Topic: How To Invest

Pat: What are your thoughts on HealthLease Properties? Thanks.

Article Excerpt

HealthLease Properties Real Estate Investment Trust, $11.15, symbol HLP.UN on Toronto (Units outstanding: 12.1 million; Market cap: $134.9 million; www.hlpreit.com), owns 12 retirement homes and senior-care facilities in western Canada and the U.S. Midwest. In all, these properties contain 1,656 beds. It has three more properties (with a total of 275 beds) under development in Indiana and Illinois. The REIT does not operate these homes. Instead, it rents them out to operators under long-term leases that expire in 2022 and beyond. These operators are responsible for each building’s property taxes, insurance, utilities and maintenance. Alberta supplies 64% of HealthLease’s rental revenue, followed by Indiana (26%) and B.C. (10%). HealthLease took its current form on April 12, 2012. It sold 11.0 million units to the public on June 20, 2012, for $10.00 each. The REIT then used the proceeds to buy eight seniors’ homes. In the three months ended September 30, 2012, HealthLease’s cash flow was $3.0 million, or $0.21 a unit, on…