Sonida to Acquire CNL Healthcare Properties for $1.8B
The deal will position the firm as the eighth-largest owner of U.S. senior living assets.
Sonida Senior Living has inked a deal to acquire CNL Healthcare Properties in a cash and stock transaction for about $1.8 billion. The combined entity will have a portfolio of 153 owned independent living, assisted living and memory care senior housing communities.
CHP currently owns 69 senior housing communities in 26 states, totaling 7,535 units. The average asset age in its portfolio is less than 16 years. The company previously held a wider health care portfolio, including investment in medical office, post-acute and acute health care assets, but more recently had concentrated on senior housing.
The deal will increase Sonida’s holdings in the South, Southeast and Midwest. The company will also expand its exposure to markets in the Mountain West and Pacific Northwest, and all together Sonida will be the eighth-largest owner of U.S. senior living assets, owing about 14,700 units.
The enlarged Sonida, which will continue to be listed as a public company on the New York Stock Exchange, will focus completely on senior housing as an owner-operator. CNL Healthcare Properties is currently a public nontraded REIT.
During the company’s most recent earnings call in August, CEO Brandon Ribar detailed Sonida’s acquisition strategy.
“Each of these (recent) acquisitions reflect our commitment to purchasing high-quality, newer vintage assets in strong markets where our operating capabilities can drive significant NOI growth,” Ribar said. “We continue to identify deals with stabilized cap rates exceeding 10 percent.”
Newmark Group is the real estate advisor to Sonida on the acquisition, with RBC Capital Markets as lead financial advisor. BMO Capital Markets is serving as a financial adviser.
Senior Housing Occupancy on the Rise, Supply Less So
Demand for senior housing has been persistently strong in recent years. U.S. senior housing occupancy increased 0.7 percentage points to 88.7 percent in Q3 2025 compared to previous quarter, according to the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care.
That’s the seventeenth consecutive quarter of occupancy rate increases, NIC notes, fueled by the aging Baby Boomer population.
“As younger Boomers transition into senior housing, they seek communities that prioritize health, wellness, and lifestyle—and they’re moving in record numbers,” the organization’s latest quarterly report on the market says.
While demand is up, supply hasn’t kept pace. The cost of capital, materials, and labor continue to act as brakes on supply growth. Fewer than 1,400 new units came online during the third quarter, NIC reports, representing a scant 0.7 percent inventory increase compared to the year before.
