Berkadia Closes $157.8M Across Seven Senior Housing Loans, Including Live Oak Bank Bridge Deal

Berkadia announced on Oct. 13 that Managing Director Jay Healy and Director Andrew Lanzaro of Berkadia Seniors Housing & Healthcare closed seven transactions totaling $157.8 million for six unique sponsors over the past 90 days. The financings included four HUD 232/223(f) refinancings, two bridge loans and one Agency refinancing, covering senior housing communities in South Carolina, Texas, Washington and Oregon. One of the bridge loans was funded in partnership with Live Oak Bank.

Berkadia Arranges $60.1 Million HUD Refinancing in Daniel Island

The largest transaction in the group closed Oct. 8, when Healy and Lanzaro secured a $60.1 million HUD 232/223(f) loan for a 186-unit assisted living, memory care and skilled nursing community in Daniel Island, South Carolina. The 2018-vintage Class A property was developed by its current owner, a Charlotte, North Carolina-based owner/operator and first-time HUD borrower. Trailing 12-month occupancy exceeded 92% at closing.

The 35-year, fully amortizing loan refinanced bank debt originated in 2024, along with preferred equity from a national REIT that was restructured as debt to meet HUD eligibility requirements. The loan achieved an 80% loan-to-value ratio based on a dated appraisal, according to Berkadia, which said continued performance improvements during the process indicate the property's value would be higher today.

Bridge Loans Include Live Oak Bank A/B Structure in Spokane Valley

Berkadia used its balance sheet for two bridge loans. The first, a $5.3 million loan, financed the acquisition of an 80-bed skilled nursing community in Grimes County, Texas. The buyer, a Fort Worth-based owner/operator and repeat Berkadia client, has operated the community since February 2021 and negotiated its lease terms at that time. Improved operations and a more favorable Texas Medicaid reimbursement environment resulted in below-market rent, allowing the sponsor to negotiate an in-the-money purchase price and finance 100% of the acquisition cost. Because the community is located in an opportunity zone, it can bypass HUD's queue, and Berkadia anticipates a HUD closing in the first quarter of 2027.

The second bridge loan, for $42.0 million, went to a 120-unit assisted living and memory care community in Spokane Valley, Washington, on behalf of a Scottsdale, Arizona-based repeat client. The sponsor developed the community, which opened in late 2023 and was more than 94% occupied at closing. The loan was funded in partnership with Live Oak Bank through an A/B structure, the 12th transaction between the two groups using that structure. It carries a 62.3% loan-to-value ratio and a 36-month term with 24 months of interest-only payments. Proceeds refinanced existing construction and sponsor debt, paid preferred returns to limited partners and returned a portion of LP equity. The anticipated exit is a HUD refinancing in the coming years.

Agency and HUD Refinancings in Washington, Oregon, South Carolina and Texas

Earlier in the summer, Healy and Lanzaro worked with Steve Muth and Alec Rosenfield to arrange a $25.0 million Agency loan refinancing maturing Agency debt on a 130-unit independent living, assisted living and memory care community in Oak Harbor, Washington. The Bellevue, Washington-based repeat sponsor acquired the 2000-vintage property in 2004 and completed an addition in 2008. Occupancy was near 95% at closing. The 10-year loan includes five years of interest-only payments and a 57% loan-to-value ratio. In addition to retiring the maturing debt, proceeds reimbursed prior capital expenditures, funded planned improvements and returned cash to the owners.

Two days earlier, the team refinanced another maturing Agency loan for the same client, though the sponsor chose a HUD execution. Berkadia secured a $9.3 million HUD 232/223(f) loan for a 72-unit independent living and assisted living community in Bend, Oregon, developed by the sponsor in 2004. The 75% loan-to-value, 35-year fully amortizing loan retired existing Agency debt and a CapEx loan. Trailing 12-month occupancy exceeded 95% at closing.

In Lexington, South Carolina, Healy and Lanzaro completed a $6.83 million HUD 232/223(f) refinance for an 80-unit assisted living and memory care community on behalf of a New Jersey-based owner/operator. The owner acquired the community in 2024 as part of a distressed-asset portfolio using bank debt. Occupancy reached 94% at closing, but the remaining properties in the collateral pool continued to underperform and were not eligible for HUD financing. Berkadia worked with the existing lender to release the nonperforming collateral so the subject property could retire the full outstanding debt balance. The loan carries a 77% loan-to-value ratio and a 35-year, fully amortizing term.

The team also originated a $9.2 million HUD 232/223(f) loan for a 47-unit assisted living community in Denton, Texas, for a repeat Berkadia client based in El Segundo, California. Built in the 1960s and extensively renovated in 2020, the community consists entirely of studio units serving the middle-market segment. The sponsor acquired it in late 2025 using a Berkadia bridge loan. The 80% loan-to-value, 35-year fully amortizing HUD loan retired the bridge loan and a portion of the sponsor debt incurred at acquisition.

Market Context: Senior Housing Refinancing Demand

The financings come as senior housing fundamentals have improved. Occupancy reached 89.5% in the first quarter of 2026, up from 89.1% in the prior quarter, while annual inventory growth fell to a record-low 0.4% and units under construction reached their lowest level since 2012. JLL reported occupancy of approximately 89.9% in primary markets and 90% in secondary markets in the fourth quarter of 2025, alongside 19 consecutive quarters of positive absorption. Construction starts have fallen 77% in primary markets and 62% in secondary markets from recent peaks, and average senior housing rents have risen 28.8% from pre-pandemic levels to $5,479 per month.

Average senior housing cap rates declined to 6.2% in the fourth quarter of 2025, and 85% of surveyed investors expected further cap-rate compression over the following year. Maturities are also a driver: nearly $40 billion of senior housing loans are projected to mature between 2026 and 2030, including nearly $8 billion in 2026. HUD's Section 232 program recorded $8.1 billion in firm commitments in fiscal 2025, nearly twice the prior year, while the application backlog declined from 130 to 29.

The transactions show Berkadia deploying HUD and Agency debt for stabilized, performing properties while using its balance sheet, and in one case a partnership with Live Oak Bank, for acquisition and transitional situations. Berkadia Seniors Housing & Healthcare provides capital markets advisory, underwriting and loan origination services, including FHA/HUD, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, life company and proprietary bridge lending.

Sources

Berkadia, "Berkadia's Healy & Lanzaro Secure $157.7M in Financing in Past 90 Days": https://www.berkadia.com/news/berkadias-healy-lanzaro-secure-157-7m-in-financing-in-past-90-days/