One of the takeaways from the NIC Spring Conference earlier this month was that more lenders seemed willing to jump back into the market, possibly offering more competitive terms to get deals, as well. Tremper Capital Group has seen that first hand with one of its latest financings.
The borrower was Focus Healthcare Partners, looking to finance its acquisition of Cedarhurst of Woodland Hills in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Originally built in 2016 as an active adult community by Avenida Partners and Carlyle Group, Woodland Hills features 140 independent living units and has been rebranded as The Cedars at Woodland Hills, with 12 Oaks brought in to manage it. Occupancy was in the low-90s, and it is in excellent condition. It was last purchased in 2017 by Harbert Management Corporation, according to the Tulsa County Assessor’s office, for $25.872 million, but the current purchase price was not disclosed.
Most of the appetite among active lenders and those looking to get back into the space has been for stabilized, higher-quality deals, so the Tulsa acquisition attracted term sheets from a variety of lenders, including banks, agencies, lifecos and others. Tremper Capital Group brought the deal to market at the start of 2025, and Focus ended up going with an existing regional bank relationship, which was able to offer terms that were competitive with the agencies and lifecos. The loan featured a five-year term and attractive fixed interest rate, but other details were not disclosed. Cary Tremper and Jonathan Propst of TCG arranged the loan.
If more lenders start competing for these Class-A, stabilized deals and start offering more attractive terms, then we could see continued upward pressure on pricing for these assets. That could in turn lure more sellers to market with their high-quality properties, and the cycle will continue.
Tremper Capital Group also closed a couple of refinances in the first quarter. Matt Miller and Austin Benacquisto first arranged an $11 million loan for an assisted living/memory care community in Orange County, California, arranged on behalf of a top California-based sponsor. The 99-unit community was built in the 1990s and was well occupied above 90%. It was also profitable, but when TCG began sourcing a refinance of the previous bank loan in the second quarter of 2024, debt service coverage was around 1.0x and very little interest was shown at the time. Perhaps that kind of deal would have gotten more interest in today’s market.
A regional bank did offer a term sheet, with the stipulation that the deal close in 2025. The non-recourse loan featured a three-year term and decent floating interest rate. Performance did improve at the community, and the bank was rewarded for its early commitment with better coverage and nice terms from its perspective.
In addition, Miller and Tremper closed a $39 million refinance for a seniors housing community in a primary market in Arizona. Built around five years ago and featuring a majority of independent living units (with around 200 units in total), the community opened during the pandemic and had some early operating difficulties. It has since fully stabilized, and the borrower was looking to refinance its existing construction loan. TCG arranged a new bank loan with a three-year term for a repeat client.
