• Sonida Senior Living Grows For The Future

    The last to report 2024 earnings in our sector, Sonida Senior Living turned in a decent fourth quarter, but maybe not as good as they were hoping for. They are looking to the future, however, and not past performance, and are gearing up for growth.  While the same-community occupancy of 86.6% in the fourth quarter is certainly above average... Read More »
  • 60 Seconds with Swett: The Demand for SNFs

    We had a fantastic webinar last week that covered our recently published valuation statistics from The Senior Care Acquisition Report but also how valuations, the lending environment and M&A strategies are changing in 2025, so far. Jason Punzel of Senior Living Investment Brokerage, Steve Munn of VIUM Capital and JP LoMonaco of CBRE joined me... Read More »
  • NHI Acquires in New Jersey

    National Health Investors invested $46.3 million, or $386,000 per unit, inclusive of transaction costs, for the acquisition of a seniors housing community in Bergen County, New Jersey. Juniper Village at Paramus comprises 98 assisted living and 22 memory care units. The community has been operated by Juniper Communities since February 2021. The... Read More »
  • Growing Owner/Operator Acquires Illinois SNF/SLF

    Andrew Montgomery of Montgomery Intermediary Group announced a couple of transactions in Illinois and Mississippi. First was for a skilled nursing/supportive living facility in a small, rural Illinois market. The facility features over 130 SNF beds and SLF units and sold to a large owner group that invested alongside a growing owner/operator in... Read More »
  • Berkadia’s Recent Activity

    Berkadia Seniors Housing & Healthcare handled two separate transactions in Michigan and Tennessee. First, Berkadia sold and secured financing for Clinton Creek Assisted Living and Memory Care. The community is in the Detroit MSA and was 90% occupied at closing. It was financed with a bridge-to-HUD loan, representing 67% of the purchase price.... Read More »

Breaking barriers

If skilled nursing facilities sold on average at an all-time record high price of $85,900 per bed, then how did the average 2015 cap rate hold up to history? Well, according to the 21st Edition of The Senior Care Acquisition Report, the average cap rate for skilled nursing transactions dropped 20 basis points to 12.2%, which is the second lowest average ever (12.1% was the lowest ever at the last market peak in 2007). Traditionally, the average skilled nursing cap rate has reliably ranged between 12.0% and 13.5% for most of the past 20 years, regardless of swings in interest rates and changes in financial markets. But with two consecutive years of sub-12.5% average cap rates (2014 was... Read More »

Size matters

We all know that skilled nursing prices have hit an all-time high, averaging $85,900 per bed in 2015, according to the 21st Edition of The Senior Care Acquisition Report. So what was it about the facilities sold in 2015 that helped drive this price up? For one, the average facility was larger than it has ever been. At 130 beds, the average facility sold in 2015 was four beds larger than the previous record-high, shared in 2012 and 2014 at 126 beds per facility. Why does size matter when it comes to price? Unless it is highly specialized, either with rehab care or skilled Alzheimer’s care, most buyers do not like to invest in nursing facilities that are smaller than 60 beds, and some won’t... Read More »
Senior living communities age too

Senior living communities age too

It should surprise no one that as a seniors housing (assisted living and independent living) community creeps farther away from the day it opened its doors, its value typically falls in turn (this assumes several things, like local competition/demand and the general seniors housing market keeping steady and no significant renovations or additions being made to the building). But did this hold true in 2015? Largely, yes. According to the 21st Senior Care Acquisition Report, Seniors housing communities built in the last five years sold on average for the highest price, at $320,500 per unit. Then came those properties built between six and 10 years ago, which sold on average for $225,100 per... Read More »

Age before beauty

There was a complete flip-flop in the percentage of skilled nursing facilities sold by age, with the oldest category (greater than 40 years old) increasing to 52% of the properties sold in 2015, compared with just 22% in 2014 (according to the 21st Senior Care Acquisition Report, released last month). Several of these properties, however, sold for more than $100,000 per bed, indicating their location or profitability overcame the issue of their old age. But, if we saw a massive increase in the number of sales of 40-year old SNFs (or older), then what drove the market to its all-time record high average price of $85,900 per bed? It was an increase in the number of facilities sold that were... Read More »
Regional seniors housing prices stick with tradition

Regional seniors housing prices stick with tradition

Last week, we wrote of a big shake-up in the regional average prices per bed for skilled nursing facilities, with the North Central region supplanting the Western and Northeast regions for the top spot, in terms of average price paid according to the recently published 21st Senior Care Acquisition Report. The seniors housing (including independent and assisted living) side, however, largely followed tradition. Once again, the Northeast region topped the charts (for the sixth year in a row) with an average price per unit of $201,100, despite it dropping 29% from the previous year’s average if $281,700 per unit. That is not surprising given the region’s high land values and construction... Read More »
Where to buy (or sell) SNFs

Where to buy (or sell) SNFs

Traditionally, the Northeast and West regions have commanded the highest average prices per bed for skilled nursing facilities because of their high real estate values and generally higher daily rates. However, the North Central region surprised us with the highest average price per bed, up from $68,400 per bed in 2014 to $100,200 per bed in 2015. This was largely driven by a few high-priced portfolio sales as well as newly built properties that always command high prices, no matter their zip code. Next came the Northeast, which increased from $88,200 per bed in 2014 to $94,100 per bed in 2015. As for the three remaining regions, there was a sharp drop-off, most significantly for the West... Read More »