About 26% of Bainbridge Island’s population is over 65, but as many of them are retiring, they are encountering obstacles to staying in place.

Carter Dotson, broker at BI Windermere Real Estate, said cost of homes is one. As of February, the average price for a family home on BI was $1.65 million. “It felt as though the Bainbridge market was a little bit sheltered. It was. It’s a very attractive place to live, so we had quite a few people wanting to be here, and that only served to push those prices even higher,” Dotson said.

Dotson said there have been several times when prices have increased drastically, with the most recent being during the COVID-19 pandemic years. It wasn’t that long ago when the average price was $500,000.

Jeanette Franks, chair of the BI Senior Center Resource Committee, said homes are costly, and there aren’t enough of them. “I think everybody acknowledges that Bainbridge is a particularly expensive community, and we don’t have enough affordable housing, and we don’t have enough accessible housing,” she said.

“It’s important for people to really think about their forever home, to inform yourself about the choices, to work out a budget, to really consider what would happen if you couldn’t drive, and to live somewhere where you can walk to a store,” Franks said. “I think it’s important to consider those choices, and there’s always going to be new information, but you need to find your best fit. There’s no one-size-fits-all. It’s like trying to find the perfect pair of jeans.”

Housing isn’t the only issue for seniors. Transportation and health care also are concerns. A 2024 study by the Bainbridge Community Foundation ranked several categories. BI ranked high in civic engagement (3.9), education (3.9), and connection to culture (3.9). It scored lower in transportation (2.9), affordability (2.0) and health services (2.8).

Because most seniors live on fixed incomes, Franks said they have to plan all aspects of life.

“I was a graduate student for years, and I thought, ‘Oh, money, that’s not important.’ And then when I started working with older people, I realized how important it can be to your quality of life because, otherwise, your choices are extremely limited,” Franks said.

Transportation

BI is served by Kitsap Transit bus services, Access transportation and BI Ride, a hail-and-ride service.

KT recently improved access to transportation for seniors and others, adding Sunday bus service, but BI Ride does not offer that. And Access has limited hours, operating between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, along with Sunday, but there are no services Saturday.

Healthcare access

BI is served by Virginia Mason Franciscan Health for primary and urgent care. St. Michael Medical Center, a level-three trauma center in Silverdale, is one of the only hospitals serving Kitsap County. County leaders have called lack of access to health care a “crisis.”

Healthcare for seniors on BI is needed. Fire chief Jared Moravec said in 2024, BIFD responded to 3,913 calls, 250 of which were due to a patient falling.

“We pride ourselves in serving the entire community with compassion, respect, and dignity, regardless of age, race, gender, or belief,” Moravec says in an email.

Home modifications

Some seniors who try to stay in their homes have to make improvements for safety. But that can be costly, too.

“Home renovation is expensive, so it is virtually impossible for an older adult on a modest fixed income to implement all the home modifications needed to ensure the safest possible living environment in which to age in place,” Misty Eberspecher, independent living program director at the nonprofit Housing Resources Bainbridge, wrote in an email.

HRB owns eight affordable housing properties with 90 homes and assists homeowners with home modifications.

Eberspecher said bathrooms can be a high-risk area for falls, but replacing bathtubs with walk-in showers is expensive. Some lower-cost measures include installing grab bars or handrails in bathrooms and removing clutter and trip hazards.

“The problem here is that it can be difficult to find contractors to do these small jobs. And these small jobs can quickly add up in cost,” she said. “There are steps we should all take, regardless of age, to increase our safety at home.”

Brad Stockton, director of Kitsap-based Fairbank Special Services, said that company aims to help people retrofit their homes, partly to avoid the potential cost and hassle of moving. “It’s exciting for us to kind of be part of that conversation around, ‘Well, what can we do here to make this a more accommodating environment for whatever’s going on?’” he said.

Stockton said the cost and timeline of retrofits depend on the needs of customers. For instance, installing grab bars takes a different amount of time than installing a walk-in shower. He said the goal of retrofits is to support safety, accessibility and mobility for customers looking to age in place.

“As people think more about aging in place, we get more specific inquiries now about these targeted retrofits that can aid in that process,” he said.

Resources

Reed Price, executive director of the BI Senior Center, said the organization aims to provide seniors with information and resources ahead of time. “One of the key considerations in downsizing is thinking about your future needs. If you are moving to a new home, please consider ‘universal design’ — making sure that accommodations are in place for you before you need them. Also, recognize that you will likely need long-term care,” Price wrote in an email. For more on that resource, go to biseniorcenter.org or call 206-842-1616.

In 2023, Washington passed the Washington CARES Act, a program that provides access to long-term care benefits that are available when needed. “It’s a couple of dollars every paycheck that goes into a long-term care insurance fund for everybody,” Franks said. For details, go to wacaresfund.wa.gov.

Washington state offers State Health Benefits advisors, which isn’t restricted based on income or age. For Kitsap residents, services are offered by Peninsula Community Health Services. For details, go to www.pchsweb.org/or call 360-377-3776.

For all kinds of information, call the county Senior Information Line at 360-337-5700.