Sunrise Senior Living Inc., the largest assisted living chain in the United States, lost nearly $69 million in the third quarter of 2008. That reportedly is the company’s worst loss in eight years.

The chain’s loss largely was the rest of a write-off of abandoned development projects. Severance costs, an impairment loss on four communities, and costs incurred from its accounting restatement and related investigations also contributed to the loss. The embattled company is in the midst of a restructuring to improve its financial standing. The stock reportedly has lost 90% of its value this year.

“Our team has been fully committed to grinding down cash outflows by reducing overhead, slashing development-related spending and selling or repositioning assets unsuited to the combination of today’s capital market environment and our financial condition,” CEO Mark Ordan said in a statement.