• Ventas Posts Strong 2025 Results and Continues SHOP Momentum

    One of the big REITs, Ventas, reported its fourth quarter and full-year 2025 results, and its activity was impressive, with the company continuing to outperform many of its peers. A full comparison will have to wait for Welltower’s earnings release, but Ventas nonetheless posted a strong year.  In the fourth quarter, Ventas’ U.S. portfolio... Read More »
  • Ensign Delivers Strong Q4 and Full-Year 2025 Results

    The Ensign Group posted a strong fourth quarter and full-year 2025. The company reported that FFO was $75.2 million for 2025, an increase of 28.3% over 2024, and $20.4 million for the quarter, an increase of 33.9% over the prior year quarter. Same facilities and transitioning facilities occupancy for the year were 82.9% and 84.2%, increases of... Read More »
  • Omega Reports Continued Momentum

    Omega Healthcare Investors announced its fourth quarter and full-year 2025 results, completing approximately $334 million in fourth quarter investments, which consisted of $52 million in real estate acquisitions, $16 million in real estate loans and $266 million in unconsolidated entities. In 2025 Omega completed $1.1 billion in new investments,... Read More »
  • Senior Lifestyle Recapitalizes Two Communities

    Senior Lifestyle participated with its capital partners in the recapitalization of North Shore Place in Northbrook, Illinois, and The Sheridan at Eastside in Snellville, Georgia. Both communities were developed by Senior Lifestyle and will continue to be operated by the company following the transaction. North Shore Place is a 188-unit assisted... Read More »
  • Berkadia Announces 2025 Activity and Latest Deal

    Berkadia recorded another successful year, with more than $2 billion in mortgage banking closings for the second consecutive year. In 2025, Berkadia’s financings were spread across 123 properties including active adult, independent living, assisted living, memory care and skilled nursing communities. Multiple lending sources were utilized, such... Read More »
It’s Not As Bad As It Seems, And It Is Getting Better

It’s Not As Bad As It Seems, And It Is Getting Better

We have been having a series of off-the-record conversations with CEOs in the senior living industry, and while most are a little cranky about the past six months, many are also becoming a little more optimistic and see the light at the end of the tunnel. That’s the good news.  The bad news is that for most of them census remains at low levels they have never seen before. That is beginning to change as leads, tours and move-ins are now moving in an upward direction, especially in the Northeast which was hit first by the pandemic and recovered first as well.   We have also been hearing that staffing is returning to more normal levels, with staffing costs for some companies... Read More »
Death By or With COVID

Death By or With COVID

We are sure every provider is sick and tired of hearing about how many residents have died of COVID-19 in a nursing home or assisted living community. The problem is that the classification may be all wrong.  Unfortunately, there may be a financial reason for such classifications, as in more reimbursement, or more governmental aid. And for those who can profit from making this pandemic seem worse than it is (yes, they do exist), piling up the number of COVID deaths helps to make their case. It has certainly helped the mainstream media and their advertising dollars.  But here is the problem, at least as it relates to the deaths in assisted living, memory care and nursing homes.... Read More »
Beware The Flu Season?

Beware The Flu Season?

Fears of the flu season compounding the effects of the “second wave” of the coronavirus are overblown, and this is why. Almost every conversation surrounding the coronavirus and outbreaks in nursing homes or assisted living communities eventually gets around to the double whammy of a “second wave” combined with the upcoming flu season. Yes, providers will have to be vigilant, but they have never been as well prepared for the flu season as they are today. Think about it. Less than a year ago, do you remember ever walking into any senior care facility where the staff were all wearing masks, where hand sanitizers were everywhere, where your temperature was taken at the entrance,... Read More »
Beware The Flu Season?

Are SNFs About To Go Out Of Business?

A recent survey by the American Health Care Association reveals some disheartening news. If you believe the results of a survey of 463 nursing home providers by the American Health Care Association, well, we are in bigger trouble than I thought. Apparently, 40% of the respondents said they would not be able to sustain operations for another six months at the current “pace,” which we assume to mean the current census and cost levels. A whopping 72% said they would not be able to sustain operations for another year. The problem is that they, unlike the private pay seniors housing industry, have already received several billion dollars of financial aid to help during the pandemic. If they... Read More »
National Health Investors Beats the Odds

National Health Investors Beats the Odds

Sometimes the regular, tried and true sale/leaseback arrangements that used to be the mainstay of REIT financing still work. Just ask National Health Investors (NHI). After reading some of the depressing second quarter earnings releases, some more than others, it was a bit refreshing to see that NHI reported an 8% increase in lease income, an 11% increase in net income, an 8% increase in net income per share and a 7% increase in FFO per share, all year over year. And you thought the sky was falling.  The REIT collected about 100% of second quarter’s contracted rents, and approximately 96.9% of rents due in July (so far). Have they granted some concessions? Sure, for the... Read More »
Private Equity And Nursing Homes

Private Equity And Nursing Homes

There have been a lot of stories in the media about private equity and nursing homes, often by The New York Times, which seems to have a “thing” about the nursing home industry. All that we have seen has been negative in varying degrees, mostly dealing with cuts in staffing, declining quality of care and increased leverage.   But a recent study by three academics from UCLA and Duke took a very detailed look at what happened to staffing, specifically nursing, when PE firms bought nursing homes. The study also tried to pinpoint what caused PE firms to change the level of staffing, as well as which staff jobs went up or down.  The study covered 77 PE acquisitions covering... Read More »