In the first six months of 2013, investors sold 124 medical office buildings worth $1.8 billion, down from the first half of 2012 when 171 MOBs worth $2.3 billion were sold, according to research from real estate firm Jones Lang LaSalle.
Despite the lower volume, the average sold MOB so far in 2013 had a higher value — $14.8 million compared with $13.2 million last year.
Mindy Berman, managing director of Jones Lang LaSalle's healthcare capital markets group, said in a news release that volumes were lower overall so far this year due to an active fourth quarter in 2012. The busy fourth quarter resulted in a slower first quarter this year, but Ms. Berman said the rest of 2013 should be at least as active as last year, which set a record for MOB sales.
In May, Ms. Berman told National Real Estate Investor that many healthcare real estate investment trusts, or REITs, have been aggressively buying MOBs, making now "the best time to sell" for hospital CFOs.
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