• 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 »
Two More Sales From Blueprint Healthcare Real Estate Advisors

Two More Sales From Blueprint Healthcare Real Estate Advisors

Plugging along this summer with a healthy number of transactions closed so far has been the team at Blueprint Healthcare Real Estate Advisors. After announcing five deals since the start of June, the firm closed two more this August in the Midwest. First, to Ohio, where the team of Connor Doherty and Brian Payant represented an Ohio-based owner/operator in its sale of two skilled nursing facilities for $16.75 million, or $66,500 per bed. Both assets were cash flow-neutral and could obviously improve their operations. That will be the job of the buyer, another Ohio-based owner/operator. Blueprint continued their work over the border in Michigan, with Ben Firestone and Michael Segal selling... Read More »
Genesis Healthcare Pulls Guidance

Genesis Healthcare Pulls Guidance

A lot of people have been nervous about the skilled nursing sector recently, given the deteriorating finances at HCR ManorCare and other companies. However, that has not seemed to impact acquisition prices in the market, at least for the better facilities and facilities in general in attractive markets. Genesis Healthcare is another company that has had a tough time negotiating through the Medicare Advantage reimbursement changes and declining industry occupancy in general. The company’s earnings announcement from earlier this week came without a typical “pre-notice” of the release date, and the conference call with analysts was a rather early 8:30 am ET, which may have also caught some... Read More »

Chevalier Shines In Seniors Housing Market

Amid rumors that a moratorium has been placed on large Chinese companies making significant purchases in the U.S. senior care market (like Zhonghong Zhuoye Group Co Ltd.’s proposed acquisition of Brookdale Senior Living), Hong Kong-based Chevalier International Holdings Ltd. continues to invest, recently adding two more senior living communities and 299 units in the Detroit, Michigan area to its growing portfolio. Getting its start in the market in 2011 with the purchase of three assisted living/memory care communities and 336 beds in Oregon, the company stepped it up in late 2012, when it bought 18 assisted living communities (and 1,322 licensed beds) in North Carolina from a joint... Read More »
Lifespace Communities Redeveloping Its Chicago-Area CCRC

Lifespace Communities Redeveloping Its Chicago-Area CCRC

A 247-unit CCRC in Downers Grove, Illinois (Chicago MSA) is in line for a massive $150 million redevelopment of its campus. In the first phase breaking ground this Fall, the owner, not-for-profit Lifespace Communities, Inc., will look to add 66 assisted living units, 28 memory care units and 102 skilled nursing suites, with private courtyards. The initial project will cost an estimated $61 million, or $311,200 per unit. According to our in-house construction database, which tracks senior care developments dating back to 2013, CCRC expansion or new construction projects cost approximately $420,000 per unit, or more than $100,000 per unit over the cost of Phase I. But, when you add in the... Read More »
Missing Out On Bad News

Missing Out On Bad News

A vacation is a horrible thing when bad news hits the market. It is a horrible thing to go on vacation when all sorts of things are happening in the market, but such was the case last week. What I missed was the roll-out of earnings and the very disappointing occupancy numbers. For some, they were worse than the weak results posted for the second quarter by NIC. The ubiquitous villain was the tail of last winter’s flu season. But it seems the seniors housing sector is surviving on a two steps backward, one step forward cycle, and not making up much ground. What still amazes me is that the warning signs were there in abundance well over a year ago, yet too many people ignored them. Leading... Read More »
The Hyper Focus On Occupancy

The Hyper Focus On Occupancy

Why do investors, lenders and analysts focus so much on occupancy in seniors housing? Operating margin became much less important over the years compared with the absolute level of cash flow earned. This makes sense since a property’s value is derived from the cash flow, not the margin, and increased value from increased cash flow, not a better margin. The one caveat is that as the operating margin increases, the absolute level of cash flow should also increase, but not always. Getting back to occupancy, we follow it closely because trends in occupancy can tell us so much about a company and the markets where it operates. In today’s environment, everyone seems to be blaming consistently... Read More »

Rehabilitation & Physical Therapy: M&A in the Changing Post-Acute Landscape

The rehabilitation and physical therapy M&A market has so far flown under the radar, even though the apparent need will only grow. Publicly traded companies are buying up inpatient rehab facilities, and private equity firms are building physical therapy platforms in major metro areas. But, the market is still very fragmented, which offers opportunities to investors. For those interested in this market, we will be hosting a webinar called “Rehabilitation & Physical Therapy: M&A in the Changing Post-Acute Landscape” at 1PM on August 17th. Our editor, Lisa Phillips, and panelists Luis de la Prida of Spectrum Healthcare Consulting, Jay Shiland of MTS Partners, Lou Ann Soika of... Read More »
KeyBank Arranges Acquisition Financing For New Tulsa Community

KeyBank Arranges Acquisition Financing For New Tulsa Community

Three years after it opened in Tulsa, Oklahoma, an 86-unit assisted living/memory care community sold to an undisclosed buyer. To fund the purchase, Monique Bimler of KeyBank Real Estate Capital arranged a $13 million, or $149,400 per unit, Freddie Mac loan, with a 10-year term and 30-year amortization schedule. Legend Senior Living had developed the community (its third in the Tulsa MSA) in 2014 with 68 AL and 18 MC units. The total development cost was about $13 million, so assuming the refinance was valued at around 70% loan-to-cost, Legend certainly added value to the community, most likely to over $200,000 per unit. Amenities like a theater, private dining room, massage/therapy room... Read More »