Occupancy rates have steadily pushed upward for senior residential units after the double-digit declines recorded during the first year of the Covid 19 outbreak, says a new report.
As compiled by the Annapolis, Maryland-based National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care, some 47% of senior housing owners say their independent living units have actually returned to general levels seen just before the pandemic.
That increased occupancy rate was also reported by 37% of the operators of memory care units, while only 30% of overall assisted living facilities have witnessed a similar return.
Altogether, senior housing rates have been on the upside now for eight consecutive months, with the latest figures at 83.7% occupancy rate, compared to 77.8% during the second quarter of 2021.
Says Caroline Clapp, a researcher with the National Investment Center: “Continued solid demand for senior housing, paired with relatively slow growth in inventory, has contributed to the current occupancy recovery.”
Clapp added that while the ongoing occupancy recovery rate is the longest-lasting rate increase recorded by the center, “Occupancy is still below where it was at the start of the pandemic.”
In fact, the assisted living occupancy rate remains stubbornly below where it was before the Covid 19 outbreak when it stood at 84.5%. Similarly, the independent living occupancy rate is 4.2% less than what was recorded in late 2019 and early 2020.
Projects currently under construction represent nearly 5% of total existing senior housing inventory, which, while strong, is still less than the 7.7% achieved in 2019.
The highest occupancy rates, according to the study, are being seen in the East, with Boston and Baltimore at 89% and 87.5%. Atlanta and Houston came in at 80.9% and 78.7% respectively.
The Atlanta and Houston markets, however, have seen some incremental increases over late 2022 when the numbers came in respectively at 79% and 77.9%.
Industry analysts, meanwhile, have noted that new building plans for senior housing projects have in many ways been altered as a result of the pandemic.
Earlier this year, Multi Housing News reported on a building trend seeing a greater design emphasis on open space, making it possible for tenants to enjoy more “gardening activities, more sitting in the sunshine, and going for walks.”
By Garry Boulard
