Assisted Living Occupancy Woes….Again
According to NIC data, assisted living occupancy dropped in the fourth quarter, which was not a good way to end the year. I don’t like to start the new year off with an “I told you so,” but I will. Fourth quarter occupancy trends were just released by NIC, and let’s just say they were disappointing. Surprising? No, but disappointing? Yes. The fourth quarter is usually looked upon as a solid quarter, with occupancy increases that are necessary to fend off declines in census from what can be bad flu seasons in the first quarter. Until recently, some providers were denying that the jump in development was impacting their census. But privately, we knew there was a different story, even with... Read More »
Recap with MidCap
A few years after acquiring an independent living community in Payson, Arizona (located in the middle of the Tonto National Forest), Compass Senior Living is refinancing the property, with the help of MidCap Financial. Originally built in 2006 by a not-for-profit operator, this 50-unit community was eventually sold to Compass in 2014. Since then, occupancy and operating margin have improved, and the property’s value, thus, increased. The $4.5 million floating rate loan came with a three-year term and not only refinanced existing debt, but also recaptured equity that was originally committed to the 2014 acquisition. Read More »
Growth by Northwest
Cascadia Healthcare grew leaps and bounds in just one transaction announcement: its acquisition of three skilled nursing facilities in Idaho (2) and Montana. Since its start in 2015, Cascadia had been in operation at one location (a SNF in Boise, Idaho), and has been in the process of developing two transitional care facilities in Boise and Nampa, Idaho, which are expected to open later this year. Now, the company is adding a 117-bed facility in Coeur D’Alene, Idaho, a 60-bed facility in Orofino, Idaho and a 101-bed facility in Libby, Montana, marking its entry into Big Sky Country. Cascadia entered into a triple-net lease agreement with the real estate owner to assume operations of the... Read More »Big Changes for Transforming Age
The newly transformed Transforming Age, formerly Presbyterian Retirement Communities Northwest, is branching out of the West Coast for the first time in its 60-year history. Based in Bellevue, Washington and already with three communities in the Seattle area, the not-for-profit just announced it is acquiring eight (yes, eight) senior living communities in the Minneapolis, Minnesota area, at a price of approximately $138 million, according to local media. Built from 1969 to 2008, the communities range in size from 84 units to 181 units, and feature independent living, assisted living and memory care services. This represents a big jump in operational size for Transforming Age, so here’s... Read More »The Alley Way
Matthew Alley of Senior Living Investment Brokerage was certainly busy over New Years, closing a couple of rural SNF transactions. First, he and Ryan Saul sold a 99-bed facility in Clinton, Iowa (about 40 miles northeast of Davenport) for $2.1 million, or $21,212 per bed. Built in 1950, but with updates in the 2000s, the facility was just 72% occupied and losing money. The national real estate owner leased it to a national operator, but that was set to expire on January 1, 2017. Despite closing the transaction in December, the buyer, a regional owner/operator with other facilities in the state, took over operations on January 1. Then, Mr. Alley went down to Synder, Texas to sell a 99-bed... Read More »
Pay up in Pennsylvania
Good and hard work is usually rewarded in this industry, and the single-asset private owner of an historically five-star rated skilled nursing facility in Lansdale, Pennsylvania is certainly retiring in style with the facility’s sale. Though the purchase price was undisclosed, we hear it sold for one of the highest prices per bed for a single-facility in Pennsylvania. Built in 1980 on just under six acres, the property was very well maintained and featured seven private rooms, 51 semi-private rooms and 24 three-bed wards. And in addition to a 96% occupancy, it also had strong cash flow. That operational success, combined with amenities like a business office, conference room, country... Read More »Transaction trifecta
Mike Garbers and Cody Tremper of Greystone Real Estate Advisors finished out the year strong with three closings, including U.S. Memory Care’s sale of four MC communities in Texas to a private investor, and a publicly traded REIT’s divestment of a 298-unit independent living community operated by Brookdale Senior Living in Southfield, Michigan. Tremper and Garbers’ final transaction of 2016 also involved Brookdale, as the company sold two of its Carolina seniors housing communities for $33 million. The Hendersonville, North Carolina community was built in 1985 and 1993 with an independent living building and a separate memory care facility. There was also a 30-year old property in... Read More »
Changes already for 2017
Welltower has a management shuffle, and The Ensign Group expands its real estate ownership. Well, first of all, Happy New Year. I am not sure if it is going to be all that happy, bumpy yes, happy, it will depend on your perspective. For the first act of the new Congress to upend their own ethics rules, and then to rescind what they just passed, well, one would think they have more important things to do. Perhaps they are waiting until January 20. Meanwhile, we are heading into a year of uncertainty as well, with the full impact of rising interest rates not felt yet, even though financing activity seemed to take a breather in December. The only big news was that at year-end The Ensign Group... Read More »
Ensign Expands
The Ensign Group acquired the underlying real estate of a portfolio of 15 Wisconsin assisted living communities nearly a year and a half after taking over the operations under a lease. Formerly owned by Harmony Living Center, LLC, these communities feature a total of 687 units and a combined occupancy of 83%. Ensign financed the purchase with cash from its revolver, and Ziegler handled the transaction, which did not come with a disclosed price. This move reflects a desire of Ensign to own a larger share of its operating portfolio, especially after it spun off many of its real estate assets into CareTrust REIT in 2014. Now, Ensign owns the underlying real estate in 50 of its 209 operations.... Read More »HHC’s Fitting Finale
Housing & Healthcare Finance (HHC) finished the year with over $25 million in two more HUD transactions. First, for a portfolio of five Texas skilled nursing facilities all built between 1960 and 1985 and owned by an experienced operator, HHC closed five loans totaling $21.2 million. The financing, with interest rates in the low 3s, will help fund needed repairs across the portfolio. And then, HHC arranged $5.6 million, also with an interest rate in the low 3s, for a 94-bed skilled nursing/memory care facility in California. Built in 1964, the facility was also owned by an experienced operator. Read More »Schedule a demo
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