Real Blue Kapitalverwaltungs-GmbH (Real Blue), investment manager of the Drees & Sommer Group, has surveyed institutional investors and asset managers about their interest in the real estate segments of social infrastructure. According to the trend survey, the demand for senior living and healthcare properties, among other things, will increase significantly in the coming years. Around 78 percent of those surveyed expect demand for corresponding concepts to increase in the next five to ten years, and two-thirds even expect a sharp increase. At the same time, most survey participants expect stable to growing investment activity in these segments. For the next three to five years, 44 percent expect stable investment momentum and around 50 percent expect it to increase.
According to the survey, medical centers and medical care centers are particularly in demand, which are classified as investment-relevant by 67 percent of respondents. Age-appropriate living with services (56 percent) and neighborhood solutions with integrated health care (44 percent) are also among the central concepts for the future.
"Demographic change has long since ceased to be an abstract issue for the future, but is already shaping demand on the real estate markets," says Michael Eisenmann, Managing Director of Real Blue. "The baby boomer generation is increasingly retiring. This age group has new demands in terms of quality of living, self-determination and urban life. Here, it is important for the real estate industry to create the right offers for this target group. Senior living is thus developing into a central building block of social infrastructure and a stable asset class for investors."
Despite the positive outlook, market participants continue to see structural challenges. The biggest investment hurdles cited by those surveyed are the complexity of operating and managing such real estate (67 percent) and rising construction and investment costs (50 percent).
Transaction momentum also remains high: two-thirds of respondents are planning to buy real estate in the next six months, while at the same time more than half are considering selling their portfolios, often in the course of strategic portfolio adjustments.
To the survey
The online survey "Outlook for Social Infrastructure" was conducted by Real Blue in the period from February 10, 2026 to February 27, 2026. 18 institutional investors and asset managers took part. The respondents cover a wide range of investment strategies and the majority manage real estate assets in the billions.
