According to Cushman & Wakefield's February 2019 report, the life science industry is emerging as one of the fastest-growing sectors in the U.S. economy, with many characteristics that appear recession resistant. Where technology combines with healthcare, life science has become a broad and growing sector of the economy that encompasses everything from genetic engineering to medical device technology to pharmaceutical research and development, and much more.
In this report, Cushman & Wakefield has analyzed key economic, demographic, and real estate-related data for 13 top life science markets in the U.S. and Canada.
The report delves into these four key takeaways and more:
- Explosive growth in the 65-and-older population has created rising demand for drugs, therapies and medical devices to extend and improve quality of life
- During the past three recessionary periods, employment in the life science sector far outperformed total employment along with key sectors including technology
- Venture capital funding targeting life science has steadily grown since 2010, with Boston ranking as the #1 metro for VC funding between 2010 and 2018 at $15.5 billion
- In key life science markets, the inventory of lab space is rising twice as fast as the overall office inventory, but high demand is keeping vacancy rates very low
