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High demand and rising occupancy have prompted senior living operators to again raise resident rates in the coming year, albeit at a more moderate pace than a few years ago.
In 2025, senior living operators raised resident rates as pricing power shifted to favor independent living. Assisted living and memory care operators notched more moderate rate increases and set deeper concessions.
As operators look ahead to 2026, they are planning steady but moderate rate growth across all levels of care. Shorter lengths of stay make assisted living and memory care rent growth harder to achieve.
“We are approaching 2026 with a more assertive rate strategy than in prior years, driven by sustained month-over-month improvements in senior housing demand,” Aspenwood Company President Heather Tussing told Senior Housing News.
The Houston, Texas-based senior living operator reported strong pricing power in memory care, where demand “outpaces supply,” Tussing added. The company also increased rates in independent and assisted living, where appropriate. In 2026, Aspenwood is planning in-place rate increases ranging from 4% to 7%, and asking rate increases between 3% and 8%, depending on the care level.
Leaders of operators who spoke with SHN said they are relying on data more than ever to determine future rental rates by using market-specific approaches based on demand dynamics.
A shifting demographic base with the arrival of the boomers means new challenges and opportunities for operators. Continued demand should help drive industry wide occupancy above 90% due to low construction rates. However, pricing momentum is no longer guaranteed. Operators must calibrate rate strategies by market to balance affordability, discounting and differentiation for a changing consumer base.
The Aspenwood Company, along with 12 Oaks Senior Living, Distinctive Living, Frontier Senior Living, Stellar Senior Living and Experience Senior Living, continue to improve occupancy through disciplined rate increases and “value-led pricing,” taking a “measured but confident” approach to 2026 rental rates.
Moderate increases despite high costs
Senior living operators this year took a more cautious approach than a few years ago to raise rental rates to avoid overburdening residents who are already worried about affordability. That trend continued this year as some operators enacted more moderate rate increases, even in spite of the fact that senior living operations are not getting any cheaper or easier.
Dallas, Texas-based 12 Oaks Senior Living is taking a more “aggressive” approach to rates in 2026, given that the company’s stabilized, “core” portfolio is at 90% occupancy, according to President Greg Puklicz. In 2026, 12 Oaks will look to increase rates 10% in middle-market communities and an average of 8.5% in all others, Puklicz shared.
“As demand continues to increase and supply dissipates, I believe we are in a position to earn these levels of rate increases,” Puklicz said.
Data from the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing and Care (NIC) shows independent living achieved record in-place rent growth of 14.3% year over year, with asking rates up 6.7% and in-place rates up 9.1% from 2024. In 2025, assisted living asking rates rose 5.9%, in-place rents 5.5% and memory care asking rates 5.1%.
Both demand for assisted living and memory care and the cost of operating those units remains “at an all-time high,” according to Experience Senior Living President Phill Barklow.
The Denver, Colorado-based operator has expanded aggressively with its parent company, NexCore Group, developing projects that attract the senior living customer of tomorrow through multi-brand strategies and varied price points. In 2026, Experience Senior Living is planning 5% to 8% increases in in-place rates and 7% to 10% increases in asking rates, Barklow said.
In independent living, larger apartment layouts continue to drive demand and provide strong pricing power, Barklow noted.
Memory care remains a “whole different animal” with regard to rental rates, as higher acuity drives demand and forces operators to redesign models that balance strong clinical care with enhanced lifestyle options, according to Bild & Co. CEO Jennifer Saxman.
“We’re finding that people will figure out a way to pay for memory care more than any other service based on need,” Saxman told SHN.
Average rental rate increases across the continuum were 7.18% in the first quarter of 2025, 6.27% in the second quarter and 6.04% in the third quarter of this year. The highest average price for a one-bedroom senior living unit was in memory care, ranging from $7,850 to $8,827 over the last 12 months, according to Bild & Co, which analyzed data from nearly 6,000 senior living mystery shops from October 2024 to October 2025.
“Everyone can expect a 4% to 6%, maybe up to 7%, as a standard for typical increases for 2026,” Saxman said. “We’re not seeing the big hikes like we did post-Covid.”
Freehold, New Jersey-based Distinctive Living is reporting its strongest pricing power in assisted living and memory care, where “demand is needs-based and less elastic,” according to CEO Joe Jedlowski. Distinctive plans in-place rate increases between 6% and 9% in 2026, depending on market and care level. The company is planning asking rates between 5% and 9%. Pricing power remains strongest in Florida, New Jersey and across the mid-Atlantic region. Markets with 90% occupancy have sustained “mid-single-digit rate increases with limited concessions,” Jedlowski added.
For 2026, Distinctive will take a “measured but confident” approach, moving away from inflation-driven rate increases of prior years, he said. The company’s 2026 rate strategy focuses on “sustainability,” balancing fiscal health with “value and stability” for residents and families across its portfolio.
“As those costs moderate, we’re transitioning toward a value-driven pricing model that balances affordability with continued reinvestment in our workforce, amenities and programming,” Jedlowski said.
Pricing power also remains strong in the U.S. Mountain West region, where Midvale, Utah-based Stellar Senior Living Co-Founder Adam Benton is planning “moderate” rate increases in 2026, between 4% and 6% for in-place increases and 5% to 7% for asking rates on new move-ins.
“Over the last few years, we’ve seen strong pricing power driven by improved occupancy, rising acuity and growing consumer understanding of the value of quality care,” Benton said.
Frontier Senior Living CEO Greg Roderick declined to share specific rate projections due to ongoing budget planning but confirmed that 2026 increases will be “less than those during the [Covid-19] pandemic period,” when operators implemented double-digit rate hikes to offset inflation.
Transparency, value proposition informing rate decisions for 2026
In recent years, senior living operators have focused on educating families about the value of their communities. They are taking a more transparent approach to unit pricing and leading with the lifestyle, clinical and culinary value of their offerings.
“We focus on transparent communication, emphasizing the quality of care, lifestyle offerings, and personalized service,” Tussing said.
Operators must be “thoughtful and measured” in 2026, Roderick said. He emphasized value-based selling grounded in clinical and lifestyle excellence as ways the operator has presented value of Frontier services to prospects and families. Frontier has grown occupancy every month in the last 12 months, a sign that sustained demand for strong operators is here to stay.
“That means operators must focus on clearly communicating ‘the why’ behind our pricing,” Roderick said, adding that the company remains “optimistic” about the 2026 rate environment.
Distinctive Living takes an “educational and relational” approach with prospects and residents when raising rates. The company trains sales teams to connect “rate discussions to tangible outcomes” related to residents’ quality of life, Jedlowski said.
Operators are supporting their teams by hiring strong leaders and frontline workers, offering training and incentives to compete for clinical and operational talent. Strong community teams can demonstrate value directly to residents, Barklow said.
“We continue to focus on what we can control and on making our communities the employer of choice,” Barklow added.
In 2025 and continuing into 2026, operators began using dynamic pricing in high-demand markets with limited unit availability to capitalize on popular layouts or desirable community locations. This strategy allows them to push market rates where inventory is scarce, Saxman said.
“If you have a super desirable one-bedroom layout and you have one left that’s in a prime location, you should get a premium price for that,” Saxman said. “I think we will see dynamic pricing continue to play a larger role in 2026 and beyond.”
Consumer price sensitivity remains top challenge
As they prepare to raise rental rates in the coming year, operators are wary of turning off residents who are concerned about the cost of senior living. As such they are shifting toward more market-specific approaches based on local demand and unit availability.
“The primary challenge for operators remains consumer sensitivity to pricing, particularly in markets with economic pressures or increased competition,” Tussing said.
Operators must manage affordability in a “more value-conscious environment” as families research their options and make decisions with increasing sophistication and expect “transparency and measurable quality,” Jedlowski added.
Barklow noted that providers should monitor housing market fluctuations — a key source of equity for older adults transitioning to senior living — when considering rate changes.
“Early adopters of senior living are struggling to get maximum value for their homes with interest rates being so high,” Barklow said.
Inflation remains the biggest obstacle, Puklicz said, coupled with a “disappointingly low” 2.8% increase adjustment in Social Security payments for 2026, meaning operators must be very methodical in their approach to driving rate increases. Where 12 Oaks has reported strong pricing power is within properties that are 95% occupied and above or in properties that are popular and well-known in a given local market, Puklicz added.
In secondary markets, Benton noted that “rate elasticity” is “more limited” where population centers are smaller.
“The need for quality senior living is only growing,” Roderick added.
Despite challenges, Tussing said Aspenwood maintains a positive outlook for 2026 rates, supported by “continued momentum in demand and a favorable supply-demand balance in many markets.”
Jedlowski expects a “return to normalization” for rate increases as the industry moves beyond pandemic-era disruptions. Roderick added that Frontier remains “optimistic” about 2026, citing “favorable” demand trends and “solid” consumer confidence.
The post ‘Measured but Confident’: Senior Living Operators Plan More Moderate Rental Rate Growth in 2026 appeared first on Senior Housing News.
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