If there's a big site on the market in the DC region these days, it's probably being bid on by healthcare or higher education groups. Why all the demand? And for what kind of real estate, exactly? These questions are why we're excited to be holding our annual Eds & Meds Summit Oct. 27 at the Downtown Renaissance, starting at 7:30 AM.

Inova Health System (here's CEO Knox Singleton) has become one of the biggest users of real estate in the region, and it could become even bigger, if rumors of the group's interest in purchasing the 117-acre Exxon-Mobil campus in Merrifield are true. If the deal goes through, the site would house Inova's Translational Medicine Institute, which aims to detect the cause of diseases through genetic research. Inova VP for business development and real estate services Ashley Hunnicutt will be on hand at the Renaissance to discuss the group's real estate interests and plans.

Inova is one of countless healthcare and education groups weighing big real estate decisions, such as Georgetown U, and we'll also be welcoming that school's facilities VP, Robin Morey (right), to our program. For years, experts have wondered whether Georgetown was built-out to capacity at its riverside campus, but the school has made creative real estate decisions of late such as moving its School of Continuing Studies to Brookfield's 640 Massachusetts Ave in the sizzling Mount Vernon Triangle area. If you'd like to hear more, please join us for our annual Eds & Meds Summit Oct. 27 at the Downtown Renaissance, starting at 7:30 AM. Click here to sign up!