NEW YORK CITY-A strategic alliance between Real Capital Analytics and the National Investment Center for the Seniors Housing and Care Industry announced yesterday aims to improve investment decisions made about the growing seniors housing sector.

“With the increased interest in the seniors housing property sector, we at NIC have been collecting information on those sales transactions and elected to partner with Real Capital Analytics, which has a strong reputation within the commercial real estate sector,” NIC director of research and analysis Chuck Harry tells GlobeSt.com. Harry adds that the alliance will combine the two company’s areas of expertise: NIC’s knowledge of the seniors housing and care sector and RCA’s ability to track commercial real estate transactions.

According to data from the National Council of Real Estate Investment Fiduciaries, Harry’s assertion about the focus of attention on the seniors housing is on the mark. Returns for the sector have consistently outperformed the group’s property index. As of the fourth quarter of 2010, the seven-year return, for instance, has generated an annualized return of 15.2%, versus 7.3% for the NPI. Total income returns for Q4 2011 were above those for the NPI and total apartment data as well.