Questions to Ask an Assisted Living Placement Agent

A placement agent can save a family days of searching, or steer them wrong in an afternoon. The difference is rarely the agent's personality. It is whether you asked, before touring anything, how the agent is paid, how they choose the homes on your list, and what happens if the first home is not the right fit. Bring this list to the first call. A good agent will answer every question on it plainly. We work with placement agents every week, and the families who ask these questions are the ones who choose well.

What a placement agent actually does

A placement agent, sometimes called a senior placement advisor or referral agent, learns about your loved one and suggests assisted living homes that might fit. They usually tour with you or set up the tours, and they stay in touch while you decide. That is the job. What varies is how wide their list is, how well they know each home, and who pays them. Those three things decide how much you can trust the list you are given.

Start with how they are paid

Ask this first, before you describe your loved one's needs in detail. The answer shapes everything else.

• [ ] Who pays you for this placement, and how much?
• [ ] Are you paid by the home, by the family, or both?
• [ ] Is your fee a flat amount or a share of the first month's rent?
• [ ] Do you get paid the same no matter which home we choose?
• [ ] Will you put the payment arrangement in writing before we tour?

If the agent is paid by the home, that does not make them dishonest. Most agents in this business are paid that way. It does mean you should ask the next question on this list with extra care: whether the homes they show you are the best fit for your loved one, or simply the homes that pay them.

How they build your list

A short list is only useful if it was built from your loved one's needs, not from the agent's usual rotation.

• [ ] What did you hear in our situation that made you pick these homes?
• [ ] How many homes did you consider before narrowing it to these?
• [ ] Are there homes you left off because they do not work with agents?
• [ ] Do you know each home's care levels, and which level our loved one likely needs?
• [ ] Have you visited these homes yourself, and how recently?

In Arizona, assisted living is licensed at levels including supervisory, personal, and directed care, and every resident has an individualized service plan. An agent who cannot talk about care levels in plain language is guessing about fit. Ask what level your loved one is likely to need, and who decides that. Our guide to what directed care means in Arizona explains the levels, and our page on what happens when care needs increase covers what to ask when needs change later.

How well they know the homes

An agent who has walked a home recently can tell you things no website will. An agent working from a directory cannot.

• [ ] When did you last visit each home on our list?
• [ ] Have you placed other families there, and how did those placements go?
• [ ] What would you say is the weakest part of each home you are recommending?
• [ ] Who runs the home day to day, and how do families reach them?
• [ ] What happens at night? Is someone awake in the home overnight?

That last question matters more than most families expect. At Adagio, an awake caregiver is in the home overnight, checking rooms on rounds and helping whenever a resident needs it. Ask every home the same question, and listen for a specific answer rather than a smooth one. Our tour checklist has the full overnight question and the other questions worth asking in person.

What happens after the referral

The agent's job does not end when you pick a home, or at least it should not. Find out where their help stops.

• [ ] Will you come on the tours with us?
• [ ] Can we talk to the home directly, or does everything go through you?
• [ ] Who do we call if the move-in hits a snag?
• [ ] What if the first home is not the right fit? Will you help us look again?
• [ ] Is there any cost to us if we choose none of the homes you suggested?

You should always be free to call a home directly. A good agent welcomes it. If an agent discourages direct contact with the home, treat that as a warning sign, not a convenience.

Signs to slow down

None of these proves an agent is acting in bad faith. Each one is a reason to pause and ask one more question.

• They will only show you one or two homes, and both feel rushed.
• They will not say who pays them, or they change the subject when you ask.
• They promise a bed or a move-in date before the home has done an assessment.
• They pressure you to decide before you have toured, or before you have talked to the home.
• They cannot name a single weakness of any home they recommend.

A home that talked honestly about its limits, what it cannot do and what would need review, is usually a safer choice than one that said yes to everything. The same test works for agents.

How to use an agent well

Give every agent the same short summary: care needs, medications, budget, preferred area, and timeline. That way you are comparing lists, not conversations. Tour two to four homes. Bring the same questions to each one, write the answers down, and check the home's license with the Arizona Department of Health Services. A home should be comfortable telling you how to look up its licensing and survey history. We are.

If you are comparing homes in Central Phoenix, our guide to assisted living cost in 85014 and nearby ZIP codes shows current planning rates and what affects them. Shared rooms at Adagio start at approximately $4,000 a month and private rooms at approximately $5,500, based on care needs and availability. And our guide on how to choose an assisted living home in Phoenix covers the decision itself, with or without an agent.

Frequently asked questions

Do families pay placement agents?

Ask the agent directly, and get the answer in writing before you tour. Some agents are paid by the home they place you in. Some charge families. Some do both. The amount and the payer matter less than knowing them upfront, so you can judge the list you are given with clear eyes.

Do agents only show homes that pay them?

Some do, and some keep a wider list. That is exactly why the payment question comes first. An agent with a broad list, recent visits, and a clear answer on pay is showing you homes for a reason you can check. An agent who will not discuss it is asking you to trust a list you cannot verify.

Can we still tour homes on our own?

Yes. An agent is a shortcut, not a gate. You can tour any home directly, with or without an agent, and a good agent will tell you that themselves. If you find a home on your own that fits better, say so. The right agent will help you pursue it.

Should the agent do the assessment, or the home?

The home does the care assessment. An agent can pass along your summary and help schedule it, but only the home can judge whether it can meet your loved one's needs safely. Be wary of any placement promised before the home has assessed your loved one.

What should we bring to the first call with an agent?

A short written summary of care needs and medications, a budget range, the area you prefer, and your timeline. If you have paperwork from a hospital or rehab stay, have it ready. It helps the agent judge care fit honestly, and it helps the home do the same when the referral arrives.

Tell us about your loved one

If you would like to talk through your loved one's care needs with us directly, with or without a placement agent, call Veronica Bustamante at (480) 692-9764. We are an 18-bed residential assisted living community in Phoenix, at 1033 and 1045 E Bethany Home Road, providing Personal Care and Directed Care, and accepting Private Pay and ALTCS. Bring this list to your agent call, and bring our tour checklist to the tour. We are happy to answer every question on both, including the hard ones. You can also reach us through the help page.

Reviewed by Adagio Senior Care. Last reviewed: November 2026.