Medical offices: A nice, staid corner of real estate

As the commercial real estate market limps along during global recession, some investors say they believe medical office buildings might serve as a crutch, as it has in past economic downturns. Although there was a sharp drop in the sales of medical buildings in the last quarter of 2008, real estate professionals say such properties are still being viewed favorably by lenders. In recent years, landlords have begun viewing doctors as particularly desirable tenants, said Robert J. Coughlan, a principal at the Tritec Real Estate Company, which has developed more than 300,000 square feet of medical offices on Long Island in the last 20 years.