Businessmen shaking hands in corridor

Atria Senior Living plans to acquire the management services division of Holiday Retirement as real estate investment trust Welltower acquires 86 Holiday owned and leased senior living communities for $1.58 billion.

The transactions are expected to close during the third quarter along with a long-term management services agreement between Welltower and Atria, the companies announced Monday afternoon.

Holiday, which currently manages 240 communities in 43 states, will continue to operate separately from Atria, with Holiday operations continuing to be supported by a team in Winter Park, FL, Atria said.

The transaction “is squarely in line with Holiday’s long-term strategy,” Holiday Retirement CEO Lilly Donohue said. “We believe the significant investment into Holiday’s platform, technology infrastructure and importantly, our communities, will enhance our collective ability to deliver quality services to the dynamic needs of our customers and to create a bright future for our employees.”

Combined, Atria and Holiday will serve more than 45,000 residents with more than 19,000 employees and manage 447 communities across 45 states and seven Canadian provinces.

The 86 Holiday properties to be acquired by Welltower include 80 independent living communities and six combination independent living/assisted living properties. All are private-pay.

Atria will assume operations of the properties and will retain Holiday’s in-place senior management and staff, “thereby de-risking the overall transaction,” Welltower said. Five properties have been identified as “higher and better use candidates,” according to the REIT.

Atria assumed operations in recent years of two portfolios previously managed by Holiday: a 29-property portfolio across Canada in 2014 and, in April 2021, a 21-property portfolio owned by New Senior Investment Group.

Welltower is no stranger to Holiday either. “We are deeply familiar with the Holiday assets, having looked at them multiple times in the past, and have the utmost respect and admiration for Lilly and her team,” said the REIT’s CEO and chief investment officer, Shankh Mitra. “We are delighted that we could finally align the interest of all parties with strategic and value creation opportunity for Welltower’s shareholders.”

Atria Senior Living Chairman and CEO John Moore said, “By joining forces with Lilly Donohue and the great team at Holiday Retirement, this transaction also enables Atria to continue on our path to create a thoughtful variety of choice as an unprecedented number of seniors seek new residential options in the decade ahead.  We are eager to work with the Holiday team as we together build the best pure-play management services business in senior living and create value for Welltower and the other owners of the properties we manage.”