August used to be the month for vacations, but for some, not this year.

August is supposed to be a sleepy month. But as soon as I left on a summer vacation, the biggest deal of the year was announced, and we had a series of uneven earnings reports from the few remaining public companies. The large acquisition by Welltower was a bit of a surprise because we thought that deal had died late last year. And it did, a few times. And with a sub-6% in-place cap rate with occupancy for the portfolio so low, Welltower is obviously counting on a change in management to spruce up the cash flow. Great locations yes, but we thought the Big Three were taking a break from the high-priced portfolios. I guess not.

What struck me from my trip Down Under was that things are not too different there than they are here. Hearing one local talk about the travails of her elderly mother and senior care options, not to mention some problems with quality of care, was no different from what we hear about here. And why should it be different? One big difference? Their minimum wage is $20 per hour, which is about $15 at current exchange rates. We may be there soon enough, but I am not sure that will change many things, other than operating margins. Glad to be back.