Charles Harry Jr. NIC director of research and analysis

There’s cautious optimism in the seniors housing sector. Occupancy rates have held firm and rent growth has shown slight gains, according to second quarter data released by the National Investment Center for the Seniors Housing & Care Industry.

Nursing facility occupancy rates were 88.4%, a 0.1% downturn, and assisted living occupancy was 88.5%, up slightly from the first quarter. Year-over-year rent growth for seniors housing increased to 1.4%.

“While occupancy rates are currently trending sideways, they have moved from beyond their recent cyclical lows,” said Charles Harry Jr., NIC director of research and analysis. “The annual pace of rent growth is the highest we’ve seen in the past five quarters.”