A $90 million bond deal is clearing the way for new independent-living homes and renovated health services at two retirement communities near Asheville. Chicago-based investment bank Ziegler announced Friday that it priced $90,000,000 in Series 2026 bonds for the Givens Obligated Group, the nonprofit that runs Givens Estates in Asheville and Givens Highland Farms in Black Mountain.
The two continuing-care retirement communities together operate 966 residences, according to Ziegler's announcement. Givens Estates opened in Asheville in 1979 and currently runs 478 independent-living units, 42 assisted-living units and 60 skilled-nursing residences. Givens Highland Farms opened in Black Mountain in 1971 and was purchased by Givens in 2012; it now operates 331 independent-living residences and 55 skilled-nursing residences. Both communities carry CARF accreditation, per the organization's own account.
Where the Money Is Going
Bond proceeds will fund or reimburse the addition of 63 independent-living residences at Givens Highland Farms in Black Mountain, as reported by citybiz. Roughly $45.3 million of the proceeds are earmarked for pre-development costs and early construction tied to those planned independent-living units and to health-services facility renovations, per the same announcement. The financing will also cover the acquisition of a building intended for the organization's corporate offices, along with bond issuance costs.
The bonds carry a 35-year final maturity, with a wrapped debt-service structure producing a weighted average maturity of 26.04 years and a blended yield to maturity of 5.69%. They are rated A-minus with a negative outlook from Fitch Ratings and are being issued through the North Carolina Medical Care Commission. Ziegler also negotiated optional redemption provisions that make the bonds callable after six years at 102% of principal, with the redemption price declining to par after ten years — terms that could give Givens room to refinance before the bonds mature in full, subject to market conditions.
An Executive on the Deal
Tommy Brewer, a managing director in Ziegler's senior living finance practice, said the firm was proud to work with Givens and that the collaboration helped it navigate a volatile market to reach a successful outcome. Pearl Creek Advisors provided guidance to the Givens management team throughout the financing process. The deal, as Ziegler frames it, hands Givens long-term capital for its planned residential expansion and health-services improvements while stretching its debt obligations across a multidecade period.
The financing lands amid a broader upswing for the senior housing sector. Occupancy across the 31 primary markets tracked by NIC MAP Vision climbed to 90.4% in the third quarter of 2026, a 0.6 percentage-point jump that marked the first time the rate has topped 90% since 2014, according to NIC MAP Vision. The same report found senior housing posted a 6.0% total investment return for the quarter, triple the next-highest return among the property types it tracked. Ziegler says it ranked as the leading underwriter of nonprofit senior-living financings by principal volume through September 30, 2026, based on LSEG data using full credit for lead-managed transactions.
Givens' Growing Reputation
Givens Highland Farms has also picked up outside recognition in recent years. The community's own website notes that Newsweek ranked it seventh among North Carolina continuing-care retirement communities and 46th nationally in 2025. Ziegler describes itself as a firm focused on investment banking, capital markets and advisory services for healthcare, senior living, education and municipal finance clients, a specialty that put it at the center of this week's financing for the two Buncombe County communities.
