Others won't go near the sector right now in light of the sector being in flux. “Oil and gas is a little sensitive given what's going on,” noted Eleanora Gililova, director, global private markets, TIAA-CREF | Financial Services.

And still others are proceeding with caution. “We've been looking at energy and trying to make sense of it,” stated Barclay Jones, III, EVP of investments, iStar Financial.

Separately, he added, “We tend to find areas of growth because that's where new buildings—and properties to acquire and renovate—come from. Healthcare definitely has had growth.”

McMullen agreed, adding, “We've seen more recent activity in healthcare and universities. We play in both but we especially see unique opportunities in healthcare and we get better relative value there. To the extent we can get in there to provide a lender, it produces an executable transaction with a lot of certainty.”

As for where the best markets for healthcare are, established buyers in the space are all over the map—literally.

“We like Texas for its demographics,” said Jitesh Raja, president, MBS Dynamic. “It's cheaper and it's the third largest state for those aged 65 and over. “Seniors use medical facilities 2.5 times more than any other demographic, if you build things where they are, people tend to use them and you get paid. In California and New York, the barriers to entry are higher and people tend to move out.”

Some buyers are going overseas. “We invested in German purely on its fundamentals,” said Wesley Smith, managing director, acquisitions, Medical Properties Trust. “It's a tremendous healthcare economy because healthcare is constitutionally guaranteed to citizens and the nation has a tremendous economy on the whole.”

In some instances, healthcare investors will notice a need for creativity. Said H. Guy Leibler, president, Simone Healthcare Development, “Near our Bronx campus we acquired a 350,000-square-foot commercial bakery owned by Old London Foods, which had relocated to South Carolina. We purchased the building, which was over 80 years old.

“Today,” he continued, “it's a 400,000-square-foot mixed-use facility with clinical offices, two restaurants, a gym and a soon to open a 125-room Marriott/Residence Inn, the Bronx' first branded hotel in many years. The opportunity is there if you have a good eye and a cast iron stomach.”

However, Leibler cautioned, “Make sure your miscellany category is large because there's a surprise behind every wall.”