NEW CANAAN, CT – January 9, 2025 – Seniors housing and care M&A activity in 2024 topped the previous annual record of publicly disclosed transaction volume set in 2022. There were 703 publicly disclosed transactions in 2024, compared with 513 deals in 2023 and 560 in 2022. The new record surpassed the previous record by almost 150 deals, or 26%.
The number of publicly announced seniors housing and care acquisitions in the fourth quarter of 2024 rose to 182 deals, based on new acquisition data from LevinPro LTC. This represents a 0.55% increase from the 181 transactions disclosed in the third quarter of 2024, and a 20% increase from the 152 deals in Q4:23. Compared to the last pre-pandemic total, Q4:24’s 182 deals surpassed Q4:19’s 116 deals, and the average deal total per quarter rose to 175 in 2024 from 115 in 2019.
In addition, the $3.13 billion spent on Q4:24 transactions, based on disclosed purchase prices, rose by 2.6% from the $3.05 billion spent on Q3:24 transactions and decreased by 21.6% from the $3.99 billion spent in the year-ago fourth quarter. Total spending for 2024 nearly reached $12.0 billion, up from the nearly $9 billion disclosed in 2023. A study on the average valuations for senior care properties in 2024 (including average per-unit prices, cap rates and other metrics) will be released in the upcoming Senior Care Acquisition Report, published by LevinPro LTC.
“The decline in interest rates and the improved operating environment spurred buyers of seniors housing and care properties to announce more acquisitions than ever in 2024,” stated Ben Swett, Managing Editor of The SeniorCare Investor. “The majority of properties sold throughout the year did involve distressed or value-add assets, but high-quality, performing properties began to make up more of the listings in the last quarter.”
In 2024, seniors housing accounted for 64% of the total deals, with skilled nursing comprising the remaining 36%. In contrast, 2023 had seniors housing at 66% and skilled nursing at 34%. Skilled nursing deals made up the plurality of Q4:24 deals, accounting for 44%, followed by assisted living at 38%. Independent living deals comprised approximately 8%, CCRCs were 5%, affordable senior apartments were 3% and active adult was 2%.
“High capital costs and a lack of liquidity discouraged many buyers from acquiring whole portfolios in most of 2024, and few sellers avoided listing whole portfolios as a result, especially if there were non-performers in the portfolio,” added Swett. “That helped contribute to the record-high transaction total, as one portfolio deal was broken up into multiple tranches or individual facility sales.”
All long-term care M&A deals dating back to 1993 can be accessed on the LevinPro database and can be purchased via a site license. In addition, annual results of the seniors housing and care acquisition markets will be published this year in the 29th Edition of The Senior Care Acquisition Report. For information, or to subscribe, call 800-248-1668. Irving Levin Associates was established in 1948 and has offices in New Canaan, Connecticut, and North Bethesda, Maryland. The company publishes research reports and newsletters, and maintains databases on the healthcare and seniors housing M&A markets.