CareTrust REIT, Inc. (NYSE: CTRE) has agreed to acquire 45 new United Kingdom care homes from LNT Care Developments Holdings Limited for approximately £1.1 billion. The deal, which establishes a path to building a significant senior housing operating portfolio platform in the UK, features staggered closings.
The initial closing took place on October 1, 2026, covering 24 homes built in the last two years for roughly £576 million, or about $764 million before transaction costs. CareTrust financed this portion using proceeds from settling forward equity agreements and borrowing from its revolving credit facility. The remaining 21 homes are still under development. CareTrust will purchase these for approximately £504 million once they are complete and receive regulatory approvals, a process expected to continue through 2027.
| Component | Homes | Value (GBP) | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Closing | 24 | ~576 million | Completed Oct 1, 2026 |
| Remaining Development | 21 | ~504 million | Under development |
| Total | 45 | ~1.1 billion | Definitive Agreement |
All properties will be leased to subsidiaries of Crystal Care, LNT’s operating arm, under triple-net leases with fixed annual escalators and renewal options. This Lease-up Phase ensures CareTrust receives steady, guaranteed rent during the early years after construction, avoiding earnings dilution while operations scale up. After this period, both companies plan to move the homes into a RIDEA structure with Crystal Care, marking the start of the SHOP Phase.
CareTrust anticipates the SHOP Phase will commence two to four years after each home is finished, with the first switch scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2027. The company projects the deal will boost normalized funds from operations per share during the lease-up period and produce a pre-tax yield in the mid- to high-7% range in the first year of the SHOP Phase.
James Callister, CareTrust’s Chief Investment Officer, explained that the structure allows the firm to receive payments while the homes fill, keeping results accretive rather than dilutive during the ramp-up. He noted the acquisition significantly enhances the age, quality, and layout of CareTrust’s UK portfolio.
LNT was founded by Lawrence Tomlinson, who has constructed over 250 care homes in his career. The firm currently delivers close to 30 homes annually. Separately from the LNT deal, CareTrust reported closing on about $488 million in other investments since its second-quarter 2026 earnings report. This includes three UK care homes for roughly $34 million and $55 million in preferred equity and debt tied to skilled nursing portfolios.
Dave Sedgwick, CareTrust’s Chief Executive Officer, stated that these deals bring the company’s third-quarter investment total to approximately $1.6 billion and its year-to-date total to a record $2.7 billion across its growth engines. The current investment pipeline stands at about $525 million, excluding the remaining 21 LNT homes under contract.