UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT PURSUANT

TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE

SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): August 6, 2004 (August 5, 2004)

National Health Investors, Inc.

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

Maryland

(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation)

333-41863

62-1470956

(Commission File No.)

(IRS Employer

Identification Number)

100 Vine Street, Suite 1202

Murfreesboro, TN 37130

(Address of principal executive offices, including zip code)

(615) 890-9100

(Registrant's telephone number, including area code)

Not Applicable

(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)



Item 5. Other Events

On August 5, 2004, National Health Investors, Inc. announced its second quarter earnings. A copy of the press release is furnished as an exhibit to this Form 8-K and is incorporated herein by reference.



SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

National Health Investors, Inc.
By: /s/ W. Andrew Adams
Name: W. Andrew Adams
Title: Chief Executive Officer
By:/s/ Donald K. Daniel
Name: Donald K. Daniel
Title: Principal Accounting Officer
Date: August 6, 2004




Exhibit Index

Number Exhibit
99 Press release, dated August 5, 2004




EXHIBIT 99



For Release August 5, 2004

Contact: Gerald Coggin, Sr. VP of Investor Relations

Phone: (615) 890-9100



NHI reports second quarter income

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. -- National Health Investors, Inc., (NYSE: NHI) announced income from continuing operations for the second quarter ended June 30 of $11,008,000, or 40 cents per basic and diluted share of common stock compared to $11,230,000, or 41 cents per basic and 40 cents per diluted share of common stock for the same period in 2003.

Funds from operations ("FFO") for the second quarter ended June 30 was $13,567,000, or 50 cents per basic and $13,597,000, or 49 cents per diluted share of common stock compared to $13,542,000, or 51 cents per basic and $13,580,000, or 50 cents per diluted share in 2003.

Income from continuing operations for the six months ended June 30, was $24,591,000 or 89 cents per basic and 88 cents per diluted share of common stock compared to $21,728,000 or 78 cents per basic and diluted share of common stock for the same period in 2003.

For the six months ended June 30, FFO was $29,583,000 or $1.09 per basic and $29,645,000 or $1.09 per diluted share of common stock compared to $26,483,000 or 99 cents per basic and $26,562,000 or 99 cents per diluted share in 2003.

Net income for the three months and six months ended June 30, was $11,961,000 and $25,396,000, respectively, versus $10,816,000 and $22,936,000, respectively, for 2003.

For the second quarter of 2004, we sold two facilities resulting in a net gain of $1,252,000. One facility located in Bellingham, Washington was sold at a loss of $345,000 while the other facility located in Dawson Springs, Kentucky was sold at a gain of $1,597,000. For the second quarter of 2004, we also wrote off 100% of the $3,339,000 carrying value of our 1995 REMIC and recorded a recovery of $2,246,000 from our 1993 REMIC.

National Health Investors, Inc. is a long-term health care real estate investment trust that specializes in the financing of health care real estate by first mortgage and by purchase and leaseback transactions. The common stock of the company trades on the New York Stock Exchange with the symbol NHI. Additional information including NHI's most recent press releases may be obtained on NHI's web site at www.nhinvestors.com.

Statements in this press release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements. NHI cautions investors that any forward-looking statements made involve risks and uncertainties and are not guarantees of future performance. All forward-looking statements represent NHI's judgment as of the date of this release.

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Page 2 NHI's Second Quarter Results

Condensed Statements of
(in thousands, except share and per share Three Months Ended Six Months Ended June
2004 2003 2004 2003
Revenues:
Mortgage interest income $ 4,818 $ 4,705 $ 9,669 $ 10,248
Rental income 12,300 13,044 24,479 26,366
Facility operating revenue 20,769 19,833 41,169 38,954
37,887 37,582 75,317 75,568
Expenses:
Interest 3,083 3,176 6,203 7,164
Depreciation 3,481 3,743 7,016 7,513
Amortization of loan cost 37 40 74 223
Legal expense 769 265 918 184
Franchise and excise tax 66 67 136 463
General and administrative 1,064 720 1920 1,434
Loan, remic, and security
losses, net 1,093 --- (896) 1,500
Facility operating expenses 20,080 19,498 40,282 38,160
29,673 27,509 55,653 56,641
Income before non-operating income 8,214 10,073 19,664 18,927
Non-operating income (investment
interest and other) 2,794 1,157 4,927 2,801
Income from continuing operations 11,008 11,230 24,591 21,728
Discontinued operations
Operating loss - (299) (414) (447) (724)
Gain on sale of real estate 1,252 --- 1,252 1,932
953 (414) 805 1,208
Net Income 11,961 10,816 25,396 22,936
Dividends to preferred 117 398 514 795
Net income applicable to common $ 11,844 $ 10,418 $ 24,882 $ 22,141
Income from continuing operations per common share:
Basic $ .40 $ .41 $ .89 $ .78
Diluted $ .40 $ .40 $ .88 $ .78
Discontinued operations per
Basic $ .03 $ (.02) $ .03 $ .05
Diluted $ .03 $ (.01) $ .03 $ .04
Net income per common share:
Basic $ .43 $ .39 $ .92 $ .83
Diluted $ .43 $ .39 $ .91 $ .82
Funds from operations
Basic $ 13,567 $ 13,542 $ 29,583 $ 26,483
Diluted $ 13,597 $ 13,580 $ 29,645 $ 26,562
Funds from operations per
Basic $ .50 $ .51 $ 1.09 $ .99
Diluted $ .49 $ .50 $ 1.09 $ .99
Weighted average common shares
Basic 27,267,605 26,720,197 27,021,60 26,704,594
Diluted shares for net 27,534,171 26,976,36 27,299,44 26,960,445
Diluted shares for FFO 27,534,171 26,976,36 27,299,44 26,960,445
Dividends per common share $ .4250 $ .40 $ .85 $ .80




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Page 3 NHI's Second Quarter Results

Balance Sheet Data
(in thousands)

June 30

Decembe
2004 2003
Real estate properties, net $ 281,677 $ 289,46
Mortgages receivable, net 143,019 149,89
Preferred stock investments 38,132 38,132
REMIC investments -0- 16,043
Cash and marketable securities 145,415 120,52
Debt 156,608 162,10
Convertible debt 1,185 1,351
Stockholders' equity 413,873 409,64





Reconciliation of Funds From Operations (1)



The following table reconciles net income applicable to common stockholders to funds from operations applicable to common stockholders:



(in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

Three Months Ended Six Months Ended
2004 2003 2004 2003
Net income $ 11,961 $ 10,816 $ 25,396 $ 22,936
Dividends to preferred stockholders (117) (398) (514) (795)
Net income applicable to common 11,844 10,418 24,882 22,141
Elimination of non-cash items in net
Real estate depreciation 2,972 3,063 5,941 6,153
Real estate depreciation in
operations 3 61 12 121
Gain on sale of real estate (1,252) --- (1,252) (1,932)
Basic funds from operations
common stockholders 13,567 13,542 29,583 26,483
Interest on convertible subordinated 30 38 62 79
Diluted funds from operations
common stockholders $ 13,597 $ 13,580 $ 29,645 $ 26,562
Basic funds from operations per $ .50 $ .51 $ 1.09 $ .99
Diluted funds from operations per $ .49 $ .50 $ 1.09 $ .99
Shares for basic funds from 27,267,60 26,720,1 27,021,60 26,704,5
Shares for diluted funds from operations 27,534,17 26,976,3 27,299,44 26,960,4

(1) Management believes that funds from operations is an important supplemental measure of operating performance for a real estate investment trust. Because the historical cost accounting convention used for real estate assets requires straight-line depreciation (except on land), such accounting presentation implies that the value of real estate assets diminishes predictably over time. Since real estate values instead have historically risen and fallen with market conditions, presentations of operating results for a real estate investment trust that use historical cost accounting for depreciation could be less informative, and should be supplemented with a measure such as FFO. The term FFO was designed by the real estate investment trust industry to address this issue. Our measure may not be comparable to similarly titled measures used by other REITs. Consequently, our funds from operations may not provide a meaningful measure of our performance as compared to that of other REITs. Since other REITs may not use our definition of FFO, caution should be exercised when comparing our Company's FFO to that of other REITs. Funds from operations in and of itself does not represent cash generated from operating activities in accordance with GAAP (funds from operations does not include changes in operating assets and liabilities) and therefore should not be considered an alternative to net earnings as an indication of operating performance, or to net cash flow from operating activities as determined by GAAP in the United States, as a measure of liquidity and is not necessarily indicative of cash available to fund cash needs.



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Page 4 NHI's Second Quarter Results

National Health Investors, Inc. Portfolio Summary June 30, 2004
Portfolio Statistics Investment
Properties Investment Percentage
Equity Ownership 92 $ 281,677,000 66%
Mortgage Loan Receivables 70 143,019,000 34%
Total Real Estate Portfolio 162 $ 424,696,000 100%
Equity Ownership Properties Beds Investments
  Nursing Homes 66 8,950 $ 180,120,000
  Assisted Living 16 1,438 71,602,000
  Medical Office Buildings 4 124,427 sq.ft. 11,098,000
  Retirement Homes 5 426 11,057,000
  Hospitals 1 55 7,800,000
92   $ 281,677,000
Mortgage Loan Receivables Properties Beds Investments
  Nursing Homes 51 5,585 $ 130,750,000
  Assisted Living 1 90 5,634,000
  Retirement Homes 1 60 2,125,000
  Developmentally Disabled 17 108 4,510,000
    70   $ 143,019,000
REMIC II Investment 2,313 -
 Total Mortgage Portfolio 70   $ 143,019,000
         
Summary of Facilities By Type:      
    Percentage of Total
    Properties Total Dollars Dollars
  Nursing Homes 117 73.20% $ 310,870,000
  Assisted Living 17 18.19% 77,236,000
  Medical Office Buildings 4 2.61% 11,098,000
  Retirement Homes 6 3.10% 13,182,000
  Hospitals 1 1.84% 7,800,000
  Developmentally Disabled 17 1.06% 4,510,000
    162 100.00% $ 424,696,000
 
Portfolio by Operator Type      
    # of Percentage of Total
    Properties Total Dollars Dollars
         
  Public 72 29.16% $ 123,821,000
  Regional 84 67.88% 288,300,000
  Small Operator 6 2.96% 12,575,000
    162 100.00% $ 424,696,000
Percentage
Of Total Dollar
OPERATOR Portfolio Amount
National HealthCare Corp. 13.41% $ 56,935,000
National Health Investors, Inc. 4.77% 20,255,000
Community Health Systems, Inc. 3.38% 14,368,000
Sunrise Senior Living Services 3.28% 13,921,000
Sun Healthcare 2.19% 9,302,000
HCA-The Healthcare Company 1.07% 4,530,000
Res-Care, Inc. 1.06% 4,510,000
29.16% $ 123,821,000


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Page 5 NHI's Second Quarter Results

Summary of Facilities by State - June 30, 2004
Percent of
Acute Dev. Asst. Retire- Current Total
LTC Care MOB Disab. Living Ment Total Amount Portfolio
1 Florida 19 1 14 6 40 $112,964,000 26.60%
2 Texas 27 2 1 1 31 93,648,000 22.05%
3 Tennessee 21 3 3 2 29 38,332,000 9.03%
4 Missouri 9 1 10 27,085,000 6.38%
5 New Jersey 2 1 3 26,455,000 6.23%
6 Arizona 1 4 5 19,289,000 4.54%
7 Virginia 7 7 18,889,000 4.45%
8 Georgia 7 7 17,040,000 4.01%
9 New Hampshire 3 1 4 16,336,000 3.85%
10 Massachusetts 4 4 11,973,000 2.82%
11 Kansas 7 7 11,646,000 2.74%
12 Kentucky 3 1 4 9,546,000 2.25%
13 South Carolina 3 1 4 8,423,000 1.98%
14 Idaho 1 1 2 5,624,000 1.32%
15 Alabama 2 2 2,417,000 0.57%
16 North Carolina 0 1 1 1,979,000 0.47%
17 Illinois 0 1 1 1,609,000 0.38%
18 Wisconsin 1 1 1,441,000 0.33%
117 1 4 17 17 6 162 $424,696,000 100.00%




















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