Walker & Dunlop (NYSE: WD) on Friday announced that it had provided a $12.8 million bridge loan for the acquisition of The Grove Fox Valley, a 156-bed skilled nursing facility in the Chicago suburb of Aurora, Ill.

The Bethesda, Md.-based real estate finance company originated the loan for Cascade Capital Group of Skokie, Ill., which used the money to both purchase the property and fund capital improvements. Cascade plans to convert the nine-month bridge loan into permanent financing through the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), according to Walker & Dunlop.

“In this case, we provided short-term financing to enable the borrower to execute this acquisition while adhering to tight timeframes,” Brian Casey, the senior vice president in charge of Walker & Dunlop’s bridge lending platform, said in a statement announcing the transaction.

The Grove at Fox Valley offers higher-end hospitality touches such as private suites and high-speed Wi-Fi, the firm noted.

Walker & Dunlop made a major move to bolster its presence in the senior housing and care space in Chicagoland earlier this month, hiring away five broker leaders from Marcus & Millichap’s Institutional Property Advisors arm.

Blueprint Brokers Wyoming Sale

Blueprint Healthcare Real Estate Advisors brokered the sale of a 120-bed skilled nursing facility in Casper, Wy., on behalf of a New York-based chain of more than 150 facilities across the country.

The property was in distress at the time the marketing process began, with a spot on the Special Focus Facility list, declining occupancy, and negative cash flow. The eventual buyers, however, saw potential in the physical plant and previous operational success, according to the Chicago-based Blueprint; the property has also since passed its surveys and graduated from the SFF program.

Blueprint’s Christopher Hyldahl, Gideon Orion, and Kendra Gonzalez led the transaction for the brokerage firm.

Helios Deals in Houston

Helios Healthcare Advisors negotiated the $7.5 million sale of a 120-bed skilled nursing facility in Houston, the Chicago-based brokerage announced last week.

Despite being built in the late 2000s with a modern physical plant, the property had negative cash flow, and the previous operators — a private Texas-based firm — had trouble boosting census and managing expenses, according to Helios.

The new owners were able to close on the deal within 30 days of signing the contract through a majority change in entity ownership transaction.