Wendy,

I'm not recommending this for everyone, but the waiting list is five years long, so some folks think it's worth the price. For us, part of the appeal is that it's just up the road and still within walking distance of the beach.

For one thing, you can't buy anything in Montecito for $500K -- last I read, median price house was around $2.3 million, and even a decent condo costs well above $1 million and can go above $2 million. The retirement resort was converted from a grand estate decades ago, so the grounds are beautiful. Residents come from around the world, and include the rich and famous. Many have their cottages extensively remodeled, and some combine two units to create an even larger living area. We ain't talking about poor folk like you and me here.

Not all of Santa Barbara is that expensive. My mother moved to a very deluxe retirement resort where her moderate size one bedroom apartment was a little under $100K, with a fee of about $2,000 a month. But if she needs assisted living or nursing care, her monthly costs can go up substantially. Her first choice was the flat-rate community discussed above, but she was still on the waiting list when her current place became available.

You pays your money and you takes your choice.
db