Mesa West Provides $115M to Refi Senior Housing Hubs in Philly, D.C. Areas

AEW Capital Management has secured $114.6 million to refinance a pair of East Coast senior housing communities near Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., Commercial Observer has learned. 

Mesa West Capital provided the first-mortgage, floating-rate debt on the two transactions, which were split and secured by Echo Lake, a 250-unit community in Malvern, Penn., near Philadelphia, and Modena Reserve at Kensington, a 135-unit community in Kensington, Md., north of Washington, D.C. 

Sarah Anderson and Nina Del Pozo of Newmark’s Dallas office arranged financing for the Echo Lake deal, while Berkadia’s Steve Muth, Austin Sacco, Alec Rosenfeld and Harris Inoff brokered the Modena Reserve transaction. 

Both Philadelphia and D.C. have experienced a growing senior population in recent years. The City of Brotherly love saw its 65-and-older population increase by 95,000 residents between 2020 and 2023, while our nation’s capital saw its 65-and-older population rise by 100,000 residents, according to U.S. Census data cited by Mesa West. 

Mesa West Executive Director Matt Snyder, who led the origination team for the lender out of its Chicago office, noted in a statement that the growing senior populations in both Philadelphia and D.C. have created demand tailwinds for the sub-asset class, even as it has experienced a supply decline since 2020.   

“Against this backdrop, the strength and experience of sponsorship, the quality of construction and the level of services [will] position Echo Lake and Modena Reserve to perform very well against the competitive set in their respective markets,” he said.  

Located at 900 North Atwater Drive in Malverna, Echo Lake is a five-story, 312,000-square-foot complex that opened in 2020. Managed by Sage Senior Living — a joint venture partner of AEW Capital Management — Echo Lake provides independent living, assisted living, memory care and short-term respite care. 

The facility’s amenities are spread across two residential wings and include a fitness center, several dining rooms, a rooftop lounge, a sports simulation center, a movie theater and a salon spa.  

Located at 10540 Metropolitan Avenue in Kensington, Modena Reserve opened in 2021. It is operated by AEW Capital Management partners McCaffery Interests and Solera Senior Living. 

Spanning 167,823 square feet, the facility offers independent living, assisted living and memory care, and features several resident lounges, an art studio, a beauty salon, an on-site coffee shop, a fitness center, a massage center, an on-site physician office, and both a movie theater and an outdoor courtyard. 

Brian Pascus can be reached at bpascus@commercialobserver.com