Compass on the Bay

Is Compass on the Bay a certified assisted living residence in Massachusetts?

Yes. Compass on the Bay at 1380 Columbia Road, Boston, MA 02127 is listed as Certified on the Massachusetts Executive Office of Aging & Independence (AGE) list of certified Assisted Living Residences dated June 25, 2026, and has held certification since April 28, 1997. Massachusetts certifies assisted living residences rather than licensing them, so there is no license number to look up — the state identifies each residence by name and address.

Compass on the Bay is one of the longer-running residences in Suffolk County: its certification dates to 1997, the first years of the Massachusetts ALR program after the 1994 law that created it.

Check the record yourself on the mass.gov page for Compass on the Bay, which also lists the unit counts, ownership flags and any posted Compliance Review Report.

What did the latest Massachusetts compliance review of Compass on the Bay find?

AGE's most recent posted Compliance Review of Compass on the Bay, conducted April 17, 2025, resulted in a Plan of Correction required across 5 lettered finding areas, 2 of them marked as repeat findings from the prior review.

The report's findings covered emergency-call (e-call) response times, Special Care Residence requirements, resident assessments and service plans, the quality assurance and performance improvement (QAPI) program and on-time reporting of resident incidents to the state.

A Plan of Correction is the standard outcome of a Massachusetts compliance review: the residence answers each finding in writing and AGE grants recertification once the fixes are accepted. It is not a suspension or fine. Nearly every residence with a posted report in Greater Boston received one, so the useful comparison is which areas were cited and whether they repeat.

For context, the median posted report for a Suffolk County residence lists 6 finding areas; Compass on the Bay's latest lists fewer than that.

Read the full Compliance Review Report on mass.gov →

Does Compass on the Bay offer memory care in South Boston, Boston?

Yes. Compass on the Bay has a certified Special Care Residence with 39 units — every certified unit is Special Care. In Massachusetts, memory care is delivered in a Special Care Residence (SCR) inside a certified ALR; it is not a separate license.

Statewide, the median ALR with an SCR has about 20 SCR units, so Compass on the Bay's 39-unit Special Care Residence is larger than typical.

Its latest compliance review included a finding under the Special Care requirements — ask the staff what was cited and how it was corrected.

Where is Compass on the Bay located in South Boston, Boston, MA?

Compass on the Bay is at 1380 Columbia Road, Boston, MA 02127, in Suffolk County. Hospitals families in South Boston, Boston commonly use include Boston Medical Center and Tufts Medical Center.

South Boston's Columbia Road corridor runs along Dorchester Bay and Carson Beach, a short drive from downtown and the South End.

There are 8 other certified residences in Boston: Chestnut Park at Cleveland Circle, Edelweiss Village, Providence House Senior Living Community, Rogerson House, Ruggles Assisted Living, Springhouse, and more on the directory.

Veterans and surviving spouses can be served by the VA Boston Healthcare System (Jamaica Plain, West Roxbury and Brockton campuses) and may qualify for VA Aid & Attendance toward assisted living costs.

How does Compass on the Bay compare with other assisted living in Suffolk County?

With 39 certified units, Compass on the Bay is smaller than most among the 13 certified residences in Suffolk County (number 12 by unit count); the county median is 69 units.

10 of those 13 residences have Special Care Residence units, 8 report nonprofit ownership on their state profile, and 4 list low-income options.

Closest in size among Suffolk County residences, from the same state records:

How much does Compass on the Bay cost per month?

Massachusetts does not publish prices for individual residences, so ask Compass on the Bay for its written fee schedule. Statewide, AGE's 2025 census report puts the median monthly fee range at $4,228–$9,225 for traditional units and $7,218–$10,886 for Special Care units.

Greater Boston generally runs above those statewide medians: this site's cost research puts typical memory care at $7,200–$10,000/mo in 2026, with Brookline, Newton, Cambridge and the Back Bay at the high end.

Its state profile lists no low-income options, so expect private pay for rent.

MassHealth does not pay assisted living rent. Some residences accept MassHealth Group Adult Foster Care (GAFC) or a Senior Care Options (SCO) plan for personal-care services; ask the residence directly, and see our Frail Elder Waiver guide for at-home alternatives.

What should you ask when touring Compass on the Bay?

Start with the areas the state already flagged at Compass on the Bay — emergency-call (e-call) response times, Special Care Residence requirements, resident assessments and service plans — and ask what changed after the review; then cover staffing, fees and move-out triggers.

• What is your average pendant/e-call response time overnight, and can I see last month's response log?
• How is the Special Care Residence secured, and what dementia training do its staff complete?
• How often is a resident's service plan reassessed, and who attends that meeting?
• What has your quality-improvement committee changed in the past year?
• How do you handle a hospital discharge back to the residence?
• What is the full monthly fee for my parent's care level, and what triggers an increase?
• Which care needs would require a move to a nursing home?
• How long have the executive director and resident care director been in their roles?

Visit twice — once at a meal — and read the residency agreement before paying a deposit. Massachusetts gives ALR residents specific resident rights, and the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program can help if problems come up later.

How does moving into Compass on the Bay work?

Moving into Compass on the Bay starts with a pre-admission screening and a written assessment of your parent's needs, which the residence uses to build an individual service plan before move-in day.

• Residency agreement and disclosures. The residence must give you its residency agreement and a disclosure of fees, services and discharge terms; take them home and compare them before paying a deposit.
• Special Care Residence admission. Admission to Compass on the Bay's 39-unit Special Care Residence is based on a dementia diagnosis and an assessment that the secured setting is appropriate; ask what criteria would move a resident between its traditional and Special Care units — here every unit is Special Care.
• Medication plan. Decide whether your parent will self-administer, receive Self-Administered Medication Management (SAMM) help from aides, or need Limited Medication Administration (LMA) by a nurse — it affects both care and fees.
• Payment. Rent and care are almost always private pay in an ALR; long-term care insurance and VA Aid & Attendance can offset them.

If Compass on the Bay has no opening, ask to join its waitlist and keep touring — availability at large Greater Boston residences changes month to month.

Frequently asked questions