There's a growing gap in senior housing that is on track to lead to a $275 billion investment shortage by 2030, according to a report from NIC MAP Vision, a provider of data and analytics for the industry.

New senior housing starts have plummeted to just 0.2 percent of the existing inventory, the lowest level in recent history, the firm said. To meet the projected needs over the next six years, development must accelerate to more than 3.5 times the current pace. With only 26,000 units being developed annually compared to the highest rate of 56,000 units in the 21st century, the industry is on track to fall 50 percent short of the required inventory by 2025. Only a quarter of necessary units have been developed so far.

"We are critically behind in taking care of our aging population," said Arick Morton, NIC MAP Vision Chief Executive Officer, in prepared remarks. "We're already seeing the early stages of this incredible demand growth that will continue non-stop for the next 25 years and beyond. We simply don't have enough senior housing inventory in the pipeline, so we must act now to develop senior housing to help meet this demand."