News & Press Releases
Senior Housing Occupancy Increases for Seventh Consecutive Quarter
Demand for units outpaces decelerating new supply, fueling occupancy gains
ANNAPOLIS (April 6, 2023) – The senior housing occupancy rate increased 0.3 percentage points from 82.9% in the fourth quarter of 2022 to 83.2% in the first quarter of 2023, according to data from NIC MAP Vision released by the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC). The occupancy rate has increased 5.4 percentage points overall from a pandemic low of 77.8% in the second quarter of 2021 but remained 4.0 percentage points below the pre-pandemic high of 87.2% in the first quarter of 2020.
This represents the seventh consecutive quarterly occupancy rate increase, as a slowdown in inventory growth—0.3% from the prior quarter and 1.6% year-over-year, near the lowest year-over-year increase in inventory growth since 2013—is helping occupancy rates recover.
“The continued increase in senior housing occupancy rates was driven by positive net absorption coupled with limited new supply,” highlighted Chuck Harry, NIC’s chief operating officer. “The likely ongoing recovery in senior housing fundamentals is further supported by the first quarter’s lowest rate of senior housing construction since 2014. And construction is expected to remain suppressed during this period of significantly higher financing costs.”
Senior housing units under construction relative to the total existing senior housing inventory continued to trend lower in the first quarter of 2023 to 5.1%, down 2.7 percentage points from its historical peak of 7.8% in the fourth quarter of 2019. This is the lowest rate of construction since 2014 and is due largely to higher interest rates and a slowdown in financing.
“The increase in occupancy and rate growth should help to drive revenue growth, which may help senior housing properties offset some of the increased expenses related to higher costs of debt, labor, food, and energy that have affected the industry in recent years,” said Caroline Clapp, NIC’s senior principal, Research & Analytics. “The steady improvement in market fundamentals against a backdrop of significant volatility in other parts of the economy illustrates the needs-driven demand for housing and care for older adults that the industry continues to meet.”
The assisted living occupancy rate improved 0.7 percentage points from the prior quarter to 81.2%, while independent living remained flat at 85.2%. From its pandemic-related low, the occupancy rate for assisted living increased 7.3 percentage points, or 3.8 percentage points more than independent living, which was up 3.5 percentage points from its pandemic-related low.
Dallas (84.8%) and San Antonio (84.4%) were the only markets from the 31 metropolitan areas that comprise the NIC MAP Primary Markets that have fully recovered and exceeded pre-pandemic senior housing occupancy rates. At quarter-end, Boston (89.1%), Portland, OR (86.6%), and Baltimore (86.3%) had the highest occupancy rates, while Houston (78.5%), Cleveland (79.5%), and Atlanta (80.3%) had the lowest.
A summary of the NIC MAP Market Fundamentals Data, by NIC MAP Vision, is below. The Market Fundamentals report will be available at 4:30 p.m. ET on Thursday, April 6, 2023.
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About the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care
The National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC), a 501(c)(3) organization, works to enable access and choice by providing data, analytics, and connections that bring together investors and providers. The organization delivers the most trusted, objective, and timely insights and implications derived from its analytics, which benefit from NIC’s affiliation with NIC MAP Vision, the leading provider of comprehensive market data for senior housing and skilled nursing properties. NIC events, which include the industry’s premiere conferences, provide sector stakeholders with opportunities to convene, network, and drive thought-leadership through high-quality educational programming. For more information, visit NIC’s website and follow NIC on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
About NIC MAP Vision
NIC MAP Vision maximizes access, choice, and quality in senior housing by providing data, analytics, and services to industry stakeholders and partners. We are the only intelligence provider exclusively dedicated to senior housing. As the industry’s gold standard for market analytics data, we are trusted by the largest government agencies, 18 of the 20 largest senior housing operators, and most of the largest investors and owners. Every day, thousands of industry professionals use our data platform and proprietary tools to make smarter decisions about where to grow, how to grow, and how to bring a strategy to life. For more information, visit https://www.nicmapvision.com/