Liberty Senior Living Tests Unique Ownership Model at Life Plan Community Under Development

Liberty Senior Living is testing a new and unique ownership structure at a new development in the Charleston, South Carolina area. 

The company is underway in the design and development of its latest luxury life plan community, The Peninsula at Charleston, which is slated for a 13-acre neighborhood district called Courier Square. Amenities will include a 24-hour concierge, valet service, multiple dining experiences, golf simulator, heated saltwater pool, salon, spa and more. Units range from 700 to 2,800 square feet in size and include condos, garden flats and townhomes.

Liberty is set to break ground on the community in the middle of next year, and pre-selling is already underway.

The community’s ownership will be equity-based, with residents able to purchase units outright and keep them within their estates after they pass away. That makes the community among more than a dozen with such options for residents, Liberty noted in a press release.

The transfer of ownership of a senior living unit could help operators gain more census and sustain greater financial stability in the long term, according to Liberty.

Equity-based senior living ownership models for residents aren’t unheard of but remain in the minority because of the many factors needed to make them work – specifically market location, according to Liberty Senior Living’s director of sales and marketing at The Peninsula, Paige Crone.

“We really want to give them an opportunity to continue to own or fulfill their dream to own something in downtown Charleston,” Crone told SHN. “People love the equity model because it keeps their estate value together.”

Crone noted that prospective residents have flooded the community with inquiries, with Liberty having pre-sold a quarter of the community’s units within the first week of availability. Among the community’s 75 floor plans, 18 types are already sold out and three condominium units have been sold since sales started last month, Crone said.

In the future, Crone envisions the equity-based ownership model becoming more commonplace in the senior living industry due to the type’s ability to create value and keep wealth within a family akin to typical homeownership.

“This is building a legacy,” Crone said. “Our slogan is location, luxury and legacy because this is something that can be passed down and is an investment for your future and your family’s future,” Crone said.

Another benefit seen early on in the pre-selling period is that the equity-based model is skewing much younger than typical Liberty Senior Living communities. Operators throughout the space are trying to determine the right formula to attract younger residents, and this ownership structure could help improve that, Crone said.

The community will include monthly fees for things like utilities and other services at an all-inclusive rate. The first move-ins are expected in 2027. Residents must be 62 and older to live in the community.

“Operators have to look at all the variables and see if this model is a good fit,” Crone said. “I hope that we’ll see more of this and our company because we feel like it’s really been a great opportunity for us.”