Global alternative investment platform Wafra Inc. and Welltower Inc., an S&P 500 healthcare real estate investment trust (REIT), have formed a $550 million medical office building joint venture (JV).
The joint venture comprises a portfolio of 24 medical office properties, spanning a diverse mix of geographies, with assets located in Texas, Florida, Minnesota, the Carolinas, Tennessee, California, Pennsylvania and Washington, among others.
The portfolio was previously wholly owned by Welltower and is 97% affiliated with health systems. Through this joint venture, the Wafra Vehicles will own 80%, and Welltower will retain a 20% economic interest in the portfolio and will continue serving as asset manager and operator for the properties.
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“Wafra is pleased to launch this partnership with Welltower, whom we regard as a premier owner-operator and leader in medical office and healthcare real estate,” said Russell Valdez, Wafra’s Chief Investment Officer. ”We look forward to expanding our footprint together in these growing sectors with the shared goal of further collaboration on healthcare and other real estate opportunities.”
“Welltower is delighted to announce the establishment of this joint venture with Wafra, marking the beginning of an exciting and strategic, long-term relationship,” said Shankh Mitra, Welltower’s CEO and CIO. “The breadth of Wafra’s geographic reach and its astute and proven investing acumen, combined with Welltower’s investment and data analytics capabilities, will provide a rock-solid foundation for this aligned effort to deliver enhanced value to our investors.”
