An assisted living inspection report is the state licensing agency's record of what inspectors found on a visit. Read it for four things: which rules were cited as deficiencies, how serious each one was, whether it was fixed by the plan of correction due date, and whether the same problem shows up again in earlier reports. Find reports on your state licensing agency's website or ask the community.
You have a shortlist, and one community's report shows six deficiencies while another shows none. It's tempting to rank them on that number alone. The number tells you little until you know what was cited, how serious it was, when the inspection happened and whether the problem came back.
This post shows where to find the reports, what each part means, and a method for reading three years of them in about 20 minutes per community.
Where do you find assisted living inspection reports?
Start with the website of your state's assisted living licensing agency. Assisted living is licensed by states, not the federal government, so each state has its own search tool, its own terms and its own level of detail.
- Search the state's facility lookup. Washington, for example, gives each assisted living facility a reports page listing routine inspections, complaint investigations, enforcement letters and fire inspections. California's Department of Social Services publishes facility reports through its Community Care Licensing facility search, and its report form states that California law requires a public report of each licensing visit.
- Ask the community. The National Center for Assisted Living (NCAL) lists "ask to review the last licensing or certification report" in its consumer checklist.
- Ask for help finding it. The National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care points families to their state's licensing and certification information, and notes that only state-licensed facilities will have inspection data.
- Check for a state report card. Minnesota launched an Assisted Living Report Card in 2024 that combines resident and family surveys with state inspection data and quality measures. Ask your state licensing agency if it publishes anything similar.
Next action: find your state's licensing agency and bookmark its facility search before your first tour.
What are the parts of an inspection report?
Most reports follow the same logic even when the forms look different. California's Facility Evaluation Report (form LIC 809) is a clear example of the parts you'll see:
- Facility details: name, license number, capacity and the number of residents on the day of the visit (the census).
- Type of visit: for example an annual inspection, a follow-up on a plan of correction, or a case management visit. Whether the visit was announced or unannounced is also recorded. Some states list complaint investigations separately.
- Deficiencies: each instance where inspectors found the facility not meeting a licensing requirement, with the specific regulation cited and a description of what they found.
- Plan of correction (POC) and due date: how and by when the facility must fix each deficiency. California's form explains that the agency sets the correction time based on how serious the violation is and how many residents are affected.
- Civil penalties: whether a fine was assessed or cleared.
Some states publish a separate document for complaint investigations and for enforcement actions. Washington's procedures describe enforcement ranging from civil fines up to license revocation. Look for those documents too, because they don't always appear on the same page as routine inspections.
How can you tell how serious a citation is?
Find the state's severity label for each deficiency and read the description, not only the rule number. Every state grades differently, and the report or the agency's website usually explains its scale.
California, for example, uses two types:
- Type A: a violation that, if not corrected, has a direct and immediate risk to the health, safety or personal rights of people in care.
- Type B: a violation that, without correction, could become such a risk, including recordkeeping problems that could affect care.
Then sort each citation into one of two piles. Care and rights covers medications, supervision, staffing, resident rights, abuse or neglect, falls and injuries. Building and records covers maintenance, postings, paperwork and staff files. A records problem can still matter, but a pattern in the care pile is what should change your ranking.
Why do the date and type of visit matter?
Because a clean report can simply be an old one. Inspection frequency varies widely by state.
Washington requires an unannounced inspection at least every 18 months, and allows 24 months for a facility with no citations on its past three inspections and none from complaint investigations in that time. Consumer Voice has noted that in many states facilities are inspected only every three or five years. Two communities inspected three years apart aren't directly comparable.
Complaint investigations add a second layer. A complaint visit looks at one specific concern raised by a resident, family member or staff member. One substantiated complaint is information; several on the same topic are a pattern.
How do you read three years of reports in 20 minutes?
Use the same five steps for every community on your shortlist, so you compare like with like.
- Pull every report from the past three years: routine inspections, complaint investigations and any enforcement letters.
- Make a simple table: date, type of visit, rule cited, severity, care or building, corrected on time (yes or no).
- Look for repeats. The same rule or topic cited on two or more visits is the most useful signal in the whole file. KFF Health News, in a 2023 guide for families, flagged facilities repeatedly cited for the same violation as a warning sign.
- Check the follow-through. Were corrections made by the due date? Were penalties assessed? Is there any license condition or enforcement action?
- Compare with the others. Consumer Voice suggests comparing a facility's reports with those of other facilities, not judging one in isolation.
| What you see | What it usually means | What to ask |
|---|---|---|
| One records citation, corrected on time | A routine finding | Usually nothing; note it |
| A serious care citation (for example California Type A) | Inspectors found an immediate risk to residents | "What happened, what changed, and how do you check it now?" |
| Same topic cited on two or more visits | The fix didn't hold | "Why did this come back, and who is responsible for it today?" |
| Substantiated complaints on one theme | Residents or families raised the same concern more than once | Ask the ombudsman what they can share |
| Fines or enforcement letters | The agency escalated beyond a routine citation | "Is the matter resolved? Are there any conditions on your license?" |
| No report newer than a few years | You don't know the current picture | Ask when the next inspection is due; weigh your own visits more |
Give the inspection report its proper weight
In Parent Move Plan, the latest state inspection report is one of the most heavily weighted of the 12 comparison criteria, next to staffing and your parent's own reaction. The plan also puts "look up each community's state inspection reports" on a real date in your move timeline, so it happens before anyone signs.
Build your plan in 2 minutesHow should you ask the community about a citation?
Ask directly, in a neutral tone, and ask for the answer in writing. A community that explains what happened and what changed is showing you how it handles problems, which matters as much as the citation itself.
What to say: "We read your inspection report from March. It cites a problem with medication records on the second floor, and a similar item appears in the report from two years earlier. Can you tell us what happened, what you changed, and how you check it now? An email is fine."
Then check the answer against the next report once it's published. For outside context, the long-term care ombudsman program advocates for assisted living residents, provides information to the public about long-term care facilities, and is free.
Inspection reports are one piece of the picture. Pair them with what you see in person, using our list of assisted living red flags, and with what residents and families say online, using our guide on how to read assisted living reviews. Then put everything side by side with our method to compare assisted living communities, and bring the report's topics into your tour questions. If you're still building the shortlist, start with how to choose assisted living.
Frequently asked questions
Are assisted living inspection reports public?
In many states, yes. California, for example, requires a public report of each licensing visit, and Washington posts inspections, complaint investigations and enforcement letters on a reports page for each facility. If you can't find a report online, ask the community for it or ask the state licensing agency how to request it.
How often are assisted living communities inspected?
It depends on the state. Washington requires an inspection at least every 18 months, or every 24 months for facilities with no citations on the past three inspections. Consumer Voice has noted that in many states facilities are inspected only every few years, so always check the date of the latest report.
Is a community with zero citations always better?
Not necessarily. A clean report may be old, and a community that was inspected recently may simply have been looked at more closely. Compare reports from similar dates, and weigh serious or repeated care problems more than minor paperwork items.
What is a plan of correction?
It is the community's written plan for fixing each cited deficiency, with a due date set by the licensing agency. On a California report, for example, the plan appears next to each deficiency, and failing to correct by the due date can lead to a civil penalty.
Sources
- California Department of Social Services: Facility Evaluation Report, form LIC 809 (2023) (accessed Sept 2026)
- Washington State DSHS, Residential Care Services: Chapter 13, Assisted Living Facilities (procedures) (accessed Sept 2026)
- Washington State DSHS: ALF Reports, example facility reports page (accessed Sept 2026)
- National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care: How to Select an Assisted Living Facility (2013) (accessed Sept 2026)
- National Center for Assisted Living: Choosing an Assisted Living Community, a consumer's guide (2025) (accessed Sept 2026)
- University of Minnesota School of Public Health: Minnesota's new Assisted Living Report Card is now available (2024) (accessed Sept 2026)
- KFF Health News: What to Know About Assisted Living (2023) (accessed Sept 2026)
- National Long-Term Care Ombudsman Resource Center: About Ombudsmen (accessed Sept 2026)