AEW Acquires 296-Unit Senior Housing Portfolio in Colorado for $104M

By Barbra Murray, Contributing Editor

The Lodge at Balfour, Louisville, Colo.

AEW Capital Management L.P. has snapped up a 296-unit portfolio of seniors housing facilities from Balfour Senior Living on behalf of AEW Senior Housing Investors II L.P. The three Class A properties sit a hop, skip and a jump from each other in an affluent area of Louisville, Colo., just outside of Boulder.

Buoyed by the aging baby boomer set, the increasing population and longer lifespan, the seniors housing sector continues to spark great contests among hopeful buyers. The Balfour assets were no exception, according to HFF, the commercial real estate and capital markets services firm that marketed the portfolio on Balfour’s behalf.

“The investment community’s response was very favorable and there was a strong field of buyers vying for the portfolio,” Ryan Maconachy, managing director with HFF, told Commercial Property Executive.

Pension fund advisors, private equity funds and public and non-traded REITs all competed for the collection of properties.

The portfolio is a diverse one, consisting of The Lodge and The Residences, two independent-living communities on the 1300 block of Hecla Drive, in addition to the Balfour Retirement Community, an assisted-living and skilled-nursing property just around the corner at 1855 Plaza Dr.

It wasn’t just investors that were eager for a piece of the Balfour assets; lenders wanted to partake in the transaction as well. HFF orchestrated the acquisition financing for AEW through Cornerstone Real Estate Advisors.

“The lending community also responded favorably to the opportunity; the high quality of construction and excellent location were both drivers for the competitive debt quotes,” Maconachy added.