Brookdale Senior Living and real estate investment trust Welltower have maintained their top spots on the 2023 American Seniors Housing Association’s lists of the 50 largest senior living operators and owners, respectively, released Monday.
The two companies have appeared at the top of the respective lists since 2019, the year that Toledo, OH-based Welltower moved up a spot from 2018 to replace Brentwood, TN-based Brookdale at the top spot of the owners list.
As of the 2018 list, based on figures from June 1, 2017, Brookdale owned 65,854 units and managed 96,026 units, and Welltower owned 65,141 units. As of June 1, 2023, Brookdale owns 30,025 units (and is No. 3 on the latest list of owners) and operates 54,855 units, and Welltower owns 95,281 units, according to the 2023 ASHA 50.
Largest operators
The largest 50 senior living operators manage a total of 542,360 units, with the top five largest operators accounting for 34% of the total, according to the 2023 ASHA 50.
After Brookdale, Atria Senior Living remained in second place, with 42,501 units, followed by LCS (35,615 units) and Sunrise Senior Living (27,017 units). Discovery Senior Living (25,876 units) leapfrogged over Erickson Senior Living (No. 6, with 25,268 units) into the top five, compared with last year’s list, with its addition of 11,034 units.
Greystar Real Estate Partners added 4,308 units from 2022 to move from No. 9 to No. 7, whereas AlerisLife (parent company of Five Star Senior Living) dropped from No. 6 in 2022 to No. 8 this year. Senior Lifestyle (with 14,691 units) moved from No. 7 last year to No. 9 this year, whereas Watermark Retirement Communities maintained the No. 10 spot with 12,325 units.
Cogir Management USA, which wasn’t on the 2022 list of operators, jumped to No. 24 with the addition of 4,117 units, whereas Oakmont Management Group moved from No. 36 last year to No. 17 this year with the addition of 3,668 units.
Largest owners
The total number of units owned by the 50 largest US seniors housing owners is 569,086, with the largest five owners accounting for 43% of the total.
Welltower expanded its owned portfolio by 5,103 units from 2022 and remains the largest owner, with 95,281 units, followed by Ventas, which retained its No. 2 spot with 67,679 units.
Brookdale continued to hold onto the third position on the list of largest owners, with 30,025 units. Rounding out the top five was Diversified Healthcare Trust, with 25,175 units, and Harrison Street, with 24,823 units — they maintained their fourth and fifth spots, respectively.
Kayne Anderson Real Estate moved up to No. 7 after Ventas took over Santerre Health Investors’ portfolio earlier this year. National Senior Communities jumped from No. 19 to No. 8 on the owners list this year after adding 3,593 units from 2022.
Greystar Real Estate Partners jumped from No. 15 in 2022 to No. 9 this year after adding 1,980 units. Erickson Senior Living rounded out the top 10 owners by moving from No. 14 to No. 10 this year.
National Health Investors dropped one spot from No. 10 to No. 11. Bridge Seniors Housing Fund Manager dropped from No. 9 in 2022 to No. 15 this year, whereas ReNew REIT dropped from No. 11 in 2022 to No. 16 this year.
The report also includes information on a major rebuild of ASHA’s Where You Live Matters website to better serve consumers, owners and operators. The new website is expected to launch this fall.
The rankings are based on data as of June 1. Each list includes 50 companies. See the complete 2023 ASHA 50 lists on ASHA’s website.
