Benzinga | Dec 15, 2020 07:05AM EST

Welltower and Wafra Announce $550M Medical Office Building Joint Venture

Wafra Inc. ("Wafra"), a global alternative investment platform, and Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL), an S&P 500 healthcare real estate investment trust (REIT), today announced a $550 million joint venture partnership between Welltower and certain vehicles managed by Wafra (such vehicles, collectively, the "Wafra Vehicles").



The 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.

"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. "Building on Welltower's demonstrated track record, we see compelling opportunities to realize shared success through this partnership. 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."