Related, Atria to Target $3B in Senior Housing Pipeline

Atria Valley View in Walnut Creek, Calif.

Related Cos. and Atria Senior Living are teaming up to develop, own and operate more than $3 billion in luxury senior housing high-rises in major urban markets around the United States betting that aging Baby Boomers are living longer, healthier lives and will want to live in best-of-class residences near their families and communities.

The joint venture brings together Related, one of the leading privately-owned real estate firms that is remaking Manhattan’s Far West Side with its mixed-use Hudson Yards mega-project and has over $50 billion in assets owned or under development across the U.S., and Atria, an industry-leading senior housing management company operating more than 225 locations and 27,000 units in the U.S. and Canada.

The initial pipeline includes sites in New York City, San Francisco, Boston, Los Angeles, Miami, Washington, D.C., and other major metropolitan areas with the first projects beginning construction next year in Manhattan and San Francisco. Two new developments, with about 150 to 250 units each, would be completed annually after the initial projects.

“We have long focused on designing and building luxury environments in our country’s most vibrant cities that cater to every aspect of our resident’s lifestyle. This new venture is really a response to a growing need we are seeing from our core urban customers who are looking for a luxurious home as they age, or for their aging loved ones, that is close by and where best-in-class care will be provided,” Jeff Blau, Related CEO, said in a prepared statement. “Our new focus on senior living represents a culmination of our efforts and now means that Related can offer best-in-class housing for every stage of life.”

Blau and John Moore, Atria CEO, said the joint venture would work with leading architects, designers, gerontologists, nutritionists and wellness experts to design the communities that will offer custom services and amenities. The buildings are expected to include a significant number of units, up to 25 percent, that would serve residents with Alzheimer’s and other cognitive issues. Amenities are expected to include spas, beauty salons and fine dining. Residents would be paying out of pocket but no rents have been released.

Changing Demographics

The joint venture partners noted that there is a shortage of high-quality urban senior housing options across the U.S. despite demographic trends noting that over the next decade, the 75-plus age group will become an even larger segment of society.

“The first wave of baby boomers will turn 75 in 2021, and by 2030 all the boomers will be older than 65.  Astute developers and capital sources are seeking to enter the seniors housing space now, in order to be well positioned to benefit from the huge increase in demand for seniors housing that the boomers will create.  And increasingly, developers are turning to urban infill locations where they can build larger projects that will have greater appeal to institutional capital,” Charles Bissell, Managing Director, JLL, Valuation & Advisory Services, told Multi-Housing News. “The commitment of significant resources to the seniors housing sector by a quality developer like Related Companies is a strong affirmation of the desirability of the sector.”

Earlier this year, Related broke ground on The Curve @ West Angeles, a 70-unit affordable senior housing community in Los Angeles.

Image courtesy of Atria Senior Living