Blueprint was brought on by a Boston-based real estate investment and development firm in its divestment of a non-core seniors housing community in Quakertown, Pennsylvania. Built in 1989, Independence Court of Quakertown is an 89-unit, 116-bed assisted living community. Occupancy struggled to fully recover from pandemic-era lows, pushing the investment well beyond the intended holding period. However, the community always managed to remain cash-flow positive.
The seller approached Blueprint to conduct a risk/reward analysis of executing a material capex investment program versus divesting, with the firm electing to sell. The marketing effort mainly highlighted the community’s history of resilient performance, as well as the asset’s advantageous location within one mile of two large regional hospitals and the lack of competitive supply (existing and forthcoming). Emphasis was placed on the upside potential that can be reached through refreshing the interior, right-sizing operations, and aligning the asset more effectively with submarket dynamics.
There was interest from a wide range of investors and operators focused on the region, with CareOne (which has a presence in the state), in partnership with Cardinal Senior Living, being selected as the buyer. The buyer obtained financing through an undisclosed lender. There were several unexpected hurdles throughout the transaction, but it successfully crossed the finish line. Kory Buzin, Steve Thomes and Jacob Gehl handled the transaction.
