woman pushing rollator walking down corridor

Senior living occupancy rates continue to rise, according to business reports released Thursday by Brentwood, TN-based Brookdale Senior Living and Toledo, OH-based real estate investment trust Welltower.

The country’s largest senior living company reported its sixth consecutive month of occupancy growth on Thursday. Brookdale said it experienced a slight month-over-month increase, with an August weighted occupancy of 73.7% and month-end occupancy of 72.5%, compared with a weighted average of 73.3% in July and a month-end occupancy of 72%.

“For the month of August, Brookdale achieved an increase in occupancy on a sequential basis, even with the rise of the COVID-19 delta variant in the general U.S. population,” according to the report.

The company’s numbers still are below the average occupancy rate of 78.7% that NIC MAP Vision reported reported for the first quarter, however.

Welltower likewise reported an occupancy bump in its portfolio so far this quarter.

Occupancy gains from approximately 60 basis points (0.6%) in July to 80 basis points (0.8%) in August, coupled with a “favorable” start to September, “reflect continued strength in demand for seniors housing,” according to the REIT.

As of Sept. 3, seniors housing operating portfolio spot occupancy has increased approximately 380 basis points (3.8%)  to 76.1% since a pandemic low on March 12, 2021, Welltower said.