Senior living across the Tri-Cities and northern Michigan
I cover Saginaw, Bay and Midland counties, the Tri-Cities, and a good deal of northern Michigan. I am based in Freeland, which puts me roughly twenty minutes from most of the communities I work with.
Free to your family. I am paid by the communities, never by you.
Which areas does Laura cover?
Saginaw, Bay City and Midland form the Tri-Cities, and I know the senior communities in all three well enough to tell you which corridor suits your family and how far you would genuinely be driving to visit. I am based in Freeland, near the middle of the three, which is why I can usually get to a tour with you at fairly short notice.
Not sure whether you are inside the area? Call 989-385-5239 and ask. If I cannot reach you, I will tell you who can.
Which county should we be looking in?
Usually the one nearest to whoever will visit most often, rather than the one with the smartest building. Visits are what keep somebody well, and a forty minute drive that feels manageable in June tends to feel very different in February. Here is how the three Tri-Cities counties compare, with rough drive times from Freeland.
| County | Main hub | Also covered | Typical drive from Freeland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saginaw County | Saginaw and Saginaw Township | Frankenmuth, Freeland, Thomas Township, Birch Run, Hemlock, Chesaning | 10 to 25 minutes |
| Bay County | Bay City | Essexville, Auburn, Kawkawlin, Pinconning, Bangor Township | 20 to 35 minutes |
| Midland County | Midland | Sanford, Coleman, Hope, Larkin Township | 15 to 30 minutes |
| Northern Michigan | Varies | Mount Pleasant, Clare, Gladwin, Houghton Lake, Gaylord, Traverse City | 45 minutes and up |
Drive times are rough guides from Freeland in normal traffic, not promises.
Which towns does Laura work in?
If your town appears on this list, I have almost certainly toured somewhere nearby within the last year and can tell you what I thought of it. The list is not exhaustive either, so if you do not see your township here it is still worth ringing to ask. I cover a good deal more of northern Michigan than most placement advisors do.
Saginaw County
Saginaw County is where I do the largest share of my work, partly because it has the most senior living choice in the Tri-Cities and partly because I live just up the road in Freeland. Assisted living, memory care and independent living are all well represented here, and most of it sits within a twenty five minute drive of the city.
- Saginaw
- Saginaw Township
- Freeland
- Frankenmuth
- Thomas Township
- Bridgeport
- Birch Run
- Zilwaukee
- Carrollton
- Kochville
- Hemlock
- Merrill
- St. Charles
- Chesaning
- Shields
- Buena Vista
Bay County
Bay County suits families who want somewhere a little quieter than Saginaw while staying close to a hospital and to the water. Bay City itself has a good spread of assisted living and memory care, and the surrounding townships add smaller communities that often feel more homely to someone moving out of a house for the first time.
- Bay City
- Essexville
- Auburn
- Kawkawlin
- Pinconning
- Munger
- Linwood
- Bangor Township
- Monitor Township
Midland County
Midland County is popular with families who want newer buildings and a strong hospital nearby, and I know it particularly well from five and a half years working as a Clinical Liaison at MyMichigan Medical Center in Midland. Sanford and Coleman add smaller, quieter options a short drive from the city itself.
- Midland
- Sanford
- Coleman
- Hope
- Edenville
- Larkin Township
- Homer Township
Northern Michigan
Further north the choice thins out and local knowledge matters more, which is exactly why families up here often struggle on their own. I regularly help families from Mount Pleasant up through Clare, Gladwin, Houghton Lake and as far as Gaylord, Traverse City and Alpena, and I will tell you honestly if a community is too far for you to visit comfortably.
- Mount Pleasant
- Alma
- Clare
- Gladwin
- Houghton Lake
- West Branch
- Standish
- Tawas City
- Oscoda
- Grayling
- Gaylord
- Traverse City
- Cadillac
- Petoskey
- Alpena
There is no bill at the end of this
I am paid by the communities, never by you. That is worth saying plainly, because most families assume help like this costs money they do not have and never pick up the phone. It does not change the advice I give you or the places I show you. If somewhere is not right for your mother, I will tell you so.
Can Laura place someone outside the Tri-Cities?
Yes. Saginaw, Midland and Bay City are home and where I know every community personally, but I place families anywhere in Michigan. That matters most when a parent wants to move closer to a son or daughter in Detroit, Grand Rapids or Lansing, or when a family up north needs someone who knows how to search an area with fewer choices. The service is free wherever you are in the state.
- Metro Detroit
- Grand Rapids
- Lansing & East Lansing
- Ann Arbor
- Flint
- Kalamazoo
- Traverse City
- Mount Pleasant
- Port Huron
- Muskegon
- Jackson
- The Thumb
- Northern Michigan
- The Upper Peninsula
- And everywhere between
Can Laura help if we live out of state?
Yes, and it is one of the most common situations I deal with. A large share of the families I work with are adult children living in Chicago, Detroit, Florida or the other side of the country, trying to arrange care for a parent who is still in Saginaw or Bay City. You do not have to take a week off work and fly in just to get started.
I can be your eyes. I will do the assessment with your parent, tour the communities, send you photographs and an honest account of what I saw, and join you on a video call to go through it. You do not have to take a week off work and fly in to start this.
I will also tell you the things a brochure never will: whether the staff seemed settled or harassed, how the place smelled on a Tuesday afternoon, and whether residents who had no visitors looked cared for.
- Tours on your behalf
- Honest written feedback
- Video call to review together
Why do so many families end up having this conversation?
Because it is genuinely common, and not because anything has gone wrong in your particular family. If it feels as though everyone you know is suddenly dealing with a parent in decline, the published figures for Michigan say they very likely are. Every number below comes from the Alzheimer's Association, Medicare or the federal government rather than from me, and each one is linked so you can check it yourself.
202,800 Michiganders over 65 are living with Alzheimer’s
Roughly one person in nine of that age group, or 11.2 percent of everyone aged 65 and over in this state. Dementia is the single most common reason a family rings me about memory care rather than assisted living, and the Michigan figure continues to rise each year as the population ages. Whatever else is true, you are not dealing with something unusual here.
Source: Alzheimer's Association, 2026 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures, Michigan
Background: National Institute on Aging, Alzheimer's Disease Fact Sheet
422,000 Michigan families give unpaid care, 682 million hours a year
If you are exhausted, you are one of several hundred thousand people in this state doing exactly the same thing. Caregiver burnout is a legitimate reason to look at assisted living. It is not a failure, and I will never treat it as one.
Source: Alzheimer's Association, 2026 Facts and Figures, Michigan caregiving data
Background: National Institute on Aging, caregiving guidance
Assisted living in Michigan runs about $69,000 a year at the median
Roughly $5,750 a month as a statewide median, against a national median near $74,400 a year, so Michigan sits in the cheaper half of the country. Your real number depends on the level of care, which is why I get written quotes from each community instead of guessing.
Michigan had 196 geriatricians in 2021, and needs about 66% more by 2032
There is a real shortage of specialist clinicians here, which is part of why families cannot get a straight answer about what level of care their mother actually needs. It is also why knowing these communities personally matters more than reading their brochures.
Source: Alzheimer's Association, 2026 Facts and Figures, Michigan workforce data
Someone turning 65 today has almost a 70 percent chance of needing long term care
The federal figure is blunt: a third of today's 65 year olds may never need long term care, but 20 percent will need it for longer than five years, and women need it longer than men, 3.7 years against 2.2. Planning early is not morbid. It is just cheaper and calmer than planning in a hospital corridor.
Source: US Administration for Community Living, How Much Care Will You Need?
Medicare does not pay for assisted living, and most families do not know that
Medicare is explicit about it: it does not pay for long term custodial care, in a nursing home or in the community, and nor does most health insurance or a Medigap policy. Medicaid can, if you qualify. This is the misunderstanding that costs families the most money, and it is the first thing I check.
Source: Medicare.gov, Long-term care coverage
Michigan route: MI Choice Waiver Program, Michigan MDHHS
State medians are a guide, never a quote. I get current written numbers from each community before you decide anything.
Families often ask me to find the nicest building. I would usually rather find the one that is twenty minutes from the daughter who will actually visit, because the visits are what keep someone well.
Written by Laura Giardina, OTR/L, Regional Placement Advisor with
Senior Placement Services of Mid-Michigan. Licensed occupational therapist with over
20 years in Michigan senior care, including 16 years in nursing homes and home care
and 5.5 years as Clinical Liaison at MyMichigan Medical Center Midland.
Last updated .
Let's have a conversation
Fifteen minutes, no cost, no pressure and no obligation of any kind. Tell me what is going on with your parent and I will tell you honestly what your options look like, including the option of doing nothing just yet. If I am not the right person to help you, I will say so and point you towards whoever is. You can also simply ring me on 989-385-5239.