Azora enters French senior living market

Alternative investment manager Azora has entered the French market by acquiring Emeis Group's Senior Independent Living business in a joint venture with Twentytwo Real Estate Fund III. 

Senior living property - France

This acquisition adds 17 properties with 1,850 apartments in major French cities like Paris, Marseille, Bordeaux, Amiens, and Reims to Azora's portfolio. These residences cater to independent seniors, offering various amenities like landscaped gardens, restaurants, and spa facilities. 
The high-quality portfolio will be managed by Jardins d'Arcadie, an operator with 120 properties and 11,000 senior living apartments under management.
This deal increases Azora's senior living assets under management to €800 million, with 53 assets and 5,000 beds, and 3,000 independent living apartments. Additionally, it solidifies the company’s leadership in the Spanish senior real estate market and expands its international presence to France.
In addition to Spain, Azora is present in key markets such as the United States, Italy, Germany, Ireland, Greece, and Portugal.
Javier Rodríguez-Heredia, managing partner of Azora, said: “This investment reinforces our commitment to meeting the growing social infrastructure needs - in this case, within the senior living segment driven by Europe’s aging population - through the development of high-quality real estate. At the same time, it opens up new investment opportunities in France, a country which, with 69 million inhabitants, is the third largest market in Europe by GDP and also the third largest for institutional real estate investment.”
Carlos Fernández de Araoz, partner at Azora and head of the transaction, added: “The acquisition of this portfolio represents another important milestone in Azora’s international expansion, extending its activities to one of the most significant markets in Europe.”
Société Générale financed the acquisition. Various advisory firms were involved: Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe, CMS, and Thibiere advised Azora and Twentytwo Real Estate; A&O Shearman advised Société Générale; Franklin advised Jardins d’Arcadie (Acapade); and Gide, Oudot, CBRE, and Crédit Agricole advised the Emeis Group.