


Seniors Housing Occupancy Slides Further, But Slower
Well, it shouldn’t have surprised anyone, but occupancy levels for stabilized independent living and assisted living continued their drop in the month of May, according to NIC MAP. Across the country’s 31 largest metropolitan areas, assisted living properties first fell by 170 basis points from 87.8% in March (the first full month of the COVID-19 pandemic) to 86.1% in April. The sector occupancy fell by a lesser degree in May, by 90 basis points to 85.2%. So, in total, that is a 360-basis point drop for assisted living since the pandemic began. The independent living sector has so far fared better than assisted living, but it also has the benefit of being in a stronger position going... Read More »
National Health Investors: What Pandemic?
It seems that National Health Investors is doing just fine during this pandemic, as are its operators, apparently. The Tennessee-based REIT reported that it has collected 99.7% of its contractual rent in April, 100% in May, and so far, 99.4% in June. That should make shareholders feel pretty good right now. On the occupancy front, excluding communities that have been open less than 24 months, it was not quite as rosy but nothing they can’t handle. For 41 same-community properties operated by Bickford Senior Living, occupancy has dropped 240 basis points, from 86.6% in March to 84.2% in May. The first quarter averaged 87.3%. Senior Living... Read More »
REIT Sale/Leasebacks Are Not Dead
It is very easy to say that sale/leaseback structures with REITs are dead, especially if your leases are dead in the water. But then you have to ask, why are they dead in the water, and why did you enter into long-term leases in the first place? You could have always financed your properties with debt at 70% to 80% loan-to-value, but the odds are you wanted to recapture some of your equity for growth (or your retirement), and there is always a price you pay for essentially leveraging your property 100%. The real benefit of a sale/leaseback, in addition to the cash you take out, is that everything above the lease payment is yours. The REIT gets its fixed lease return,... Read More »