Private REITs may have taken a significant step back from their heady M&A days around 2014 and 2015, but one private REIT has been pursuing a growth strategy lately. Founded last February by George Chapman (former CEO of Health Care REIT, now Welltower), ReNew REIT (or ReNew Investors) now has 61 seniors housing communities and 5,645 units in 11 states in its portfolio thanks to several large portfolio acquisitions, including a 16-property purchase in Michigan and a RIDEA agreement with Southeast-based operator Phoenix Senior Living.

So far in 2019, the company has closed four more acquisitions, adding eight additional communities and 813 units in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Virginia to its portfolio, with the help of more than $159 million in financing provided by KeyBank Real Estate Capital. The relationship between the two firms goes back to when KeyBank acted as lead arranger and administrative agent on ReNew’s inaugural $100 million corporate credit facility, which was subsequently increased to $150 million in December 2018.

On the recent transaction, KeyBank’s Laura Conway and Brandon Taseff helped arrange a $58 million bridge loan and teamed with Charlie Shoop to arrange $85 million in Fannie Mae loans and $16 million in Freddie Mac financing. The mix of fixed- and floating-rate debt with extended interest-only payments helps ReNew maintain a low cost of capital and positions the REIT for further growth.