Q&A with Executive Vice Presidents & Senior Directors Rahul Chhajed, Michael Moreno on navigating the 2026 market and building a national platform for the next era of care.

 

Healthcare has remained one of the more resilient sectors across commercial real estate, despite working through a challenging capital environment. Today, buyers remain focused on well-located, durable assets. As capital markets begin to stabilize, the environment becomes increasingly constructive for transaction activity. According to a recent CoStar Group analysis, year-over-year sales volume has increased by 13.7% for healthcare assets, underscoring continued investor confidence in the sector even as the market recalibrates.

 

What are the key forces shaping healthcare real estate in 2026?

First and foremost, it’s the continued migration from inpatient to outpatient care, along with a supply environment that remains relatively constrained. The shift toward outpatient delivery is not new, but it continues to have a profound influence on how healthcare providers think about location strategy, patient access, and facility planning. Now more than ever, providers are focused on delivering care closer to the consumer in settings that are convenient, efficient, and better aligned with how patients want to engage with the healthcare system.

 

At the same time, development activity has slowed meaningfully, and that has created a dynamic where demand is still healthy, despite limited new supply. In that kind of environment, you tend to see strong absorption and continued rent growth, especially for well-located, high-quality assets. While 2026 is still largely defined by restricted supply, this period is laying the groundwork for a new wave of construction activity in 2027 and 2028, as developers and investors respond to the imbalance between demand and available space.

 

How is the shift toward outpatient care reshaping demand for healthcare space?

Rather than representing a dramatic reshaping of demand, it’s simply a continuation of a structural shift that has been unfolding for years. The healthcare system has been moving steadily toward outpatient delivery for some time, and that trend continues to drive demand toward facilities that are more accessible, more consumer-oriented, and better integrated into the communities they serve. Providers want to be closer to their patient base, and real estate has to support that objective.

 

What is becoming more pronounced, however, is the quality expectation that comes with that shift. There is now a much higher standard for what healthcare space needs to deliver. Patients increasingly expect a healthcare environment that feels modern, convenient, and intentionally designed. However, these expectations raise challenges for both new development and the repositioning of older assets. In some cases, obsolete or underutilized properties can be adapted for outpatient healthcare use, which creates opportunity.

 

But construction and build-out costs remain elevated, so when a new product does come to market, it often commands premium rents. Over time, that dynamic will continue to widen the gap between high-quality healthcare space and older, less competitive products.

 

Which healthcare specialties are showing the strongest demand fundamentals?

Several specialties continue to stand out, particularly orthopedics, cardiology, and oncology. These are areas where demand remains durable and where the underlying patient need is significant and consistent. In many cases, these specialties also benefit from long-term demographic tailwinds, advances in treatment, and a greater emphasis on specialized outpatient delivery models.

 

From a real estate perspective, those specialties are attractive because they often require thoughtfully designed space and support long-term tenancy. They are not purely interchangeable uses. The operational requirements, patient volumes, and investment in equipment can make these practices particularly sticky within a given location, which in turn supports strong demand fundamentals for the real estate that serves them.

 

What role is technology playing in the evolution of care delivery and facility design?

Technology is playing an increasingly important role across the entire commercial real estate industry, especially in healthcare, and AI is only accelerating that trend. One of the biggest impacts is the compression of time. Processes that historically required more manual effort, whether in planning, underwriting, design, research, or market analysis, can now be completed more efficiently and with better information. These tools allow agents to make decisions faster and with greater confidence.

 

Over time, that kind of efficiency should carry through into care delivery itself. When providers, architects, operators, and investors are able to process information more quickly and execute with greater precision, the result is better and more responsive healthcare environments. Technology is not replacing the need for sound judgment, but it is absolutely increasing the speed and sophistication with which decisions can be made. As a result, these advancements will continue to shape both facility design and operational execution going forward.

 

How are demographic trends supporting long-term healthcare demand?

The most important demographic driver is the aging population. As a larger share of the population moves into the 65-and-older age bracket, demand for healthcare services will continue to expand, and that naturally supports long-term demand for healthcare real estate as well. This is one of the clearest and most durable tailwinds in the sector.

 

What makes that especially meaningful is that aging does not just increase demand in a general sense. It also supports sustained need across a range of specialties, treatment settings, and care models. As utilization rises, providers need more space, better-located facilities, and real estate strategies to meet patient demand efficiently. That demographic foundation is one of the reasons healthcare real estate continues to be viewed as such a resilient asset class over the long term.

 

How is consolidation influencing healthcare real estate strategy?

Consolidation continues to shape strategy in a significant way. Larger health systems are still acquiring or partnering with independent practices, and private equity remains an active force in the space. As capital becomes increasingly accessible at more favorable rates, that activity will accelerate further. Consolidation tends to drive more sophisticated real estate decision-making because scale creates both opportunity and complexity.

 

As organizations grow, their real estate strategies often become more deliberate. They’re thinking not only about footprint and expansion, but also about operational alignment, access to patients, and how to integrate different service lines across markets. We are also seeing continued partnership structures, including joint ventures involving health systems, rehabilitation operators, and behavioral health providers. All of that reinforces the idea that healthcare real estate is no longer just about site selection; it is increasingly tied to larger strategic and capital allocation decisions within the industry.

 

How are patient preferences changing the location and design of care settings?

Patient preferences have a greater influence on healthcare real estate today than they have in the past. Patients want care delivered in locations that are easy to reach, close to where they live, and designed in a way that feels modern and welcoming rather than institutional or outdated.

 

That expectation is shaping both where providers choose to locate and how they think about the physical environment itself. Design increasingly matters not just from a branding perspective but also from a care delivery perspective. A modern, thoughtfully designed setting can improve comfort, support efficiency, and better reflect the level of care being delivered. In that sense, patient preference is pushing the market toward more consumer-oriented healthcare formats.

 

Which healthcare real estate specialties look best positioned for long-term resilience?

Ambulatory surgery centers stand out as one of the most resilient specialties. The reason is that they are highly specialized, operationally essential, and supported by long-term trends in how care is delivered. The more specialized the facility, the more defensible it tends to be from a real estate standpoint. These are not generic spaces that can be easily replicated or casually replaced.

 

ASCs require significant infrastructure, whether that’s advanced HVAC systems, filtration, sanitation controls, or other technical elements that support procedural care. Even as technology evolves, including the growth of robotic surgery, that doesn’t reduce the need for dedicated space. If anything, it can reinforce the importance of purpose-built environments that can accommodate increasingly sophisticated care delivery. That’s one of the main reasons why ASCs are particularly well-positioned for long-term resilience.

 

As the sector has matured, how has the standard for success evolved compared to ten years ago, and how have you adapted your approach to stay ahead in this new era for healthcare real estate?

In many ways, the fundamentals of success have not changed as much as people assume. This is still a relationship-driven business that rewards consistency, market knowledge, and a deep understanding of both transactions and capital markets. For us, staying ahead has always meant remaining active in the market, constantly connecting with clients, understanding the financing environment, and continuing to learn.

 

 

What may have changed is the level of sophistication required to compete at a high level. Markets move faster, information is more abundant, and clients expect sharper insights and stronger execution. But even in that environment, success comes back to being in the mix every day, staying close to the market, and continuing to build knowledge over time.

 

Over the past decade at Matthews™ the healthcare division has scaled into a national platform. What has that evolution required as leaders, and what’s been key to its success?

Building a platform at scale requires patience, conviction, and a real commitment to doing business the right way. Growth is never perfectly linear, especially in a business as demanding as commercial real estate. Over time, many people may enter a platform, but not everyone is built for the pace, pressure, and persistence the industry requires. That’s why leadership is not just about setting standards; it’s also about providing the support, coaching, and structure that allows brokers to reach their full potential.

 

One of the most important things a leader can do is create an environment where people can grow, both technically and personally. You cannot manufacture success for someone, but you can help them recognize what they are capable of and give them the tools to pursue it. At the same time, building a successful healthcare platform also requires a clear point of view on the market. You have to know where opportunity exists, where competition is limited, and where your advisory can truly create value.

 

For us, a major part of that value proposition has been helping healthcare providers understand that real estate is not just a background consideration. It can be a strategic and financial lever in its own right. Many physicians and operators spend years building successful practices without fully appreciating the value embedded in their real estate decisions. Helping clients recognize and unlock that value has been a key part of building the platform and differentiating the advisory we provide.

 

The people who remain active, engaged, and informed are the ones best positioned to stay ahead.

 

How has your ability to interpret the healthcare real estate market through both an operator’s lens and an investor’s lens shaped the way you identify opportunity, assess risk, and structure transactions that create value for both sides?

At the core of that perspective is empathy. When you understand the motivations, pressures, and priorities of all the parties involved in a transaction, you are in a much better position to create solutions that work. That means understanding not just the buyer and seller, but also the lender, the attorneys, the agents, and the broader context in which the deal is happening.

 

The ability to see a transaction through multiple lenses helps you identify where risk actually sits, where expectations may be misaligned, and where the real opportunity lies. It also allows you to structure deals in a way that creates confidence on both sides. In healthcare real estate, especially, where transactions can be nuanced and operational considerations matter, that broader perspective becomes a real advantage. Ultimately, the best outcomes tend to come from being able to put yourself in multiple pairs of shoes and navigate the process with that awareness.

 

As healthcare real estate continues to evolve, what do you think the next phase of the market will demand in terms of expertise, execution, and opportunity?

The next phase will continue to reward strong fundamentals, but it will also place a greater emphasis on adaptability and the ability to leverage technology effectively. Market knowledge, transaction experience, and sound judgment will remain essential. Those things don’t go out of style; but the professionals and platforms that can combine those fundamentals with faster, smarter execution will be the ones best positioned for the future.

 

In particular, there will be increasing value in embracing tools like AI and other technologies that improve efficiency, sharpen analysis, and accelerate decision-making. The opportunity is not simply in using new tools for the sake of it, but in integrating them in a way that enhances execution and helps deliver better outcomes for clients. That combination of traditional expertise and modern capability is where the market is headed.