We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience.
This includes personalizing content and advertising.
By pressing "Accept All" or closing out of this banner, you consent to the use of all cookies and similar technologies and the sharing of information they collect with third parties.
You can reject marketing cookies by pressing "Deny Optional," but we still use essential, performance, and functional cookies.
In addition, whether you "Accept All," Deny Optional," click the X or otherwise continue to use the site, you accept our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service, revised from time to time.
You are being directed to ZacksTrade, a division of LBMZ Securities and licensed broker-dealer. ZacksTrade and Zacks.com are separate companies. The web link between the two companies is not a solicitation or offer to invest in a particular security or type of security. ZacksTrade does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy, any analyst opinion/rating/report or any approach to evaluating individual securities.
If you wish to go to ZacksTrade, click OK. If you do not, click Cancel.
The Longevity Shift: Healthcare REITs to Benefit From Global Aging
Read MoreHide Full Article
An updated edition of the October 31, 2025, article.
The powerful rise in senior and aging populations is reshaping healthcare demand, but investors looking to benefit from this shift risk leaving money on the table if they focus only on pharma, biotech and medical devices. While drug and technology breakthroughs address clinical needs, the demographic wave — with global adults aged 60+ expected to grow sharply over the next decade — is also fueling sustained demand for places to live, recover and receive daily care. This reality places healthcare real estate and senior-focused service providers at the center of the longevity economy.
Specialized real estate investment trusts (REITs) and healthcare services stocks such as Welltower (WELL - Free Report) , Ventas (VTR - Free Report) , CareTrust (CTRE - Free Report) and Omega Healthcare (OHI - Free Report) are all capitalizing on this evolving landscape. By enhancing operational efficiency, they are increasingly expanding their presence in the Seniors & Aging Demographics domain.
Let's delve deeper.
Healthcare REITs
Healthcare REITs and operators own and run the buildings, leases and services that generate steady, demographic-driven cash flow. As per a Coherent Market Insights report, the global senior living market is projected to expand from about $260 billion in 2025 to nearly $389 billion by 2032 at a 5.9% CAGR, driven by aging populations and rising demand for assisted living and specialized care services. In the United States, senior housing REITs are benefiting from improving occupancy and constrained new supply, which supports rental income growth. Welltower and Ventas, for example, have publicly increased senior-housing investments and framed growth strategies around the silver economy.
Operators and Care-Focused REITs
At the operating level, companies like Ensign, Omega and CareTrust are closely tied to the everyday care needs of an aging population. Longer life expectancy drives sustained demand for skilled nursing, post-acute rehabilitation and long-term care as seniors live with more complex medical conditions. Ensign benefits through its direct operation of skilled nursing and senior living facilities, while Omega and CareTrust capture this structural demand as owners of skilled nursing and transitional care properties leased to operators dependent on steady occupancy and reimbursement flows. Unlike innovation-driven healthcare segments, these business models focus on essential capacity and care delivery that cannot be postponed.
Ready to uncover more transformative thematic investment ideas? Explore 30 cutting-edge investment themes with Zacks Thematic Screens and discover your next big opportunity.
4 Seniors & Aging Demographics Stocks in the Spotlight
Welltower, as a REIT, has SHO (operated through RIDEA structures — a structure authorized by the REIT Investment Diversification and Empowerment Act of 2007) properties that include senior apartments, independent living/continuing care retirement communities, assisted living, independent supportive living communities and care homes, with and without nursing.
In January 2025, it announced the formation of a private funds management business and further launched its first fund, Senior Housing Funds I LP. The fund was formed to invest in stable or near-stable senior housing properties in the United States. Stronger demographics and increasing penetration rates have favorably positioned the SHO portfolio for long-term growth. From the beginning of the year through Oct. 27, 2025, Welltower carried out pro-rata acquisitions totaling $2.52 billion for 95 SHO properties. As of Oct. 27, 2025, the company has closed or is under contract to close an additional $4 billion of seniors housing acquisitions, comprising 40 transactions across over 150 communities and more than 12,000 units. Welltower currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Ventas is a healthcare real estate investment trust (REIT) that is engaged in acquisition, ownership and leasing of senior housing communities, outpatient medical buildings, research centers, hospitals and other healthcare facilities located in North America and the U.K. Through Ventas’ senior housing operating portfolio (SHOP), it owns and invests in senior housing communities across the United States and Canada. The senior housing communities in its SHOP segment include independent living communities, assisted living communities, memory care communities and continuing care retirement communities.
Per the company’s third-quarter 2025 earnings presentation, the U.S. population aged 80 years and above is expected to grow by 28% in the next five years, driving significant demand for senior housing. Hence, Ventas is well-prepared for a compelling multiyear growth opportunity with an expectation of a rising senior citizens’ population in the years ahead and low new supply in its markets. The stock currently holds a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
CareTrust has expanded its portfolio over the past two years in ways closely aligned with aging demographics and rising demand for senior care real estate. The company acquired a five-facility, 498-bed skilled nursing portfolio in the Southeast for about $80.9 million, placing the assets under long-term triple-net leases with CPI-linked escalators to support stable rental income.
In 2025, CareTrust added 10 skilled nursing facilities across Idaho, Oregon and Washington for $146 million under 15-year leases and entered senior housing operations with a $40 million acquisition of assisted living and memory care communities in Texas. The company has also completed roughly $437 million in additional acquisitions, further deepening exposure to skilled nursing assets. CareTrust carries a Zacks Rank #3.
Omega is consistently showcasing increased revenues and improved operating metrics, citing better operator coverage ratios, occupancy stabilization and an active investment pipeline, pointing to strengthening fundamentals in facilities serving the aging population. In 2025, Omega entered into a strategic agreement to acquire a 9.9% equity interest in a senior healthcare operating company, positioning it to benefit from joint ventures in facility acquisitions and distributions tied to long-term care utilization.
These developments, paired with increased adjusted FFO guidance and continued dividends, indicate that Omega is leveraging demographic trends toward greater skilled nursing and post-acute care needs, supporting stable income streams anchored in the aging cohort’s essential services. Omega carries a Zacks Rank #3.
See More Zacks Research for These Tickers
Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:
Image: Bigstock
The Longevity Shift: Healthcare REITs to Benefit From Global Aging
An updated edition of the October 31, 2025, article.
The powerful rise in senior and aging populations is reshaping healthcare demand, but investors looking to benefit from this shift risk leaving money on the table if they focus only on pharma, biotech and medical devices. While drug and technology breakthroughs address clinical needs, the demographic wave — with global adults aged 60+ expected to grow sharply over the next decade — is also fueling sustained demand for places to live, recover and receive daily care. This reality places healthcare real estate and senior-focused service providers at the center of the longevity economy.
Specialized real estate investment trusts (REITs) and healthcare services stocks such as Welltower (WELL - Free Report) , Ventas (VTR - Free Report) , CareTrust (CTRE - Free Report) and Omega Healthcare (OHI - Free Report) are all capitalizing on this evolving landscape. By enhancing operational efficiency, they are increasingly expanding their presence in the Seniors & Aging Demographics domain.
Let's delve deeper.
Healthcare REITs
Healthcare REITs and operators own and run the buildings, leases and services that generate steady, demographic-driven cash flow. As per a Coherent Market Insights report, the global senior living market is projected to expand from about $260 billion in 2025 to nearly $389 billion by 2032 at a 5.9% CAGR, driven by aging populations and rising demand for assisted living and specialized care services. In the United States, senior housing REITs are benefiting from improving occupancy and constrained new supply, which supports rental income growth. Welltower and Ventas, for example, have publicly increased senior-housing investments and framed growth strategies around the silver economy.
Operators and Care-Focused REITs
At the operating level, companies like Ensign, Omega and CareTrust are closely tied to the everyday care needs of an aging population. Longer life expectancy drives sustained demand for skilled nursing, post-acute rehabilitation and long-term care as seniors live with more complex medical conditions. Ensign benefits through its direct operation of skilled nursing and senior living facilities, while Omega and CareTrust capture this structural demand as owners of skilled nursing and transitional care properties leased to operators dependent on steady occupancy and reimbursement flows. Unlike innovation-driven healthcare segments, these business models focus on essential capacity and care delivery that cannot be postponed.
Ready to uncover more transformative thematic investment ideas? Explore 30 cutting-edge investment themes with Zacks Thematic Screens and discover your next big opportunity.
4 Seniors & Aging Demographics Stocks in the Spotlight
Welltower, as a REIT, has SHO (operated through RIDEA structures — a structure authorized by the REIT Investment Diversification and Empowerment Act of 2007) properties that include senior apartments, independent living/continuing care retirement communities, assisted living, independent supportive living communities and care homes, with and without nursing.
In January 2025, it announced the formation of a private funds management business and further launched its first fund, Senior Housing Funds I LP. The fund was formed to invest in stable or near-stable senior housing properties in the United States. Stronger demographics and increasing penetration rates have favorably positioned the SHO portfolio for long-term growth. From the beginning of the year through Oct. 27, 2025, Welltower carried out pro-rata acquisitions totaling $2.52 billion for 95 SHO properties. As of Oct. 27, 2025, the company has closed or is under contract to close an additional $4 billion of seniors housing acquisitions, comprising 40 transactions across over 150 communities and more than 12,000 units. Welltower currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Ventas is a healthcare real estate investment trust (REIT) that is engaged in acquisition, ownership and leasing of senior housing communities, outpatient medical buildings, research centers, hospitals and other healthcare facilities located in North America and the U.K. Through Ventas’ senior housing operating portfolio (SHOP), it owns and invests in senior housing communities across the United States and Canada. The senior housing communities in its SHOP segment include independent living communities, assisted living communities, memory care communities and continuing care retirement communities.
Per the company’s third-quarter 2025 earnings presentation, the U.S. population aged 80 years and above is expected to grow by 28% in the next five years, driving significant demand for senior housing. Hence, Ventas is well-prepared for a compelling multiyear growth opportunity with an expectation of a rising senior citizens’ population in the years ahead and low new supply in its markets. The stock currently holds a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
CareTrust has expanded its portfolio over the past two years in ways closely aligned with aging demographics and rising demand for senior care real estate. The company acquired a five-facility, 498-bed skilled nursing portfolio in the Southeast for about $80.9 million, placing the assets under long-term triple-net leases with CPI-linked escalators to support stable rental income.
In 2025, CareTrust added 10 skilled nursing facilities across Idaho, Oregon and Washington for $146 million under 15-year leases and entered senior housing operations with a $40 million acquisition of assisted living and memory care communities in Texas. The company has also completed roughly $437 million in additional acquisitions, further deepening exposure to skilled nursing assets. CareTrust carries a Zacks Rank #3.
Omega is consistently showcasing increased revenues and improved operating metrics, citing better operator coverage ratios, occupancy stabilization and an active investment pipeline, pointing to strengthening fundamentals in facilities serving the aging population. In 2025, Omega entered into a strategic agreement to acquire a 9.9% equity interest in a senior healthcare operating company, positioning it to benefit from joint ventures in facility acquisitions and distributions tied to long-term care utilization.
These developments, paired with increased adjusted FFO guidance and continued dividends, indicate that Omega is leveraging demographic trends toward greater skilled nursing and post-acute care needs, supporting stable income streams anchored in the aging cohort’s essential services. Omega carries a Zacks Rank #3.