Occupancy Down, Inventory Up for Assisted Living

The occupancy rate for independent living properties was up in the second quarter of 2014, according to the National Investment Center for the Senior Housing & Care Industry (NIC). But the same can’t be said for nursing care or assisted living.

Assisted living occupancy was 89.0% at the end of the second quarter. This represents a decrease of 0.1 percentage points over the first quarter of 2014. The assisted living occupancy rate is 2.4 percentage points above its respective cyclical low.

The nursing care occupancy rate was 88.2%, a decrease of 0.2 percentage points from the first quarter of 2013.

Independent living occupancy, on the other hand, averaged 90.5%, an increase of 0.3 percentage points over the first quarter of the year. The occupancy rate for independent living is now 3.7 percentage points above its cyclical low.

Inventory Data Tells a Different Story

Annual inventory for assisted living grew at a greater rate during the second quarter than for either independent housing or nursing care. At 3.1%, this rate of growth was the fastest recorded for assisted living since 2007, according to NIC MAP, NIC's data and analysis service. 

Annual inventory growth for independent living registered at only 0.5%.

Nursing care annual inventory growth was -0.1% in the second quarter. This represents a continuation of the slightly declining inventory growth for nursing care.

Overall Senior Housing Data

The overall occupancy rate for senior housing properties was 89.9% at the end of the second quarter. This represents an increase of 0.1 percentage points from the prior quarter and a 1.0 percentage point increase from a year earlier.

In addition, senior housing as a whole registered:

• A 1.5% annual inventory growth, which represents an increase of 0.1 percentage points from the prior quarter. 

• A 2.0% growth in asking rent, up from 1.7% in the first quarter. This was 0.2 percentage points below the asking rent in the second quarter of 2013.

NIC’s Chief Economist Beth Mace attributed the increased demand for senior housing to the improving job market and gains in household confidence.