Senior Living Resident and Family Portal Cost in Dublin (2026)

The verdict in three sentences

For a Dublin operator running 18 senior living communities with around 1,900 apartments, a custom resident and family portal typically costs 45,000 to 90,000 EUR excluding VAT as a 2026 order of magnitude, before the property management connector. The payback comes from reception: 30% fewer calls frees staff for activities and genuine human contact. Success depends less on technology than on an interface an 85-year-old can read and family access rights that are tightly defined.

What the portal must cover, and what it costs

The COO wants three things: residents booking services (dining, hairdresser, shuttle, laundry), reporting a maintenance need and following the activity programme. Families want the same visibility, updates from staff and the option to pay for some services. Each block carries its own budget.

A 45,000 EUR build covers the core, booking, maintenance requests and a read-only family area. The upper end, around 90,000 EUR, adds family messaging, online payment and a back office with per-community KPIs.

Designing for residents over 75

In Irish independent and assisted living, residents often move in their early eighties. An interface designed for thirty-somethings fails. What matters: 18 px text minimum, one goal per screen, no hamburger menu, buttons of at least 48 px, explicit confirmation after each action. A kiosk-mode tablet in the lobby serves residents without their own device.

Family rights deserve a dedicated workshop. A daughter may see the activity calendar but not care notes or invoices unless the resident has consented. Where the operator also runs HIQA-registered designated centres, any care information falls under HIQA standards on records and information governance, on top of GDPR as enforced by the Data Protection Commission. Plan a consent register and easy revocation.

Timeline and watch points

Allow 4 to 6 months: 4 weeks of scoping with two pilot communities, 10 to 14 weeks of build, 4 weeks of testing with real residents, then rollout in waves of 5 communities. The property management connector is often the critical path: getting API access from the vendor can take 6 weeks on its own.

Budget for maintenance too. Kolonell's application maintenance comes in three plans: 35,000, 75,000 or 120,000 FCFA per month (53, 114 or 183 EUR), and hosting is quoted on request based on volume.

Mistakes that derail this kind of project

The first mistake is launching all 18 communities at once: reception teams get swamped and residents lose heart. The second is letting each community manager invent their own service categories, which makes head office reporting useless. The third is forgetting the activity coordinators, who are the portal's best ambassadors with residents. Plan one champion per community, 2 hours a week for the first two months, and a common service list approved by head office before the build starts.

Mini case study

Siobhan, COO of an 18-community operator across Dublin and Kildare, logs on average 90 reception calls per day per community, 40% of them about a booking, an activity time or a small repair. With 30% fewer calls, each community avoids about 27 calls a day. At 3 minutes per call, that frees 81 minutes per day per community, roughly 6.75 hours a week. Across 18 communities and 47 working weeks, the saving reaches about 5,700 hours a year. At 30 EUR loaded cost, that is around 171,000 EUR of reception time redeployed. A 75,000 EUR build plus 12,000 EUR for the connector pays back in about 6 months, and within a year even if the gain is halved.

FAQ

Do we need a mobile app, or is a web portal enough?

A responsive web portal covers 80% of needs and costs 30 to 40% less than separate iOS and Android apps. It can be pinned to a tablet home screen like an app.

How do we handle residents without a smartphone or tablet?

One kiosk tablet per community, at around 300 EUR each, plus reception booking on the resident's behalf covers this. Family access also lets a relative book for them.

Can the portal take payments for services?

Yes, card payment through a European provider adds 5,000 to 10,000 EUR to the build. Card fees run at around 1.4% per transaction as a 2026 order of magnitude.

What do HIQA and GDPR require for the family area?

Every family login must rest on the resident's consent or that of a legal representative, with an access log. A data protection impact assessment typically takes 2 to 3 weeks and should be signed off by your DPO.

How long does staff training take?

Half a day per community is enough for the back office. The bigger effort is 2 or 3 hands-on sessions with residents during the first month.

Let's scope your project. We define the priority modules, pilot communities and property management connector with you for a phased launch. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.