In its exclusive representation of a joint venture of LCB Senior Living, LLC (“LCB”) and Virtus Real Estate Capital, Cushman & Wakefield Senior Housing Capital Markets advised the venture in the sale of the Residence at Pearl Street, an 83-unit assisted living and memory care community in Reading, Massachusetts. The community was acquired by a new joint venture formed between LCB and Artemis Real Estate Partners. LCB will continue to operate the property.
The community was originally an elementary school built in 1939 and is now a historic building in the town of Reading, 11 miles north of Boston. In 1996 the building was redeveloped into a senior housing community and a purpose-built wing was added that currently houses the majority of the resident’s units. The property underwent a significant $3.3 million renovation in 2014-2015 that enhanced the community’s aesthetics and service quality and included retrofitting a new memory care wing on the first level. LCB stabilized the community by the end of 2016 at occupancy over 90% in both AL and MC. The property is located minutes from Downtown Reading and has close local ties to the town, sharing space with youth soccer leagues and a dance studio. The preservation of the original building now serves as common areas for the community with a grand dining room as well as premium units with 12-foot ceilings and massive windows overlooking the grounds.
LCB Senior Living is one of the most reputable New England developers and operators of assisted and memory care housing for seniors. LCB has established a robust portfolio of senior housing communities throughout New England by developing and acquiring in prime locations with a diverse collection of equity partners, and is now expanding into the Mid-Atlantic region. Since it recapitalized its organization in early 2013, LCB has broken ground on 14 properties, of which 11 have delivered, and acquired an additional seven properties across five New England states. Total project capitalization is currently over $530 million. To date, LCB operates 1,700 seniors housing apartments with an additional 302 currently under construction and one additional project expected to break ground in 2017 that will expand LCB’s geographic footprint beyond New England into Pennsylvania.
The Cushman & Wakefield team involved in the transactions included Executive Managing Director Rick Swartz, Executive Director Jay Wagner, Director Jim Dooley and Associate Caryn Miller.
“We are excited to have completed this recapitalization of one of our early value-add acquisitions, and to form a new partnership with Artemis. Virtus and LCB have a strong relationship with five other properties together, and we are pleased with the execution of this transaction,” commented LCB CEO Michael Stoller.
Added Kelly Sheehy, Managing Director with Artemis Real Estate Partners, “LCB has done a tremendous job with the Pearl Street community. We look forward to the future success of the community and building our partnership with LCB.”
“This is a very special building that is unlike anything in the market. LCB did a fantastic job updating the building while still preserving its unique character and history” commented Swartz.
Added Wagner, “We were excited by the level of interest in the asset, and the market recognized that this was a rare opportunity to acquire a stabilized community in the Boston market and to partner with one of the premier operators in the industry, LCB.”
Cushman & Wakefield’s Boston office provides a complete suite of commercial real estate services for the entire lifecycle of properties and portfolios.
About LCB Senior Living
LCB Senior Living was founded in 2010, and has become one of the preeminent senior housing companies in New England. Headquartered in Norwood, MA, LCB currently owns and operates 18 luxury communities in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut and Rhode Island, and third-party manages four communities in the greater Boston area. LCB has an additional three properties under development in Connecticut and New Hampshire.
About Virtus
Since 2003, Virtus Real Estate Capital has focused on investing in niche property types including senior living, student housing, medical office, and storage properties. To date, Virtus has launched 40 investment vehicles that have invested in 192 total assets with a combined acquisition cost of approximately $3.2 billion. Virtus’ business strategy is to find resilient property types that outperform conventional real estate classes through economic cycles, focusing on demographic trends and social needs. For more information please visit www.virtusre.com.
About Artemis
Artemis Real Estate Partners is a Washington, D.C.-based real estate investment management firm that invests with best-in-class local operation partners, both established and emerging, in multifamily, office, industrial, retail, hospitality, self-storage and seniors housing across opportunistic, value-add, and enhanced core strategies. Artemis has raised over $2.5 billion of investor equity in two primary business lines: $1.5 billion in a commingled fund series (core plus, value add, and opportunistic) and over $1 billion in separate accounts focused on emerging managers. Artemis’ sole focus is U.S. commercial real estate.
About Cushman & Wakefield
Cushman & Wakefield is a leading global real estate services firm that helps clients transform the way people work, shop, and live. Our 45,000 employees in more than 70 countries help occupiers and investors optimize the value of their real estate by combining our global perspective and deep local knowledge with an impressive platform of real estate solutions. Cushman & Wakefield is among the largest commercial real estate services firms with revenue of $6 billion across core services of agency leasing, asset services, capital markets, facility services (C&W Services), global occupier services, investment & asset management (DTZ Investors), project & development services, tenant representation, and valuation & advisory. 2017 marks the 100-year anniversary of the Cushman & Wakefield brand. 100 years of taking our clients’ ideas and putting them into action. To learn more, visit www.cushwakecentennial.com, www.cushmanwakefield.com or follow @CushWake on Twitter.
