Suburban Chicago Medical Market Profile
Suburban Chicago Medical Market Profile
By Andrew Davidson and Peter Westmeyer
Even though demand for traditional suburban office space is still retreating in suburban Chicago, the medical office market is faring well due to a number of factors. A growing–yet aging–population, technological advances in medicine, a shift in spending habits and the relative inelasticity of the healthcare industry are bolstering this region’s medical office sector, which has been largely sheilded from the negative effects of the recession.
Also helpful has been the need for health systems to reach out into the community with outpatient service facilities, opening up opportunities for medical practitioners in the area.
Although Cook County’s population decreased during the last 10 years, Chicago’s suburbs are expanding, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The Chicago metropolitan statistical area (MSA) grew 4 percent over the last decade, led by growth in outlying areas such as Will, Kendall and DeKalb counties. Over the next five years, Chicago’s MSA population growth is expected to be 3 percent or more, furthering the need for healthcare providers in the region.
Of the overall MSA population, an estimated 11.2 percent is composed of people age 65 or older. That percentage will increase over the next few years as Baby-Boomers reach that threshold. And according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics, as they age, the number of doctor visits per person will increase as well. Advances in treatment, diagnostic technology and overall awareness have driven consumers to spend a greater portion of their income on healthcare in order to live longer and improve their quality of life. In 2009, U.S. consumers spent an average of 6.4 percent of their total expenditures on healthcare, nearly a percentage point higher than in 2007. Read More…
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