Situated in a residential area just north of I-30 in east Dallas, Lakeland Hills Senior Living is a well-appointed, 170-unit senior living community. Originally built in 1987, the community was thoroughly renovated in 2013 with several additional capital investments and upgrades completed since 2016.

Following a previous operator transition, the REIT owner converted over 20% of the assisted living units to establish Lakeland Hills as exclusively independent living. Occupancy declined immediately following the conversion but steadily improved month-over-month as the community was repositioned as an affordable independent living provider with a reputation for providing quality services.

As cash flow remained relatively low, the REIT engaged Blueprint to market and sell the community. Blueprint positioned the value-add offering as an opportunity to improve below market rental rates as occupancy continues to climb, and possibly reintroduce licensed assisted living services as resident care needs evolve to further bolster revenues.

Blueprint’s widespread marketing efforts yielded multiple offers, with the seller electing to pursue a transaction with a Maryland-based private equity investor. Even as the pandemic surged and a zoning variance was required to close, Blueprint persisted alongside the seller to see the transaction through to its successful completion.