Brookdale Senior Living reported its 25th consecutive month of year-over-year weighted average occupancy growth in an update released Friday.
According to the Brentwood, TN, senior living operator, the company’s weighted average occupancy for November increased 140 basis points year over year, up to 78.4% — and up from 78.2% in September and 77.6% in August.
Compared with October, November move-ins and move-outs also were favorable, according to the update.
During last month’s third-quarter earnings call, Brookdale President and CEO Lucinda “Cindy” Baier said that the company’s results are an outcome of its intentional, experience-driven plans; the successful execution of its sales and marketing strategy; and a deduction to its mission.
Baier said that those results show that Brookdale’s continued progress toward its full operational recovery from the pandemic. She added that she expected to see continued occupancy growth into 2024 based on supply-demand dynamics.
The most recent NIC MAP Vision Intra-Quarterly Snapshot, released last month, revealed uneven recovery of senior living (independent living and assisted living combined) occupancy recovery from August to September. Some markets had achieved full recovery, whereas others still were working toward returning to pre-pandemic levels.
The all-occupancy rate for senior living in the 31 primary markets that NIC MAP follows increased to 84.9% from September to October. That’s two percentage points below the March 2020 pre-pandemic level of 87.1%. The all-occupancy rate for the second markets (86.7%) bounced back more quickly and had fully recovered at only 0.1 percentage point below the march 2020 benchmark level.
Brookdale operated and managed 672 communities in 41 states as of Sept. 30. It is the largest operator and third-largest owner of US senior living communities, according to the 2023 ASHA 50 list from the American Seniors Housing Association. Brookdale also made Argentum’s 2023 list of largest providers, landing at No. 1. The company also topped separate lists of assisted living providers and memory care providers.
The company had 265 communities recognized in the US News & World Report Best Senior Living program for 2023, and four of its continuing care retirement communities were included in the Newsweek / Statista America’s Best Continuing Care Retirement Communities 2024 rankings.
