The year may be wrapping up, but Blueprint Healthcare Real Estate Advisors has not been slowing down, announcing a couple of acquisitions during Christmas week. Ben Firestone, Michael Segal and Alex Florea first teamed up to sell two assisted living communities in the Midwest on behalf of a publicly-traded REIT and its national operator partner.
Located near Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and Wichita, Kansas, the communities combine for 52 units and 16,000 total square feet. They were built in 1993/94, with renovations completed in 2016. Thanks in part to strong reputations in their local markets, operations were solid as well, with occupancy over 90%, a primarily private pay census and steady cash flow. However, its REIT owner was strategically reshuffling its portfolio and made the decision to sell.
Blueprint found a family-owned senior living provider headquartered in Kansas as the buyer. They will use their unique experience operating small assisted living communities in tertiary Midwest markets to maintain and even improve operations.
Then, Messrs. Firestone, Segal and Florea were joined by Amy Sitzman to sell a 132-unit assisted living/memory care community in Sun City, Arizona (Phoenix MSA), again representing a publicly-traded REIT seller. Built in 2000, the private pay community has boasted consistent, solid occupancy for several years, and has increased its cash flow with continual rate increases.
However, a privately-owned senior living company based in Southern California with a growing presence in the Phoenix MSA saw the property as a modest value-add opportunity and emerged from a field of 12 qualified buyers to purchase it. It certainly helped that the seller had recently worked with the buyer on a transaction. Operating performance fluctuated during the sales process, but the Blueprint team was able to close the deal on the terms and timeline agreed upon by both parties.
