Fortress Investment Group just purchased one of the largest rental seniors housing communities in the country, adding The Village at Gainesville in Gainesville, Florida, to its portfolio. Regionally anchored by the University of Florida and the innovative UF Health network, and located directly across from SantaFe College, the 100+ acre campus has 639 total units. Built from the mid-1980s to the late-2000s, the campus features 45 cottages, nine additional residential buildings (six independent living, one assisted living and two memory care) and several community clubhouses with extensive amenities, with 80% of the units dedicated to independent living.
It offered strong in-place operations, consistent cash flow and attractive assumable HUD debt. In addition, its owner, the not-for-profit SantaFe Healthcare, injected capital expenditures of $3 million annually since 2020, including undertaking a complete renovation of the community’s primary dining and amenities venue.
Continuum Advisors was exclusively retained to represent SantaFe Healthcare in the sale of the asset as part of its longer-term business strategy. The sale process attracted highly competitive bidding resulting in more than 12 offers from a range of prospective buyers, including institutional private equity firms, REITs, and not-for-profits, all of which demonstrated the capability to acquire an asset of this scale.
Continuum Co-Founders Jay Jordan and David Kliewer led the transaction, resulting in the sale to funds managed by affiliates of Fortress Investment Group, which was committed to ongoing property upgrades. As part of the transaction, the buyer assumed the in-place financing, which at the time of origination in 2021 was the largest healthcare 232(a)(7) loan in HUD’s history at $94.3 million. The purchase price was not disclosed, but given that HUD loan, we imagine it was nine figures. Excess proceeds following the sale will help SantaFe Healthcare establish a regional healthcare foundation to serve the area.
