• 60 Seconds with Swett: Senior Care’s PR Problem

    Recently, we have seen stories circulating about the connection between REIT ownership and the way skilled nursing facilities provide care, stemming from a study written by the nonprofit journalism outlet KFF Health News. We’ve seen this before, headlines like “real estate investors profit while patients suffer,” usually with graphic cases of... Read More »
  • Blueprint Sets Pricing Record in New York State

    Blueprint advised a repeat private equity client in a record-setting sale of two standalone memory care communities in high barrier-to-entry submarkets in New York State. Combining for 104 units, these assets were purpose-built in the late 1990s and were stabilized at the time of the deal. Not only that, they were generating cash flow in excess... Read More »
  • CareTrust Keeps Its Foot on the Gas

    CareTrust REIT has deployed nearly $1 billion in closed transactions so far this year, after closing around $1.8 billion in investment activity in 2025, and its pipeline includes $450 million of near-term, actionable opportunities, excluding larger portfolio transactions. The REIT announced that it closed a few separate transactions in mid-April,... Read More »
  • VIUM Capital Announces Slew of HUD Closings

    VIUM Capital closed four HUD 232/223(f) financings in March totaling more than $63 million across a mix of skilled nursing and seniors housing communities. Two of the financings involved skilled nursing facilities in Oklahoma totaling 176 beds. The assets were originally acquired as part of a larger portfolio and refinanced following a... Read More »
  • Lument Secures HUD Express Lane Transaction

    Lument closed a refinance through HUD’s Express Lane for a 120-unit seniors housing community in Lincoln, Nebraska. Built in 2017, Pemberly Place Senior Living features 132 licensed beds and offers independent living, assisted living and memory care services. It also has an on-site medical clinic to offer a range of other healthcare services. The... Read More »
A Premier Purchase

A Premier Purchase

Premier Senior Living Group added a 23rd seniors housing community to its portfolio, and entered the Pennsylvania market at the same time. Founded by industry veterans Wayne Kaplan and Robert Borsody, the New York City-based Premier Senior Living already had operations in Michigan (9), New York (6), Ohio (3), North Carolina (2) and Florida (2). This new addition in Pennsylvania is located near Scranton in the town of Moosic. The stand-alone 35-unit (58 beds) memory care community was built in 1996 and is well occupied in the mid- to high-90s. Premier used its own equity to fund the $8.5 million, or $242,857 per unit, purchase price. Read More »
Divest in the Southwest

Divest in the Southwest

A joint venture between Westport Capital Partners and Integro Healthcare Consulting is swapping two seniors housing assets located in the Southwest. First, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, the JV is selling a 99-unit independent living/assisted living community with a checkered past to Sabra Health Care REIT for $22 million, or about $220,000 per unit. In addition, there are 46 individually-owned condos. Originally conceived as an IL for-sale condominium complex geared towards those in the LGBT community, the property opened in 2008 during the Great Recession, and had a difficult time leasing up under inexperienced ownership. The joint venture between Westport Capital Partners and Integro... Read More »

Recap and refinance

Teaming up with two banks, Lancaster Pollard recently closed a $72 million recapitalization for a portfolio of six skilled nursing facilities in Texas and Oklahoma. The owner of the facilities is a regional provider based in Texas, which will be able to refinance its existing indebtedness, complete the buy-out of a partner and fund future growth initiatives with this transaction. Kyle Hemminger, Chris Mauger and Patrick Hackett led the way for Lancaster Pollard on the financing. Read More »
Being Thankful For What I Do

Being Thankful For What I Do

Happy Thanksgiving to all! So here we are, on Thanksgiving Eve. And what do I have to be thankful for? Besides my family, friends and co-workers, I am very thankful that I made the decision 30 years ago to get involved in the seniors housing and care business. It has been quite the ride, and for those of you who have been around a long time and remember, I am glad I took my last skilled nursing facility listing more than 22 years ago. I never sold it, but Mark Davis of Healthcare Transactions Group took over the sale for us when we exited the brokerage business in the early 1990s, and got the deal done. Since then, I have really enjoyed what I do, writing about what is happening with... Read More »
Brad brokers in Birmingham

Brad brokers in Birmingham

When faced with the option of expanding its 45-unit assisted living community in Trussville, Alabama (Birmingham MSA), or exiting the industry altogether, a local owner/operator chose the latter, at a price of $4.5 million, or $100,000 per unit, with a 7.4% cap rate. Indeed, the owner had already completed initial planning for a Phase II expansion on the 4.5-acre campus. But the community, which was built in 2009, experienced a dip in census to 82%, although this was trending up at close of escrow. Operating margin was solid at approximately 22% on a trailing-12 month basis. Birmingham, Alabama-based Atlas Senior Living was the buyer, which is planning minor renovations to the common... Read More »

The Art of Funding the Deal

Eli Kutner of Harborview Capital Partners has been busy of late, closing five acquisition loans that ranged from $3.19 million up to $34.89 million. That largest deal funded the purchase of two skilled nursing facilities (totaling 496 beds) in the towns of Gallatin and Lebanon, Tennessee (Nashville MSA). The loan featured an interest rate of LIBOR+2.85, a 25-year amortization and a three-year term. Staying in the Southeast, the smallest transaction, a $3.19 million loan with an interest rate of LIBOR+3.25, 20-year amortization and three-year term, financed the acquisition of a 135-bed skilled nursing facility in Tampa, Florida. Harborview stayed in the Northeast for the three remaining... Read More »
Canterbury Tales

Canterbury Tales

Ziegler is helping a not-for-profit CCRC that has been operating for about 25 years in Waterford, Michigan (about 40 miles from Detroit) both refund existing debt and fund an extensive repositioning project. Already with 255 rental units, including 75 independent living units, 40 assisted living units and 140 skilled nursing beds, the community is owned by Canterbury Heath Care, Inc. and operated by LCS, which has been managing it since 1995. Times have changed though, and ownership is partnering with Greenbrier Development to build a new 32-bed memory care building (connected by a to-be-built two-story structure) and renovate the existing skilled nursing building to convert 24... Read More »
A Premier Purchase

Public REITs can sell seniors housing assets too

We’ve read a lot about public REITs shedding their skilled nursing assets, but that’s not all they’re selling. A publicly traded REIT sold a pair of West Coast assisted living communities for $23 million, or $365,079 per unit. There is a 48-bed/24-unit assisted living/memory care community in Corvallis, Oregon, and a 78-bed/39-unit AL community in Citrus Heights, California. Over 93% occupied, the communities earned around $6.5 million in annualized revenues. The buyer, Summit Healthcare REIT, triple-net leased the properties for a term of 10 years to an affiliate of Compass Senior Living. Acquisition financing was arranged by Capital One, and Tim Cobb of Blueprint Healthcare Real Estate... Read More »
The Yankees are coming

The Yankees are coming

Winchester, Virginia was the most fought-over town during the American Civil War, changing hands between the North and South as many as 72 times. Now, in a bloodless affair, a 75-unit assisted living community in town has a new owner (New York City-based Care Investment Trust), to the tune of $9.38 million, or $125,067 per unit, with a 7.4% cap rate. The community has undergone expansions since opening in 1990, including a 35-unit addition in 2008, and today includes 73 AL units and two independent living cottages. Both occupancy and the operating margin can be improved, with both standing at 83% and 22%, respectively. Also, monthly rates, ranging from $2,500 to $2,900 for semi-privates,... Read More »
No community left behind

No community left behind

Capital One went back to a former client to close a HUD loan modification, taking advantage of the low-interest rate environment while they can (looking at you Mr. President-elect). A few years ago, the team at Capital One refinanced a portfolio of properties owned by Terrace Communities, which included a 15-year old, 71-unit assisted living/memory care community in Tequesta, Florida. However, because of a timing difference, that property closed with a higher interest rate than the rest of the portfolio. So Carolyn Whatley of Capital One went through HUD’s loan modification program to reduce the community’s interest rate. The non-recourse fixed-rate loan has over 32 years remaining on the... Read More »
Being Thankful For What I Do

Cap Rates and Interest Rates

With the recent jump in interest rates, cap rates have no where to go but up. Since the end of September, the 10-year Treasury note has increased by 60 basis points, or 38%, to 2.22% yesterday. More than half of that increase occurred after the results of the presidential election. It seems that Trump’s pro-business reputation is making investors believe that increased infrastructure spending and economic growth will soon be upon us, followed by inflation. It doesn’t usually happen that fast. That said, with the recent jump in rates, it is almost a certainty that the Fed will increase short-term rates within a month. And there is now talk of further rate increases next year. So what does... Read More »