After a federal bankruptcy court approved the sale of eight Guardian Healthcare skilled nursing facilities around Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the five non-HUD facilities have now successfully sold to a regional owner/operator. Those facilities include Belair Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center in Lower Burrell, Eldercrest Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center in Munhall, Guardian Healthcare Meadowcrest in Bethel Park, Oak Hill Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center in Greensburg and Guardian Healthcare Highland View in Brockway. They total 299 beds and were built between 1964 and 1992, with subsequent additions completed at each location.
The eight-facility portfolio was originally marketed by Senior Living Investment Brokerage in the fall of 2023 and went into bankruptcy after the buyer’s operator was not approved by the state. Still, the original buyer eventually became the stalking horse bidder. The operations of eleven other facilities were also slated for transfer. Guardian cited “lingering effects of COVID, labor shortages, rising wage inflation, increased reliance on high-cost agency labor, inadequate Medicaid reimbursement and mounting provider assessments in Pennsylvania,” as its reasons to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
Oxford Valley Health assumed the operations of the eleven facilities in October, and around the same time, the court approved the sale of the eight facilities to GBK Eight LLC, which appears to be an affiliate of Noble Care. They paid $11 million, or $36,800 per bed, for the five non-HUD facilities. The facilities were 79% occupied at the time but were sustaining a significant operating loss. The deal closed 45 days after the sales hearing. Ryan Saul and Toby Siefert of SLIB handled the transaction. The sale of the remaining three assets is awaiting HUD TPA approval and will sell for a separate price allocation.
