Medicaid, Medicare, and housing assistance vouchers. You’ll also find payment tips that’ll help you figure out how to pay for a senior apartment and any additional care needs that may arise in the future.

In Texas, senior apartments are not regulated by a state agency. They’re regulated the same as any ordinary apartment complex and are required to comply with general Texas housing laws, such as the Texas Property Code and Fair Housing Act. The laws aim to prevent discrimination against senior apartment residents as well as provide them with safe, well-maintained housing. Additionally, most Texas senior apartments have a minimum age requirement of 55, with some apartments raising it to 62.

Tenants’ rights

It’s important that seniors and their families learn about their tenants’ rights. A better understanding of these rights can help you find a safe, sufficient living situation as you rent. Here’s a brief overview of some relevant tenants’ rights in Texas:

• Residents have the right to ask their landlord to repair problems that risk their health and safety, unless the problem was caused by the tenant. Landlords must make a diligent effort to repair the problems at hand.
• Residents may terminate their lease if a problem that affects their health hasn’t been resolved after two notices to the landlord and within a reasonable time period (usually seven days).
• Residents may hire an external contractor to correct the problems at hand, if their landlord fails to resolve issues that affect residents’ health after two notices within the reasonable time period. The tenant may then submit the expenses to their landlord to deduct the expense from their rent.

Before you move forward with terminating a lease or hiring an external contractor, it’s strongly recommended that you reach out to an attorney or a local tenants association. Consulting a housing expert will help ensure that you don’t breach any lease agreements, and it may ultimately help you get the end result you desire. It’s also recommended for tenants to provide written notices to their landlord and to keep a copy of each notice as proof.

For more information on your rights as a tenant in a senior apartment, read the Tenants’ Rights Handbook.

Accommodations and modifications for disabled seniors

If you’re a tenant with a disability, federal nondiscrimination laws — such as the Fair Housing Act, Section 504, and Americans with Disabilities Act (or ADA) — protect you from being refused housing due to the disability. Moreover, these laws require housing providers to provide you with reasonable accommodations and modifications in housing, programs, and activities.

If you’re a disabled individual, you hold the right to request reasonable accommodations and modifications from the property owner. Reasonable accommodations are defined as changes to community policies and could include the following examples:

• Assigning a parking spot for easy entry to the tenant’s apartment building
• Allowing a service animal to reside with a tenant even when there’s a no-pets policy in place
• Changing the due date of rent to reflect disability income payment dates

Modifications are structural changes to common areas and individual units and could include the following:

• Installing specialized smoke detectors for tenants with a hearing impairment
• Adding a wheelchair ramp to enable tenants with disabilities to easily access shared spaces and participate in resident activities
• Installing grab bars or widening doorways in a tenant’s apartment

These nondiscrimination laws apply to all senior apartments in San Antonio. Senior apartment property owners are required to pay for such modifications unless providing them poses an undue financial or administrative burden. For more information, see this detailed infographic on reasonable accommodations and modifications.

COVID-19 regulations for San Antonio senior apartments

San Antonio has not set forth COVID-19 regulations specific to senior apartments. If you have any concerns about COVID-19, you can find general COVID-19 updates and information regarding testing, vaccinations, and more on the City of San Antonio COVID-19 website.

San Antonio’s 60+ population is projected to grow by roughly 20% by 2040. The city has developed a Senior Services Strategic Plan to better support this aging population and evolve existing senior services. In this plan, the city includes initiatives to rebrand senior centers, expand medical services, and enhance social opportunities.

To keep up with this aging-friendly initiative, the senior living scene has also expanded. In San Antonio, independent living facilities tend to dominate over senior apartments, but there are still a few great options out there. Check out some ways senior apartments are enhancing on-site services and amenities below:

Amenities provide entertainment and convenience

Senior apartments in San Antonio tend to have many luxurious amenities on-site to provide seniors with a higher level of convenience. Some amenities are designed to help seniors remain physically active, including swimming pools, fitness centers, or walking paths that weave throughout the complex. Other shared spaces, such as picnic areas and clubhouses, promote socialization and enable seniors to enjoy a sense of community. Some senior apartments even have a beauty salon or a business center on-site. In some of the more affluent neighborhoods, senior apartments also tend to be gated and have high-tech security systems.

Activities and events promote socialization

Seniors often choose senior apartments to surround themselves with like-minded individuals. To support this aging group, some senior apartments promote social interactions among seniors by hosting a range of activities throughout the year. Residents mingle during apartment-coordinated holiday parties, barbecues, and more. Some senior apartment complexes even host birthday parties and allow seniors to rent out their clubhouse to host their own events. These events and celebrations enable seniors to feel like a family, which is especially important to residents who have lost loved ones and/or live far from their family members.

Range of floor plans and apartment amenities for an ideal living situation

Many San Antonio senior apartments offer a variety of floor plans and conveniences within each unit. Most apartments have one- and two-bedroom options, while some even have three-bedroom cottages. These options enable residents to live with their partner or roommate and house all their cherished belongings from a former house. In each unit, you’ll typically find a fully equipped kitchen, a full-size washer and dryer, a generous walk-in closet, and a private patio or balcony. Some senior apartments also have grab bars in bathrooms and convenient wheelchair-accessibility features to accommodate the needs of aging and/or disabled adults. Some luxury apartments will even offer 9-foot ceilings, extra closet space, and covered parking.

Health care for seniors in San Antonio

San Antonio has several health care options for seniors and veterans. Here’s some information on the city’s top-rated medical care facilities:

Transportation for seniors in San Antonio

San Antonio’s downtown is praised for its walkability; however, the large sprawl of San Antonio makes it challenging to easily get around the entire city. Plus, most seniors don’t live near the city’s downtown area, so they typically use their own cars to get around. As an alternative, seniors can use public transportation options provided by VIA Metropolitan Transit to explore the city’s outskirts or get dropped off in the downtown area, where they can walk, bike, or use public buses. Seniors 62+ can ride for only a quarter Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and they also receive free rides on Saturday and Sunday. Seniors must obtain a VIA Reduced Fair ID to receive these senior discounts.

Older adults can also receive free rides to and from their local senior centers during each center’s business hours using senior center transportation services. To qualify for rides, seniors must be enrolled at one of the city-operated senior centers and live within a 5-mile radius of the center. Be sure to contact your local senior center to learn about accessibility options and hours.

These scores from WalkScore might help you get a better feel of San Antonio’s downtown. Each score is out of 100 and is based on the downtown’s public density, transportation system, walking routes, and biking infrastructure: