Older adults are moving into senior living communities at record rates, and average occupancy reached 88.1% in the second quarter of 2025.
Average senior living occupancy in the 31 primary markets tracked by NIC MAP increased by 0.8 percentage points in the second quarter of 2025 compared to the first quarter of the year, according to the organization.
All 31 NIC MAP primary markets had above 80% occupancy for the second quarter. The top three markets were Boston at 91.7%, Cincinnati at 91.5% and Baltimore at 90.9%, remaining unchanged from the previous quarter, according to the report. The bottom three were Miami at 85.1%, Atlanta at 84.6% and Houston at 84.5%.
Demand for independent living communities drove the latest gains in average industry occupancy. Average independent living occupancy rates increased by 80 basis points to 89.7% in the second quarter of 2025. Average assisted living occupancy reached 86.4% in the second quarter of the year, representing a gain of 70 basis points over the previous quarter. This is the third consecutive quarter that average independent living occupancy has outpaced assisted living average occupancy, according to NIC.
Senior living operators are in 2025 adding occupancy at a faster clip than 2022 through 2024, when average occupancy increased 60 basis points per quarter, on average, according to Caroline Clapp, senior principal for the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing and Care.
“Demand from baby boomers, coupled with a dearth of new supply, is driving occupancy rates higher at a robust clip,” Clapp told Senior Housing News.
Average active adult occupancy grew at a fast pace, reaching 92.3% occupancy in the second quarter, which NIC attributed to the lower cost for renting those kinds of units.
Boomers “appear to prioritize mental, physical, and social wellness, and they’re choosing to move into independent living and active adult communities because that lifestyle is baked into the experience,” Clapp noted in a press release Thursday.
The low rate of new construction also has contributed to recent occupancy gains. In the second quarter of 2025, senior living companies opened just 809 new units, representing less than 1% of inventory growth in the same period in 2024. That also is the first time inventory growth has fallen below 1% annually, and the lowest level since NIC began reporting the data in 2005. Overall occupied units increased to 625,800, up from the 619,800 in the first quarter.
“Many capital providers and builders are taking a cautious approach to new projects as they monitor economic conditions and public policy developments,” Arick Morton, CEO of NIC MAP, said in the release. “This slower pace of construction continues to widen the gap between future supply and the growing demand from baby boomers who will need housing and care options in the coming years.”
Rental rates also for independent living and assisted living communities increased 4.25% and 3.97%, respectively, over 2024. Independent living rates averaged $4,402 per month, while assisted living rates now average $6,976 per month.
The post Historic Low Construction, Surging Baby Boomer Demand Drives Up Senior Living Occupancy appeared first on Senior Housing News.
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