• 60 Seconds with Swett: The Republican Budget and Medicaid Cuts

    There will be significant political interest in what happens to Medicaid funding as Republicans work to pass a budget and tax bill with their very slim majority. Touching entitlements remains politically risky, and the party is divided on whether any Medicaid cuts would be acceptable heading into an election cycle. At this stage, per-capita caps... Read More »
  • Sonida Senior Living Continues Upward Trend

    We are at the end of the first quarter 2025 earning roll call, and Sonida Senior Living posted another solid quarter. Weighted average occupancy for its same-community portfolio (56 communities) increased by 100 basis points year over year to 86.8%, which is at the top end of many of its competitors. In addition, same-community RevPOR increased... Read More »
  • Regional Owner/Operator Purchases Turnaround SNF

    Evans Senior Investments was engaged by a regional owner in a partnership with the University of Michigan Health-West Hospital to facilitate the sale of a skilled nursing facility in Wyoming, Michigan. Opened nearly 10 years ago, Healthbridge Post Acute comprises 65 beds and was experiencing operational challenges, including an annual net... Read More »
  • Family Owner Divests CCRC to Not-For-Profit

    Senwell Senior Investment Advisors sold a family-owned/operated CCRC in Maumee, Ohio, to a not-for-profit organization. The community had been in the seller’s family for 75 years, but they are divesting to enter retirement. Established in 1949, Elizabeth Scott Community spans 51 acres and offers independent living, assisted living, memory care... Read More »
  • HUD-Backed Seniors Housing Community Opens on Long Island

    A HUD-financed seniors housing project has celebrated its grand opening in Bay Shore, New York. Netherbay at Bay Shore is a state-of-the-art assisted living/memory care community located at the historic Gulden family’s summer homestead on Long Island. It features 72 units and is operated by Meridian Senior Living. Greystone’s Lisa Fischman had... Read More »
Dwight Capital Provides Two Bridge Loans

Dwight Capital Provides Two Bridge Loans

Dwight Capital closed a couple of bridge loans for skilled nursing clients in the Midwest. First up, the firm arranged a $3.77 million loan for a senior care facility in Beloit, Kansas. Built in multiple stages from 1971 to 2004, the campus includes 110 units and 116 beds of assisted living and skilled nursing. Then, in Gary, Indiana, Dwight Capital secured a $4.02 million bridge loan for a 100-bed SNF to pay off existing bank and partnership debt. It was originally built in 1969 and renovated in between 1973 and 1980. Perhaps another renovation is in store? Read More »
HJ Sims In It for the Long Haul

HJ Sims In It for the Long Haul

When a CCRC in Norfolk, Virginia wanted to launch a major $200 million expansion of its campus, it turned to its long-time partner HJ Sims to finance the project. The two go way back (to the early 2000s), with Sims structuring, placing or underwriting the initial seed capital transaction, the first phase of development financing, a refinancing in 2014 and finally, the current development financing. This transaction saw Sims arrange a $100 million draw-down bank loan, coordinating with SunTrust Bank and TD Bank. SunTrust served as administrative agent and provided $65 million of the financing. Then, Sims underwrote $101.1 million of fixed-rate bonds, resulting in over $500,000 in savings on... Read More »
Class Act for Washington State?

Class Act for Washington State?

Washington has passed its version of a long-term care insurance bill, sort of, using a payroll tax to fund it. Unlike the misconceived Class Act that was originally part of the Affordable Care Act, which was designed to rob Peter to pay Paul, Washington State has just passed its own version, The Long-Term Care Trust Act. While the intent is worthy, I don’t think it will accomplish its goals. As now passed, the Act will be funded by a payroll tax of 58 cents for every $100 of salary. For someone making $20 per hour, that comes to about $240 per year, and they can least afford it. I have seen no mention of an employer match, but I am sure that is coming. The sponsors claim that family... Read More »
Brunet and Lautner Move to Newmark Knight

Brunet and Lautner Move to Newmark Knight

Just a few months after announcing the hiring of the HFF seniors housing team to its ranks, Newmark Knight Frank (NKF) just announced that it snagged industry veterans Heidi Brunet and Lisa Lautner from Berkadia. They will join NKF as executive managing directors and will work with Sarah Anderson on the firm’s seniors housing debt and structured finance team. The duo has a combined 40 years of experience and has originated more than $8 billion in seniors housing related financings in the past seven years through Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, HUD and balance sheet lenders. With the combination of the top brokerage team last year, in terms of dollar value of sales transactions, the NKF platform... Read More »
KeyBank Refinances Western New York Properties

KeyBank Refinances Western New York Properties

A couple of seniors housing communities in western New York received Freddie Mac financing courtesy of KeyBank Real Estate Capital. Carolyn Nazdin of the firm’s Healthcare Group arranged two fixed-rate loans with 15-year terms and five-year interest-only periods. The first, at $45.8 million, was secured by a 162-unit community in Orchard Park. Built in 1992 and renovated in 2016, it consists of 114 assisted living, 32 independent living and 16 memory care units. The other $20.1 million loan went to a 96-unit assisted living/memory care community in Pittsford that was built 20 years ago. Both loans refinanced existing debt on the properties. Read More »
How Did Buyers Value Cash Flow in Seniors Housing M&A in 2018?

How Did Buyers Value Cash Flow in Seniors Housing M&A in 2018?

For the seventh year in a row, there was a perfect correlation between the age of seniors housing communities sold and their average net operating income per unit, according to the Seniors Housing Acquisition & Investment Report. This makes sense, given that the newer communities should better reflect the current demand (by unit size, amenities, etc.) and require less capex to maintain their competitiveness. Newer communities also have an easier time attracting good staff and charging higher rents. Those newest communities (built after 2013) had an average of $19,700 per unit of NOI, relatively consistent with recent levels. The next subset of properties built between five and 10 years... Read More »
Lancaster Pollard Keeps the HUD Closings Coming

Lancaster Pollard Keeps the HUD Closings Coming

Lancaster Pollard Mortgage Company just closed its 16th HUD financing since the government shutdown ended in January. They clearly did their leg work during the shutdown, as in the first three weeks following it, 16 of the 25 FHA 232 commitments issued by HUD went to Lancaster Pollard, for a total of $224 million in closings. The latest transaction featured a $17.3 million loan closed on behalf of Tryko Partners for its 171-bed skilled nursing facility in Brick, New Jersey. Over four years ago, Tryko had acquired the facility from Florida-based New Vision for $10 million, or under $60,000 per bed. At the time, it featured 148 skilled nursing beds and 23 assisted living units and operated... Read More »
The Transitional Care Take-Over?

The Transitional Care Take-Over?

We’ve written about the bifurcation in the skilled nursing market between the traditional SNFs, which tend to be older, feature smaller, semi-private rooms and heavily rely on Medicaid revenues, and the new transitional care facilities, which cater almost exclusively to the Medicare and private pay patients. These feature large private rooms and come with many of the bells and whistles of modern senior living communities. Not surprisingly, these newer properties are developed and sold at much higher values than the traditional SNFs. Indeed, according to our recently-published Skilled Nursing Acquisition & Investment Report, facilities built in the last 20 years (which would include... Read More »
Blueprint Leases St. Louis-Area Skilled Nursing Portfolio

Blueprint Leases St. Louis-Area Skilled Nursing Portfolio

A portfolio of three skilled nursing facilities and 444 total beds in the St. Louis, Missouri area found a new operator/tenant thanks to Ben Firestone, Michael Segal and Billy Lichtenstein of Blueprint Healthcare Real Estate Advisors. Featuring positive cash flow (benefitted by Missouri’s Medicaid rate increase) and desirable locations near Barnes-Jewish Hospital, these facilities are owned by an Illinois-based owner/operator that decided to shift its focus to other owned and recently acquired facilities in Arizona and Illinois. A growing operator with an existing presence in the state was chosen as the new operator for its commitment to capital improvements. The transaction was structured... Read More »
Welltower Acquires Two South Bay Partners Properties

Welltower Acquires Two South Bay Partners Properties

Welltower announced that it has added two more San Antonio senior living properties to its portfolio. Originally developed by the seller, South Bay Partners, these communities opened in 2016 adjacent to each other in the Dominion area of northwest San Antonio. They combine for 335 units of independent living, assisted living and memory care. Welltower is no stranger to the market, already owning two senior living communities operated by Sagora Senior Living, an LTAC operated by LifeCare Management Services and a portfolio of five medical office buildings. No purchase price was disclosed for the latest acquisition, but the properties were last assessed together for $48.6 million, according... Read More »