Carolina Village, a nonprofit senior living community in Hendersonville, North Carolina, has priced $45.6 million in Series 2026A Bonds to fund facility upgrades and campus expansion over the next 18 months.
The transaction, underwritten by Chicago-based Ziegler, will secure $15 million in new capital while refinancing existing debt and lowering annual debt service obligations. Carolina Village, incorporated in 1972, operates 370 independent living units, 60 assisted living beds and 58 skilled nursing beds on a 94.8-acre campus about 20 miles south of Asheville. The organization maintains a waitlist exceeding 1,000 prospective residents.
Bond proceeds will refund the organization's outstanding Series 2017A Bank Bonds, allocate $3.3 million for a comprehensive sewer lining project and earmark $11.7 million for design, permitting and pre-construction expenses for a planned expansion phase.
Carolina Village plans substantial renovations to existing independent living apartments, including exterior improvements, balcony additions and mechanical system upgrades. The organization also will develop a new 60-unit independent living apartment building to address growing demand.
The bonds carry a 5.376% weighted average yield to maturity, with a weighted average maturity of 21.86 years. The extension of maturity dates on refunded bonds helped lower annual debt service requirements despite the injection of new capital.
The bonds are unrated, meaning they were not submitted for evaluation by credit rating agencies—a common approach for smaller nonprofit senior living transactions. The financing was issued through the North Carolina Medical Care Commission, reflecting Carolina Village's status as a certified nonprofit provider, which grants access to more favorable borrowing rates than for-profit competitors typically secure.
Carolina Village's management has indicated that, assuming financial projections materialize and pre-sales targets are met, additional financing for the new building will likely occur in the second or third quarter of 2027. This staggered approach allows the organization to gauge market response to renovated units before committing to the full buildout of the new apartment building.
Ziegler specializes in nonprofit senior living finance and is the nation's leading underwriter of senior living financings for nonprofits.
