A growing consensus among analysts and commentators suggests that real estate asset allocators will spend most of 2021 focusing on “beds, sheds and meds”.

The ongoing COVID-19 crisis has led to continued uncertainty surrounding the office sector and precipitated a dramatic drop off in tenant demand for sectors such as retail and hotels. In their place, investors and managers have ramped up their efforts to secure strong footholds in prime logistics and residential markets, as well as fast emerging niche sectors such as life science facilities and data centres.

Simon Todd, group head of real estate services at Crestbridge, says the shifting priorities of investors and the general public has meant that “beds, sheds and meds,” including ecommerce and logistics, already drew significant investment in 2020 and are set to do well in 2021 as fundamentals continue to look strong.

“The coronavirus pandemic is accelerating existing trends including retail commer