Real estate investment trust Growthpoint Properties subsidiary Growthpoint Healthcare Property will acquire the properties and operations of senior living communities developer and operator Auria Senior Living.

Auria has property assets valued at R2.4-billion, including minority interests, and the proposed transaction would initially add four Auria senior living communities to Growthpoint Healthcare Property's growing portfolio of healthcare and wellness properties, marking its formal entry into the senior living sector.

The transaction remains subject to the usual regulatory approvals, Growthpoint notes.

The value of the transaction was not disclosed.

Further, as part of the proposed acquisition, Auria will continue to operate under its current leadership team and brand, with no changes to day-to-day operations, staff or resident services.

Continuity and strategic alignment are reinforced by Auria’s executives taking up shares in Growthpoint Healthcare Property, the company adds.

Auria’s current operations span three communities in Johannesburg, namely San Sereno in Bryanston, Melrose Manor in Melrose and Royal View in Sandringham, as well as Woodside Village in Rondebosch, Cape Town.

The communities comprise more than 900 residents across over 630 independent living units and 110 care centre units. It has more than 1 600 individuals on its waiting lists.

Auria’s high-quality residential environments are integrated with healthcare and lifestyle amenities. Designed to promote wellbeing, security and independence, the properties offer a full continuum of care from independent and assisted living to specialised support services, Growthpoint says.

Auria also has a pipeline of developments, including Coral Cove in Salt Rock, KwaZulu-Natal, which is scheduled to be complete and fully operational in the first quarter of 2026, as well as greenfield and brownfield opportunities that Growthpoint Healthcare Property intends to pursue.

Growthpoint Healthcare Property has built a portfolio of licensed healthcare facilities, including acute, day and specialist hospitals, laboratories and biotechnology assets, such as pharmaceutical manufacturing and warehousing facilities.

The fund’s mandate is to acquire and develop healthcare properties, whether building new facilities, expanding or upgrading existing ones or acquiring operational assets to unlock operational and growth capital for their operators.

The recent expansion of Growthpoint Healthcare Property's mandate to include senior living will see it allocate further capital to this sub-sector. Its portfolio includes seven operational hospitals, a pharmaceutical warehousing and distribution facility, and a medical chambers property.

Its licensed healthcare assets are operated by healthcare providers, including Netcare, Medi-Clinic, Adcock Ingram and Busamed, and feature several of the country’s specialist hospitals, such as Cintocare, Gateway, Hillcrest and the Johannesburg Eye Hospital.

The Auria acquisition would take Growthpoint Healthcare Property's assets under management to about R6.2-billon, and ticks all the boxes for a future initial public offering and stock exchange listing.

“Senior living is an emerging institutional asset class, both locally and globally. Growthpoint Healthcare Property’s focus on healthcare real estate makes it a natural investment,” says Growthpoint Investment Partners head George Muchanya.

“As South Africa’s population ages, the need for well run, people-centred communities is expected to rise. Auria provides in senior living with continuing care and the company aligns seamlessly with Growthpoint Healthcare Property’s purpose to enable world-class healthcare and wellness infrastructure to meet the needs of South Africans,” he adds.

“This acquisition agreement represents a vote of confidence in Auria and the professional senior living sector as a whole. We look forward to building on our strong foundation as a subsidiary of Growthpoint Healthcare Property, which strengthens Auria’s ability to grow with purpose, innovate with confidence and deliver consistently high standards across its communities,” says Auria CEO Barry Kaganson.