A Midwestern developer of affordable and middle-income senior living communities, Wallick Communities, recently opened three assisted living communities in Ohio and obtained bridge financing to fund them through lease-up towards an eventual refinance with HUD. Merchants Capital, a division of Merchants Bank, arranged the nearly $50 million in bridge loans for the three developments.

They include a 124-unit community in Cincinnati (which got a $13 million loan at a 24-month term), a 131-unit property in Columbus (with a 36-month $16 million loan) and a 124-unit community on the campus of another Wallick affordable senior living community in Hilliard (which obtained a $20 million loan for a 42-month term).

These properties cater to both working- and middle-class seniors with rents between 15% and 30% below area comps. They also take residents on Ohio’s Medicaid Waiver program. As our Editor, Steve, Monroe, noted in his 60 Seconds series last week, the number of Baby Boomers that will not be able to afford traditional seniors housing along with their health care needs is strikingly high. Developers like Wallick can help meet that largely unmet need.