Overview and overall impression: Reviews of Anthem Lakes are highly polarized, producing a mixed and sometimes contradictory overall picture. A substantial number of reviewers praise the facility’s physical plant, grounds, social life, and specific staff members, describing a beautiful, clean community with robust activities, good meals, and several appreciated amenities. At the same time, an equally strong subset of reviews reports serious quality and safety problems including neglect, medication mishandling or theft, aggressive billing practices, safety incidents (falls and injuries), and poor leadership. These opposing themes appear frequently enough that prospective residents and families are likely to have very different experiences depending on timing, staffing, and which particular unit, shift, or staff members are involved.
Care quality and clinical oversight: A principal theme is variability in the quality of direct care and clinical oversight. Many families describe attentive, compassionate caregivers, timely 24-hour monitoring, and well-managed medication programs. Conversely, a significant number of reviewers raise grave concerns: no RN presence reported at times, frequent short-staffing (particularly nights), long call-bell response delays (20–30 minutes), missed or withheld medications, wrong medication given, and in multiple accounts medication or diabetic supplies allegedly stolen. Several reviews report significant patient harm (falls, fractures, bruising) and inadequate reporting or communication when incidents occur. The pattern suggests clinical capability and responsiveness depend heavily on staffing levels and which supervisory staff are on duty.
Staffing, training, and turnover: Staff consistency and competence are recurring issues. Positive reviews single out individual caregivers and RAs by name for compassionate, respectful service, and some families commend marketing and front-office staff for excellent communication during admissions. However, numerous negative reviews cite high RA/CNA turnover, caregivers without proper CNA training, poor training, and a number of hostile or unprofessional interactions (including alleged verbal abuse, intimidation, and in a few accounts attempted assault). There are repeated references to confrontational management, a sales-focused or cold director, and staff who appear undertrained or nonclinical in key roles. These human-resources problems are strongly tied to the variable care experience described across reviews.
Management, communication, and billing/ethics: Management and communication emerge as another major fault line. Several reviewers praise specific managers and early directors for being supportive, yet many others describe management as unresponsive, confrontational, or unethical—examples include unreturned callbacks, withheld information about significant events (including a death), aggressive eviction notices, billing for services not rendered, and alleged attempts to suppress negative feedback. There are serious allegations of fraudulent charges and even police involvement in response to missing medications or personal items. These reports raise concerns about billing transparency and governance. Families considering Anthem Lakes should explicitly clarify billing practices, incident-reporting policies, and lines of communication prior to move-in and maintain careful documentation.
Facilities, accessibility, and housekeeping: The physical facility and grounds receive mostly positive comments: attractive, new or recently built units; well-kept landscaping; indoor amenities such as a salon, library, chapel, sunroom, activity spaces; and outdoor walking paths and a pond. At the same time, multiple reviewers mention practical design shortcomings: small units (studios described as tight), small bathrooms and showers that are not wheelchair-friendly, lack of automatic doors and weather protection when moving between memory care and other areas, and reports of supplies being moved between rooms (infection risk). Housekeeping is described as inconsistent—common areas are frequently reported as very clean, but some rooms and laundry services have been criticized for being insufficiently thorough or smelly (soiled laundry). Prospective residents who require mobility or wheelchair accessibility should verify specific unit and common-area features.
Dining, activities, and social life: Dining and activities are areas with many positive comments, but also some complaints. Numerous residents and families praise the food, describing varied menus, restaurant-style dining, and staff willing to accommodate dietary preferences. Others report limited menus, canned fruit, heavy or dry lunch/dinner entrees, and a drop in meal quality when chefs or kitchen staff changed. Activities programming is frequently highlighted as a strength—bingo, arts and crafts, outings, bus trips, fishing, trivia, happy hours, and exercise classes are commonly mentioned—and many reviewers say residents have ample social engagement and outings. Still, some families say activities were not aligned with specific resident needs or preferences, indicating program quality may be uneven.
Safety, incidents, and serious allegations: A disturbing subset of reviews describe severe neglect, abuse, and unsafe conditions: residents left in soiled clothing, feces and flooding in bathrooms, staff alleged to have engaged in theft, physical or verbal abuse, and reports of management failing to act or cover up incidents. A few reviews claim criminal behavior resulting in police involvement. While these accounts do not represent every resident’s experience, their severity warrants careful scrutiny by anyone considering the community. Verify incident reporting procedures, background checks, surveillance and security measures, and the community’s approach to investigation and family notification.
Cost and value: Price is another recurring subject. Many reviewers feel the community is expensive relative to comparable options, and some explicitly state they are looking for cheaper alternatives or feel they did not receive good value for the cost. Other families feel the price is justified by the facility, amenities, and staff when the particular unit, staff, and leadership are working well. Clarify all fees, what services are included, optional charges, and how billing disputes are resolved.
Patterns and final recommendations: Overall, reviews indicate Anthem Lakes offers strong physical amenities, an active social calendar, and several consistently praised staff members and services. However, there is a pronounced risk of inconsistent care driven by staffing shortages, leadership variability, and documented management and billing concerns. The most pragmatic takeaway: prospective residents and families should perform a focused, multi-point evaluation—tour at multiple times of day (including meal and evening hours), meet night-shift staff if possible, confirm clinical staffing levels (RN availability), ask for written policies on incident reporting and family notification, review contract and billing details carefully, ask about turnover rates and staff training, inspect unit accessibility (bathroom size, door thresholds, automatic doors), and request references from current residents/families in the same care level. Given the frequency and seriousness of negative allegations in some reviews, families with high medical or mobility needs or those particularly concerned about safety should be cautious and require clear, written assurances before choosing Anthem Lakes.
