Editor’s Picks: Miscalculating Senior Housing Demand

This week, some of our senior housing friends at Juniper Communities made their way to Burning Man. Cue the FOMO (fear of missing out). Check out the hashtag #aginginsurrectionbman on Twitter to follow along with their journey in the Nevada desert.

While we are reeling with envy here in the newsroom, we were sure to bring our readers the hottest news and trends in the industry. We kept readers in-the-know on new research that revealed the senior housing industry may have been calculating future demand in an unrealistic fashion for years. A former senior housing real estate investment trust (REIT) also made headlines after the North Dakota-based company announced it was selling its assets to become a pure-play multifamily REIT.

Meanwhile, we were into a video produced by Cornell University featuring some of the top industry bigwigs. Check out the discussion below. 

Editor’s Note: The Senior Housing News team will be observing Labor Day on Monday, Sept. 5. After we wear out our white pants over the long weekend, we will resume our regular posting schedule on Tuesday, Sept. 6.

Most Read

How Senior Housing Has Miscalculated Future Demand for Years—The senior housing industry may have been unrealistic in calculating its customer base for years, skewing estimated demand and impacting capital allocation decisions. To assess whether the service-enriched senior housing industry has a realistic grasp on who makes up its customer base—and to determine the impact recalibrating the customer base would have on estimated senior housing demand nationally and in local markets—Rockwood Pacific, a California-based real estate services firm, partnered with senior living market analysis firm Senior Housing Analytics to pen a white paper on the topic.

REIT Exits Senior Housing by Selling 26-Property Portfolio—A REIT has moved to completely exit the senior housing industry in favor of multifamily real estate, selling off all of its remaining senior housing properties for about $236 million. Minot, North Dakota-based Investors Real Estate Trust (NYSE: IRET) announced Wednesday it has entered into six different sales agreements with multiple affiliates of Edgewood Senior Living for the planned disposition of 26 of its senior housing properties and one of its multifamily properties, which are spread throughout Wyoming, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming.

New Operator Gains Traction Through Phoenix Development Projects—A Dallas, Texas-based developer had announced plans for five senior living projects in a single metro area, bucking oversupply concerns and bringing a recently founded operator into the mix. McFarlin Group LLC revealed five assisted living and memory care developments in the greater Phoenix area for $80 million, with Surpass Senior Living slated to manage each building.

Assisted Living Acquisitions Revive Struggling Home Care Business—Senior living has seen an influx in outside capital and new players entering the industry, and now there is a reason to think home care companies could be eyeing assisted living as another business opportunity. After losing an estimated 30% to 40% of its home care clients after raising prices, one California company opened up a senior living company to recapture its business.

Around the Web

Is This Sustainable Village the Future of Retirement?—A visionary New Urbanist community outside Atlanta, Serene, has sparked new questions about developing multigenerational, sustainable planned communities. With another planned community on the way, developer Steve Nyrgren shares details of his vision and founding ideas with Fast Company. 

College Students Move Into Assisted Living Facility for Unique Training Experience—She might be a senior, but Victoria Kozar, of New NMilford, Connecticut, felt a big out-of-place when she moved into an assisted living home last week, writes local news outlet The Greater New Milford Spectrum. Kazoo, 21, is a senior at Quinnipiac University—not the elderly variety. She and another student, Joe Huderman, have moved into a Masonicare assisted living home about 10 minutes from campus for full immersion in their medically-focused degrees.  

For Your Viewing Pleasure

How Do We Meet Future Challenges in Senior Housing and Health Care?—Senior living executives, educators and leaders discuss future challenges and opportunities in a video from Cornell University. 

 Written by Amy Baxter