Ventas Enters Inpatient Behavioral Health Realm with $58M Plano Buy

A 101,608-square-foot healthcare facility in Plano recently sold to Ventas, a REIT that invests in senior living communities, life science, research and innovation properties, medical office and outpatient facilities and other healthcare real estate. Ventas paid $58 million in its first investment in an inpatient behavioral health facility.

“Ventas is one of the largest and most respected ownerships of healthcare real estate in the world,” said Travis Ives of Cushman & Wakefield. “Historically behavioral health facilities have been considered somewhat of a niche asset within healthcare real estate, but this transaction may be a watershed moment for the industry as others take notice of Ventas’s entry into the space.”

Located at 5120 Legacy Dr., the three-story building was originally developed in 2016 as a speculative office project by VanTrust Real Estate.

The property is fully leased to Denver-based Eating Recovery Center (ERC). The tenant utilizes the facility for both inpatient and outpatient uses.

Cawley Partners acquired the property in a vacant state in 2018 and quickly secured a lease with ERC. The lease provided ERC with a phased occupancy structure to allow the tenant time to ramp up operations. Soon after opening the initial phase, it became clear ERC would need the entire building sooner than anticipated. The tenant triggered its expansion option early and now fully occupies the building.

Ives and Gino Lollio of Cushman & Wakefield’s U.S. healthcare capital markets team in collaboration with other members of the firm’s healthcare advisory group represented Cawley Partners in the sale.

“In a healthcare real estate market where yields continue to compress, experienced investors are starting to look outside of the typical MOB box towards emerging micro-niches to secure optimal returns with comparable low risk and strong operational performance,” says Lollio.