CHICAGO—A group of commercial real estate veterans formerly with Marcus & Millichap have founded a new Chicago-based national advisory firm that will focus on the healthcare sector, especially on what they say is the intersection between seniors housing and medical office buildings. Called Blueprint Healthcare Real Estate Advisors, the Chicago-based firm will work with both investors and operators of seniors housing and healthcare real estate and also have offices in Los Angeles, New York City, and Washington, DC.

“The healthcare real estate market is experiencing unprecedented growth, with 80 million Americans becoming senior citizens within the next 15 years, and, as a result, they will be utilizing more healthcare-related services,” says Jacob Gehl, managing director and founding partner of Blueprint. Gehl is currently an executive board member of the American Seniors Housing Association and most recently the first vice president at Marcus & Millichap, where he spent 13 years.

“As the baby boomers age and more segments of the population enter into the healthcare system through the Affordable Care Act, healthcare-related properties are likely to see a major boost,” adds Gehl. “Whereas seniors housing and medical office used to be considered cousins, they are more like siblings now. Instead of viewing the seniors housing as a subsector of multifamily housing and medical office as subsector of office, the two should be viewed as healthcare real estate. Savvy investors know this and they want real estate service providers who can consult on all facets of the industry to enhance their portfolios.”