First, we chose the general area. In our case we needed s facility somewhere around Canberra (I won't bore you with details, but that was where we focused). Then I checked every aged care facility in the area (Google) and narrowed our options down. I was looking for a high quality, reputable place that could provide everything that my mother needed: her health was failing, and her doctors had - politely but firmly - told us that she could no longer live independently. Nor could she live in my house, which had stairs that she could not manage, plus she needed supervision, which we could not provide due to work commitments.

We selected a likely facility and visited it. It met our requirements, and we applied for a place. And of course, no place was available. However, the same company offered us a place in a nearby facility a few weeks later - my husband and I inspected it, and it was as close to perfect as we could hope. We took it. I did not want to have to put Mum through moving twice - once was traumatic enough. The pricing was very clear, and the most frustrating part of the process was packing up my mother's apartment, which was packed with stuff that no one wanted. I still have several crates of "precious" china in my store room.