Care options
Board and Care
Homes in the
San Francisco Bay Area
A licensed home in a regular neighborhood, six residents or fewer, with caregivers on hand day and night. Often the lowest-cost licensed option. A local advisor helps you find and compare homes near you, free to your family.
- Free to familiesCommunities pay us
- 9 Bay Area countiesLocal advisors
- 1,000+ seniors helped5.0 from 100+ reviews
What it is
A small home with a lot of care
A board and care home (the state calls it a residential care facility for the elderly, the same license as a large assisted living community) is a regular house where a small number of residents live with caregivers who cook, help with bathing and dressing, manage medications and keep an eye on things through the night. Most Bay Area homes have six beds and one caregiver for every two or three residents, which is a far higher ratio than a big community can offer.
The trade is scale. There is no dining room with a menu, no activity calendar with twenty choices, no bus to the mall. What there is: the same two or three faces every day, meals at a kitchen table, a backyard, and a price that often comes in thousands below a large community for the same level of hands-on help. For someone who needs a lot of help and does not want a lot of bustle, a good home is the better fit, not the cheaper compromise.
The quality range is wide. Homes are run by individual owners, so the difference between a good one and a poor one is the owner, the caregivers and the license record. That is where our advisors earn their keep: we work with care homes across the Bay Area, we have been inside them, and we hold referral agreements with the ones we would send our own family to.
A good fit when
- Needs hands-on help with most daily tasks and would get lost in a large building
- Does better with a quiet routine and the same caregivers every day
- The budget is below what a large community charges for the same care level
- Early or middle-stage dementia that is calm with the right support
- Needs two-person help or frequent checks through the night
Probably not the right fit when
- Still active and wants a full calendar, a dining room and companyAssisted living
- Wandering, exit-seeking or behavior that needs a secured unit and trained staffMemory care
- Needs a nurse on site around the clock or daily medical treatmentSkilled nursing
Free, confidential
Tell us what is going on
Tell us a little about your situation and a local advisor will call or email you back, usually the same business day. No cost, no obligation.
Prefer to talk? Call 866-744-1417, answered until 6 pm. Send the form any time and we reply outside those hours too. Communities pay us when a move happens, never your family, and your price is never higher because we are involved.
What you get
What a board and care home includes
The monthly rate in most Bay Area care homes is close to all-inclusive. These are the pieces that come with it, and the few things that do not.
- A private or shared bedroomIn a regular house; some homes have private baths, many share.
- Caregivers day and nightTypically one caregiver for every two or three residents, with someone awake or on call overnight.
- All meals and snacksHome-cooked, at a shared table, with diets and cultural food handled in most homes.
- Personal careBathing, dressing, toileting, transfers and medication management are included, not add-ons.
- Laundry and housekeepingDone by the home’s staff as part of the rate.
- What is usually extraHospice or home health visits (billed to insurance), incontinence supplies, and a one-time move-in fee in some homes.
Costs
What a board and care home costs in the Bay Area
A private room in a licensed six-bed home usually comes in well below a large assisted living community, and the rate moves far less with the care level because the hands-on help is already built in. Shared rooms bring the number down further.
Typical monthly rates from the quotes our advisors see across Bay Area care homes and communities and current industry cost surveys. Your quote depends on the home, the room and the care needed.
- Room typePrivate rooms cost more; a shared room is the usual way to bring the rate down.
- Care levelMatters less here than in a big community, but two-person help or heavy dementia care raises it.
- LocationHomes on the Peninsula and in Marin run higher than the East Bay or South Bay.
- Move-in feeSome homes charge one; many do not. We tell you up front.
How we help
How we help you find the right home
- Tell us what is going onCare needs, budget, the part of the Bay Area that works for the family, and what matters most: a private room, a particular language, a yard, a home that handles dementia.
- We call the homes firstBefore you see a list, our advisor checks which homes have an open bed right now, at what rate and for what level of care, and reviews their license records.
- Tour with an advisorWe come with you. Small homes vary a lot in feel, and we know what to look for: the caregivers, the smell, the other residents, the owner’s answers.
- Move in with supportWe help with the physician report and the paperwork the home needs, and we stay involved through move-in day and after.
How we choose
How we choose the homes we show you
Before a family sees a list, our advisor calls around. Homes are asked what they have open right now, at what price and for what level of care, so the short list only holds places that can actually take your parent this month.
We share a brief overview of the situation only with the homes that fit, and we ask them to hold off on calling you until a tour is set. Your phone number is not passed around.
An advisor goes on the tours with you, helps with the physician report and the other paperwork the home needs, and stays involved through move-in day. Small homes are only as good as their owner and caregivers, so we pay attention to the people, not just the house.
Check a license yourself
Assisted living communities and board and care homes are licensed by the State of California as residential care facilities for the elderly. You can look up any one of them, with its inspection visits and complaint history, on the state’s public Care Facility Search. Ask us if a record is hard to read; we go through them with families all the time.
Four local advisors, one number. Johnell, Ashley, Tanvi and Kayevon cover the nine Bay Area counties.
Reviews
What families say
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KayeVon came to my aid in a very stressful time, helping me visit and evaluate nearby board and care options for my brother. Close and frequent communication kept the process moving.
I couldn’t be happier with the choice of Johnelle Davidson to help me assist my friend with her ailing husband. The assisted living place was no longer a good fit for him and Johnelle with so much kindness helped his wife find a wonderful little board care place with good people and what made me happy too it had a door that looked out into a garden. She was with us every step of the way sharing different places until the right place was found and assisted in the move. It was a good fit. I am so grateful for her help and highly recommend her. So knowledgable about it all. I am holding onto her contact!
I would highly recommend Neighborly Senior Placement. Tanvi Gangakhedkar has gone above and beyond to help me and my mother. She helped us find a home in 2024 and again this year. She always listens to my questions and concerns and find solutions. Tanvi is the BEST!!!
Questions
Questions families ask
What is a board and care home?
A licensed house in a regular neighborhood where a small number of older adults, usually six or fewer, live with caregivers who provide meals, personal care, medication help and supervision around the clock. It holds the same state license as a large assisted living community; the difference is size and feel.
Is a small home better than a big community?
It depends on the person. Someone who needs a lot of hands-on help and prefers a quiet routine often does better in a home with one caregiver for every two or three residents. Someone who is still active and wants a dining room, a calendar and new faces is usually happier in a community. We help you weigh it honestly, and we work with both.
What does a board and care home cost?
A private room in a Bay Area six-bed home typically runs $4,500 to $7,900 a month, with shared rooms lower, and the rate usually includes meals, personal care and medication management rather than adding them on. Your price is the home’s standard price, locked in your agreement with them; nothing is added or passed on because we are involved.
Can a board and care home care for someone with dementia?
Many can, especially in the early and middle stages when the person is calm with the right support and a steady routine. A home with a dementia-trained owner and a secured yard can be a very good fit. Wandering, exit-seeking or behavior that needs specialised staff usually calls for a memory care community instead, and we will say so.
Do board and care homes take Medi-Cal?
Some do, through the state’s Assisted Living Waiver, which is offered in some Bay Area counties but not all, with limited spaces and a waitlist. Tell us the budget on the form or the call; we know which homes work with the program and we help families through the application rather than turning them away.
How do I check a home’s license?
Every care home is licensed by the State of California and its record is public: inspection visits, complaints and citations. You can search it yourself on the state’s Care Facility Search, and our advisors go through the records with you before any tour.
Is your help free?
Yes. The home pays us a referral fee when a move happens, and families pay nothing. Your price is never higher because we are involved.
Something else on your mind? Call 866-744-1417, answered until 6 pm.
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Find a care home you would send your own family to
The form takes two minutes. A local advisor replies the same business day in most cases, and the help is free to your family.