The Belgian real estate company Aedifica has entered the Spanish healthcare market with seven new projects, following its July acquisition of the Dutch firm Cofinimmo. The deal made the group the largest European Reit focused on social healthcare and the fourth-largest operator globally, adding France and Italy to its existing network in Belgium, Spain, Germany, Finland, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands. Aedifica currently manages 45 healthcare complexes in Spain, a number expected to rise to 55 once current developments are finished.
Major Projects in Salamanca
Of the group’s global development pipeline valued at 531 million euros, 122 million corresponds to Spain. Aedifica projects that 47 percent of these projects will be completed by the end of 2027. The company’s first major project in this wave is a residence in Salamanca, a joint venture with Eurostate that requires an investment of 13 million euros. Construction began last August, and the facility is scheduled to open in 24 months.
Aedifica has already finished two new healthcare infrastructures in Spain this year, both completed in April. Located in Murcia and Valladolid, the facilities represent a combined investment of 28 million euros. The Murcia center is operated by Emera, while the Valladolid facility is managed by Genesenior. The company plans to complete two additional residences in Alicante and Castellón before the end of 2026, with another 28 million euros in investment, to be managed by Vivalto. In 2027, five more complexes are scheduled to open in Sevilla, Córdoba, Orense, Oviedo, and Santa Cruz de Tenerife at a total cost of approximately 73 million euros.
The expansion targets densely populated municipalities with a shortage of residential care places and a high per capita GDP. Aedifica entered the Spanish market in late 2021 with a care center for the elderly in Tomares, which currently houses over 160 residents. The firm’s Country Lead for Spain, María Garbayo García, notes a significant deficit of places to meet growing demand. She explains that the company looks for assets that require renovation or a change in use to create value, often partnering with local promoters or construction firms.
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Spain’s Early Stage Senior Living Market
Garbayo points out that the senior living sector is still in an early stage in Spain compared to more mature European markets. As operators gain experience and clarify service offerings, the market is expected to develop further. The company sees Spain as strategically important, noting the pending potential for consolidation and increasing demographic needs, even without a specific investment figure for the country. To support this growth, Garbayo calls for greater administrative agility, more public-private collaboration, and clearer regulatory frameworks to ensure consistency across autonomous communities.
Charles-Antoine van Aelst, the company’s Chief Investment Officer, highlights the flexibility of the investment approach. The strategy involves both acquiring existing assets to generate cash flow and financing new developments with a long-term business plan. Aedifica is willing to commit capital early to provide liquidity certainty during construction. The group, which has a global portfolio of 1,723 properties spanning over 4.62 million square meters and an occupancy rate of 99.1 percent, recently finalized the integration with Cofinimmo. This operation, valued at over 12,000 million euros, allowed Aedifica to expand into France and Italy, though non-strategic assets like offices and retail networks will be divested.
Global Portfolio and Occupancy Rates
Aedifica manages a portfolio of 1,723 properties spanning over 4.62 million square meters. The group holds an overall occupancy rate of 99.1 percent. Out of this total, 924 properties are healthcare facilities. These healthcare assets cover 4.12 million square meters and have a capacity for 80,000 people, including 13,000 children. The occupancy rate specifically for healthcare assets is 99.7 percent. The average lease term for the portfolio ranges from 15 to 16 years.
Future outlook and investment criteria
The company aims to continue growing in its current markets. It also looks for new opportunities where its investor approach can succeed. Expansion into a new country requires an exhaustive analysis. This analysis includes macroeconomic and demographic fundamentals. It also includes specific local real estate characteristics, such as healthcare financing structures and local operator conditions.