Frequently Asked Questions

What is NIC MAP™

NIC MAP™ is a quarterly data and analysis service that tracks revenue, occupancy, property and demographic information on over 7,600 seniors housing properties representing over 1 million units/beds located within America’s 31 largest metro areas (MSAs). The subscription based service covers market rate (25+ units/beds) Independent Living, Assisted Living, CCRC, Dementia Care and Nursing Care properties. For more information on MAP please visit www.NICMAP.org or contact Michael Hargrave at 410-267-0504 or mhargrave@nic.org. In August 2007, The NIC MAP data and analysis service expanded it’s supply and construction database to the 100 largest metro markets.

What is the total national number of facilities/properties in seniors housing and long term care?

The NIC National Supply Estimate of Seniors Housing & Care Properties enumerated a total of 46,131 seniors housing properties with supportive services in the U.S. with a capacity to hold more than 3.4 million seniors as of 1999-2000. Of these 46,131 properties (3,411,891 beds), 50% were assisted living communities, 34% were nursing facilities, 7% were independent living communities, 4% were continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs), and 5% offered a combination of property types. Seniors apartments (that is, seniors housing properties without supportive services) were estimated at 11,726 properties and 821,173 units. The 2004 Update to the Size, Scope, and Performance of the Seniors Housing & Care Industry estimated 33,000 market rate professionally managed properties (independent living, assisted living, nursing homes, and CCRCs) with a capacity to hold 3,675,000 seniors. For more details, see the Supply Estimate or Size, Scope, and Performance of the Seniors Housing Industry in the NIC Publications.

Where can I find a list of managers, operators, providers, or lenders involved with the seniors housing and care industry?

• Subscribers to the NIC MAP™ data and analyis service receive access (to the markets they subscribe to) the NIC MAP Supply Database which lists properties, as well as corporate owners and operators.
• The National Real Estate Investor magazine (Oct. '06) in conjunction with the American Seniors Housing Association has lists of the largest 50 owners and the largest 50 managers in seniors housing.
• Published by ALFA (Assisted Living Federation of America), Assisted Living Executive magazine (April. '07) has a listing of the largest 50 assisted living providers.
• Billians Health Data maintains a yearly list of nursing home and assisted living chains.
• Provider magazine lists the largest 40 assisted living chains and largest 50 nursing facility chains (June '07).

To find a lender who is active in providing financing to the industry, see the Lender Locator section.

Where can I find a listing of seniors housing and care facilities?

• The American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (AAHSA) publishes a directory of CCRCs.
• Solucient (formerly HCIA Sachs) published a directory of both nursing homes and retirement facilities, that was last updated in 2001.
• Billians Health Data maintains a yearly list of nursing homes and assisted living properties. A listing of facilities within the 100 largest metro areas of the country can be found within NIC's Market Area Profiles™. For a list of the 100 largest metro areas or details on MAP™, click here. Various online directories now exist, but are not necessarily complete.

What are the classifications for Seniors Housing Property Types?

These classifications have been endorsed by the following organizations: American Association of Homes & Services for the Aging (AAHSA); American Health Care Association (AHCA); American Seniors Housing Association (ASHA); Assisted Living Federation of America (ALFA); National Center for Assisted Living (NCAL); and the National Investment Center for the Seniors Housing & Care Industries, Inc. (NIC).

• Active Adult Communities: For-sale single-family homes, townhomes, cluster homes, mobile homes and condominiums with no specialized services, restricted to adults at least 55 years of age or older. Rental housing is not included in this category. Residents generally lead an independent lifestyle; projects are not equipped to provide increased care as the individual ages. May include amenities such as clubhouse, golf course and recreational spaces. Outdoor maintenance is normally included in the monthly homeowner’s association or condominium fee.
• Senior Apartments: Multifamily residential rental properties restricted to adults at least 55 years of age or older. These properties do not have central kitchen facilities and generally do not provide meals to residents, but may offer community rooms, social activities, and other amenities.
• Independent Living Communities: Age-restricted multifamily rental properties with central dining facilities that provide residents, as part of their monthly fee, access to meals and other services such as housekeeping, linen service, transportation, and social and recreational activities. Such properties do not provide, in a majority of the units, assistance with activities of daily living (ADLs) such as supervision of medication, bathing, dressing, toileting, etc. There are no licensed skilled nursing beds in the property.
• Assisted Living Residences: State regulated rental properties that provide the same services as independent living communities listed above, but also provide, in a majority of the units, supportive care from trained employees to residents who are unable to live independently and require assistance with activities of daily living (ADLs) including management of medications, bathing, dressing, toileting, ambulating and eating. These properties may have some nursing beds, but the majority of units are licensed for assisted living. Many of these properties include wings or floors dedicated to residents with Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia. A property that specializes in the care of residents with Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia that is not a licensed nursing facility should be considered an assisted living property.
• Nursing Homes: Licensed daily rate or rental properties that are technically referred to as skilled nursing facilities (SNF) or nursing facilities (NF) where the majority of individuals require 24-hour nursing and/or medical care. In most cases, these properties are licensed for Medicaid and/or Medicare reimbursement. These properties may include a minority of assisted living and/or Alzheimer’s/dementia units.
• CCRCs: Age-restricted properties that include a combination of independent living, assisted living and skilled nursing services (or independent living and skilled nursing) available to residents all on one campus. Resident payment plans vary and include entrance fee, condo/coop and rental programs. The majority of the units are not licensed skilled nursing beds.

Where can I find regional data regarding the distribution of properties?

• NIC MAP Data and Analyis Service breaks out (for each metro market) the distribution of Independent Living, Assisted Living, Dementia Care and Skilled Nursing properties.
• NIC's original Investment Case for Senior Living and Long Term Care Properties estimates the number of retirement facilities per state in the U.S.
• In Volume 4 of Research Issues in Real Estate, published by The American Real Estate Society, Mike Anikeeff and James Novitzki authored an article titled Quantifying the Supply of Seniors Housing. Although it contains dated (1991) data, it is the last official state-by-state count of seniors housing and long term care facilities by the U.S. Government.

What are the demographics of the aging population, and how does that affect demand?

• NIC's National Housing Survey of Adults Age 55+ surveyed 1,600 households whose head of household was 55 years of age or older. Reported demographics of this sample included geographic distribution, net worth, education, and required assistance with activities of daily living. Also reported are the proportion of people living in seniors housing, the proportion aware of seniors housing, and the attitudes regarding seniors housing facilities. For more information, see Age 55+ study in the NIC Publications.
• NIC MAP Service tracks absorption on a quarterly basis for the 31 largest metro markets. The service also trends the data, giving subscribers accurate an timely information with regards to industry wide and local demand.
• NIC's The Case for Investing in Senior Housing and Long Term Care Properties provides estimates of demand for independent living, assisted living properties, and skilled nursing facilities from a structural demand model constructed by PriceWaterhouse, which takes into account population, disability, income, and home ownership. For more information see Investment Case study in the NIC Publications.
• The Long Term Care Awareness Study published by the Harvard School of Public Health examines seniors' perceptions of and familiarity with a broad range of long term care services. The sample included Americans age 50 and older, with subsets of seniors age 70+ and those at high risk of needing long term care in the near future.
• Demographic information regarding total population is also available through the U.S. Census Bureau.

What are the demographic profiles of residents who currently reside in seniors housing and long term care facilities?

• NIC's Survey of Assisted Living Residents is an extensive study examining the demographics of assisted living residents, as well as features of the communities. Results include basic demographics, health and disability assessments, sources of payments, needs for assistance with activities of daily living, and community satisfaction. In addition, NIC's Income Confirmation Study of Assisted Living Residents and the 75+ Population was a follow-up study and confirmed that approximately two-thirds of assisted living residents have annual incomes below $25,000. For more information see Assisted Living survey in the NIC Bookstore and the Income Conformation study in the NIC Bookstore.
• NIC’s Understanding Seniors Housing Demand, Choices, and Behavior provides investors and operators with a range of insights into the decision-making process, preferences and experiences of seniors when they consider moving to new housing. The report utilizes data from the University of Michigan Health and Retirement Survey (HRS) and a companion study, the Asset and Health Dynamics Among the Oldest Old (AHEAD). NIC conducted an in-depth analysis – from a seniors housing perspective – of 13,000 households and more than 22,000 occupants that were included in the University of Michigan studies. Interviewed every two years, residents answered questions on topics such as health, living environments, housing expenses, and sources of personal income.
• ASHA's The Independent Living Report, compiled from a study of residents in nearly 200 independent living communities, provides demographic information about the residents and resident services, and resident opinions on their communities.
• ASHA’s The Benefits of Independent Living Communities compares the lives of people who reside in independent living communities with people who have similar demographic characteristics who live in the independent living residents’ previous neighborhoods, but who do not live in age-qualified communities.
• The 2006 Overview of Assisted Living a collaborative research project of AAHSA, ASHA, ALFA, NCAL & NIC, provides data about assisted living communities such as payment plans, resident demographics and ADL needs, services offered, and staffing levels.
• Demographics of residents within skilled nursing facilities can be found in the American Health Care Association's (AHCA) Facts and Trends: The Nursing Facility Sourcebook.

Where can I find a list of resources, books, articles, and/or statistics regarding the seniors housing and care industries?