As we are now in full swing of the flu (and COVID) season, it is normal to expect that occupancy levels nationwide would decline slightly even though the seniors housing industry continues on its operational upswing. This is exactly what happened at Brookdale Senior Living.
Consolidated weighted average occupancy in December declined sequentially by 20 basis points to 79.3%. This compares with 79.2% in September.
In slightly better news, occupancy at the end of December was 80.5%, up 10 basis points from November, but still down 30 basis points from October and matching September’s level. However, Brookdale has now posted five straight months of month-end census above 80%, and barring any catastrophe, we expect that to continue, especially as the company pares down on the number of communities operated as a result of the agreements reached with Ventas.
Other good news was that move-in volume in the fourth quarter surpassed the prior year’s fourth quarter and exceeded the pre-pandemic average for the same period by 8%. They must keep that up and maybe keep a better eye on move-outs. Never easy.
