The Sanders Trust Acquires Two Prominent Boston Rehabilitation Hospitals for $90M

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Sanders Trust, one of the nation's leading healthcare real estate development companies, announced today that it has acquired two prominent Boston-area hospitals: New England and Braintree Rehabilitation Hospitals.

The $90 million acquisition closed on December 31, 2013 when Senior Housing Properties Trust (NYSE: SNH) and affiliates sold the hospitals to The Sanders Trust (TST) in a joint venture with its capital partner Harrison Street Real Estate Capital, LLC of Chicago. TST acquired the real estate associated with the hospitals and simultaneously entered into new, 15-year, absolute net leases with Reliant Hospital Partners (Reliant), a company based in Richardson, Texas that currently operates nine other inpatient rehabilitation hospitals in Texas and Ohio.

“The Sanders Trust appreciates the confidence that Reliant's management team placed in our firm to make this acquisition a reality,” said Rance Sanders, CEO of The Sanders Trust. “The New England and Braintree Rehabilitation Hospitals are nationally recognized facilities delivering quality care programs and represent nearly two-thirds market share for rehabilitation services in the Boston metro area. It is a rare opportunity to acquire assets with such strong programs in place, and TST and Reliant look forward to making these programs even stronger in the future.”

“This transaction required a great deal of work and cooperation from numerous parties,” added Steve Hewett, Senior Vice President of TST. “The Jones Lang LaSalle team in Boston, headed by Mindy Berman, deserves special credit for their real estate and financial advisory services. Likewise, the TST team extends thanks to our Birmingham, Ala. banking partners--Regions Bank as Agent, Iberia Bank and Cadence Bank--as well as Boston's Customers Bank.”

Braintree has 166 licensed beds and New England has 198 beds. The hospitals are also affiliated with several other in-patient and out-patient locations in eastern Massachusetts and pride themselves on their dedication to providing patients short-term rehabilitation. The hospitals average more than 5,000 successful discharges annually.