Tommy DobczykOpportunity Zone Advisor, OZ Wizard · Director of Development | Certified Opportunity Zone Advisor

Senior Living Deal: Staffing Budget Is a HUGE Red Flag!

27 Jul 2026 · 2 min

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2:21

In this conversational review of a senior living investment, Tommy Dobczyk and Tamara dissect several red flags that could jeopardize the deal. They highlight a mismatch between the proposed acquisition budget ($800k‑$1.1M) and the seller’s asking price ($1.35M), raising concerns about the capital stack. They flag revenue assumption conflicts, noting that projected revenues may not cover realistic operating costs. The biggest operational warning is the severely understated staffing budget—$10k‑$15k per month—which Tommy argues cannot support the 24/7 CNA coverage required for a senior living facility. He walks through a quick FTE calculation using Las Vegas minimum wage, concluding that only one or two staff members could be afforded, far below what is needed for safe resident care. Licensing risk is also identified as a potential deal‑killer, especially if the facility lacks proper medical staffing. Overall, the discussion underscores the importance of thorough due‑diligence on staffing, licensing, pricing, and revenue assumptions before committing to a senior living acquisition.

Chapters

It's like, ooh, get a little, little worried about it when they say the whole staff is $10,000 or $15,000 a month when I know what I make. So these are the red flags: revenue assumption conflict, property price change, the capital stack. So the startup budget shows acquisition $800,000 to $1.1 million, but Rogers Properties' appendix shows $1.35 million asking price. So that's where it's really tricky. And then licensing risk is the real deal killer here. So making sure that that's all covered. Staffing looks light, meaning that the package estimates $10,000 to $15,000 a month for staffing. I know for me, I was a registered nurse. I made $15,000 to $18,000 a month, uh, net bring home. That was me as a nurse.
Right, right.
So it's like, you get a little worried about it when they say the whole staff is $10,000 or $15,000 a month when I know what I make.
So, and then, because mostly the only staff would be like just a home manager. Basically because— and coordinator that would just coordinate, you know, things for the residents. There's no medical or anything like that.
But Tamara, have you ever ran a senior living facility or do you have an operator for this? Well, again, the cost of two— because you're going to need at least two CNAs to be there 24/7. Because if this is a senior care facility—
it's not a senior care, it's more of a companion. Senior living. It doesn't have any medic— this is just a community home for a senior.
So here's my concern. What happens when somebody falls and breaks a hip?
Right? I mean, you know, this is an independent senior care home.
So at $10,000 a month, monthly staffing, let's just quickly do the math on that. I'm running a care facility and I have a staffing budget of $10,000 a month. Tell me what my FTE is on that with a minimum wage in Las Vegas. And so I'm assuming this has to run 24/7 because if I have senior living people there, they've got to get up and pee in the middle of the night. Every old dude I know in the world has to get up and pee in the middle of the night.
Including me.
Right. 10 times. And so I'm going to need at least one person there swinging again. My brain always does quick math. And so I know in my head that I'm only going to get maybe 1 or 2 employees out of that, um, uh, out of that budget.