Entrance Fees Driving Higher Occupancy In CCRCs Nationwide

Entrance fees help CCRCs outperform rentals in occupancy and rents, according to NIC’s Q1 2025 data across 99 US markets.

June 4, 2025

Nina Dale

Entrance fee CCRCs saw higher occupancy rates than rentals in every US region, averaging 91.6% versus 88.7% for rentals in Q1 2025.
The Northeast region led with the highest entrance fee occupancy at 93.4%, coming closest to its pre-recession peak in 2008.
Across care segments, entrance fee communities consistently reported higher occupancy and monthly rents compared to rentals, especially in independent living and memory care.

Key Takeaways

Entrance Fee Communities Hold The Lead

According to new data from the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC), CCRCs requiring upfront entrance fees are outperforming rental-based CCRCs across the board, reports GlobeSt. In the first quarter of 2025, previously mentioned communities posted a 91.6% average occupancy rate across 99 major markets—nearly 300 basis points higher than the 88.7% average for rentals.

Regional Trends Show Consistent Advantage

Entering fee CCRCs outpaced rentals in occupancy in every tracked region. The Northeast saw the highest occupancy at 93.4%, just 150 basis points shy of its Q1 2008 peak. Meanwhile, the Southwest posted the largest gap from its pre-recession peak, trailing by 540 basis points at 88.8% occupancy.

Rental CCRCs also performed best in the Northeast (91.7%), while the West North Central region lagged behind at 86.7%.

Care Segments Highlight Pricing And Demand Disparity

The NIC study further broke down occupancy and rent data by care level, showing entrance fee communities commanding higher rents across all segments:

Independent Living:
- Entrance Fee: 93% occupancy, $4,253/month
- Rental: 90.4% occupancy, $3,831/month
Assisted Living:
- Entrance Fee: 90.6% occupancy, $7,827/month
- Rental: 90.2% occupancy, $6,265/month
Memory Care:
- Entrance Fee: 90.4% occupancy, $9,606/month
- Rental: 90.2% occupancy, $8,021/month
Nursing Care:
- Entrance Fee: 87.5% occupancy, $463/month
- Rental: 86.1% occupancy, $403/month

Why It Matters

These figures suggest that entering fee communities may offer greater financial and operational stability for operators and investors, with higher resident commitment and pricing power. While none of the regions have fully returned to their 2008 peak occupancy levels, these models appear to be narrowing that gap faster than rentals.

What’s Next

With demographics tilting toward a growing senior population, developers and operators may lean further into the entering fee model as a strategy to bolster occupancy, pricing, and long-term revenue stability.