JLL has hired a 25-year industry veteran to lead the brokerage's efforts to boost its business in healthcare real estate as commercial property services firms try to increase revenue during a year of losses.
In this new role, Marten is responsible for developing sales strategies and strengthening JLL's relationships with its clients’ executive teams, the brokerage said.
The Chicago-based brokerage's healthcare solutions development team, part of its work dynamics division, helps companies position real estate and facilities management practices to support business objectives. Marten will work closely with Alison Flynn Gaffney, president of the work dynamics healthcare division, to expand JLL’s healthcare division.
The addition of Marten comes as JLL bets on the need for new medical properties to increase because those ages 55 and older are the biggest consumers of U.S. healthcare services, and the population of people 80 and older is forecast to jump nearly 50% in the next 10 years.
“If we consider that the older population will potentially grow from 46 million residents in 2020 to 80 million in 2050, we can anticipate that the demand for healthcare services and facilities will grow steadily and significantly,” Jay Johnson, the brokerage's U.S. practice leader of healthcare markets, said in a JLL report this year. “We expect the elder population to drive significant outpatient demand over the next 10 years, which, in turn, is a fundamental driver for healthcare-related real estate despite the potential offsetting effects of telehealth and home care.”
The healthcare real estate push still faces challenges from a tough market, even with demographic winds at its back. A couple of large commercial brokerages reported losses in the third quarter as revenues fell, while JLL said steep decreases in real estate fee income from property sales, lending and leasing caused total revenue to drop 2% to $5.1 billion from the same time last year as net income slid 57% to $59.7 million.
Seeking New Revenue
Against that backdrop, JLL, the second-largest brokerage behind CBRE when ranked by revenue, is working to increase sales.
Marten’s career in project management, lease administration, facilities management, transaction management and planning spans two continents. He started his commercial real estate career in 1998 at JLL and served in several roles until 2007.
He previously served as an executive vice president on Cushman & Wakefield's enterprise solutions team where he was responsible for securing new business, expanding existing business and retaining clients in the firm's global occupier services division. Marten worked at JLL before joining Cushman & Wakefield in 2019.
Marten also has significant military service. He served in the Honourable Artillery Company, Territorial Army, the oldest regiment in the British Army. He retired as a captain.
Marten is based in Chicago and reports to Jessica Pernicone, head of Americas sales for the work dynamics group.