BDT & MSD Partners has agreed to acquire a majority interest in Sunrise Senior Living from PSP Investments, with Sunrise’s senior leadership investing alongside the buyer and remaining in place. The company says the transaction is expected to close in 2027, subject to regulatory approvals. It did not disclose a price; the New York Post, citing people familiar with the matter and the Wall Street Journal’s reporting, said the buyer valued Sunrise at more than $1 billion. The Post also reported that BDT & MSD grew out of Michael Dell’s family office.
Sunrise operates more than 230 communities in the United States and Canada, serving more than 22,000 residents, according to the company announcement. PSP first invested in Sunrise in 2014 and became its sole owner in 2023. BDT & MSD was formed that year through the combination of BDT & Company and MSD Partners, the announcement said.
The operator, not a portfolio-wide property sale
Sunrise owns fewer than one-quarter of the communities that carry its name and manages many of the others for their owners, the New York Post reported. The agreement is for control of the operating company; it should not be read as a sale of every building Sunrise manages. The distinction is relevant in Manhattan, where two of the company’s residences have drawn attention for their scale and prices.
Two Manhattan communities
The Apsley, at 2330 Broadway on the Upper West Side, is a 19-story community with 80 assisted-living units and 76 memory-care units, according to Seniors Housing Business. The New York Post reported that current rates start at $17,069 a month. Sunrise at East 56th Street is a 17-story building with 151 units; it opened in December 2021 and has about 130,000 square feet, according to its architect, SLCE Architects. The Post reported assisted-living rates there of about $10,000 a month before additional care fees.
Development plans and sector occupancy
Sunrise says it has more than 50 communities in development, with expected development costs of about $7.5 billion, according to its announcement. The New York Post, reporting figures CEO Jack Callison Jr. gave the Wall Street Journal, said the company currently starts six or seven projects a year and aims to reach 10 annually by 2030.
Occupancy across 31 major metropolitan markets reached 90.4% in the third quarter, and assisted-living occupancy was 89.1%, according to figures reported by The Real Deal. Those sector figures provide market context for Sunrise’s expansion plans, but do not establish how full any particular Sunrise community is or whether its current buildings can accommodate additional demand.
