Companies: Firm launches $40M fund

MED REAL ESTATE STILL STRONG, OMAN-GIBSON SAYS

By John Mugford

A combination of the current economic conditions and tight lending market, as well as the relative strength of healthcare real estate, has prompted a national development firm to start a fund that could see investments totaling up to $90 million in medical office buildings (MOBs) and other medical properties.

The company is Nashville, Tenn.-based Oman-Gibson Associates (OGA), which is looking to raise $40 million from investors and then leverage new developments and acquisitions in the 40 percent to 50 percent range. As a result, the fund could invest up to $80 million to $90 million in healthcare real estate.

“We believe this allows us to take advantage economic conditions that exist today,” says president Tom Gibson, who started the company along with CEO Bond Oman. “Healthcare is still viewed as a counter-cyclical play, and the markets that we’re going after – in the $1 million to $10 million range – are still relatively easy to finance because of the size. Many of the banks and institutions are shying away from mega-deals and the smaller deals obviously pose a lot less risk for both investors and banks. We think this is an opportunity for our company and the investors in the fund to take advantage of that.”

Adds Mr. Oman: “When it comes to properties, our main focus is a single-tenant, net-leased property, because we’re a private fund and so we won’t be competing with a lot of the healthcare REITs (real estate investment trusts) who typically want the 50,000 to 200,000 square foot MOB on campus next to the hospital.”