Brixen set to launch fourth GTA condo project

Alexander D’Orazio and Andrew Iacobelli launched Brixen Developments in the summer of 2019 and, although the company is relatively young, the co-founders brought substantial experience to the partnership.

Denciti acquires B.C. industrial, multires development land

Denciti Development Corp. recently completed two B.C. acquisitions – a 1.56-acre industrial-zoned site in Squamish and a nine-property, 1.75-acre land assembly in Kelowna.

RioCan prepared for closed Bed Bath and Beyond stores

CEO Jonathan Gitlin says RioCan REIT (REI-UN-T) is well-positioned to weather the shuttering of Bed Bath and Beyond Canada’s (BBBY-Q) stores, telling a conference call this week it was prepared for such an eventuality.

Creditors already taking over some Coromandel projects

Financially troubled Vancouver developer Coromandel Properties' application for protection from its creditors was delayed in a court hearing Thursday, but the disassembly of its Vancouver property empire has already begun, including its Southview Gardens property, a 140-unit rental property.

BOMA BC, SOFIAC partner to fund building retrofits

The Building Owners and Managers Association of British Columbia (BOMA BC) and SOFIAC will collaborate on a financing model to help commercial building owners in B.C. decarbonize their portfolios via deep energy retrofits with no-down-payments.

Holt Renfrew renews long-term lease at the CORE in Calgary

Holt Renfrew and Ivanhoé Cambridge announced the renewal of a long-term lease at The CORE in downtown Calgary. Holt Renfrew's current store opened in 2009 and spans approximately 149,000 square feet.

Seattle tech firm bringing HQ to Calgary

Seattle-based Applexus Technologies, which operates in five countries, will make Calgary its Canadian headquarters and expects to create 125 jobs over three to five years after receiving a $1.43-million grant from Alberta's Investment and Growth Fund (IGF).

Italian pasta maker opening factory, office in London

Attracted by the agricultural heartland a growing cluster of food businesses, Andriani SpA, headquartered in Southern Italy, has bought a parcel of land in London's Innovation Park for a 50,000-square-foot factory and its first North American office.

Priya Industrie to open $19-M plant in Longueuil

Priya Industrie is set to commence operations at its new $19-million food processing plant in Longueuil, Que. in April. The facility comprises 42,000 square feet of production space and 13,000 square feet of storage space and office space. 

Montreal hotel occupancy rates near pre-pandemic levels

Greater Montreal’s hotel industry is gradually coming back to life. According to data from the Association hôtelière du Grand Montréal, the fourth quarter of 2022 saw an occupancy rate of 69 per cent, similar to before the pandemic.

Real estate podcasts

Dean Holmes, QuadReal: Canadian vs. U.S. real estate, CRE Podcast 

Tracy McEvoy, Maple Leaf Self Storage: Managing energy for a successful career, People Who Perform

Michael Przytula, Accenture: The people side of workplace technology, Tenant Experience Network

REIT fourth-quarter financial results

Dream Office REIT, (D-UN-T), Business Wire

Killam Apartment REIT, (KMP-UN-T), Canada Newswire

EY expects ‘massive approval’ in vote to split up company

Partners are expected to approve spinning off EY’s consulting arm and listing it on the stock market this year. The Newco will account for $25 billion of revenue, with what’s left of EY representing $20 billion.

Life Storage rejects $11B bid from Public Storage

Life Storage Inc., (LSI-N) which operates more than 1,100 self-storage properties, rejected an $11 billion bid from Public Storage (PSA-N), saying the offer “significantly” undervalues the company. Public Storage unveiled its bid earlier this month.

Global pension assets record largest decline since 2008

After more than a decade of uninterrupted growth, last year global pension assets recorded their largest fall since the global financial crisis of 2008, according to the latest Global Pension Assets Study from lWTW’s Thinking Ahead Institute.

Flagship acquires Indiana housing resort community

Flagship Communities REIT (TSX: MHC-U-T) announced today it has agreed to acquire a 20-acre manufactured housing resort community in Austin, Ind. The acquisition includes 120 MHC homesites and was satisfied by approximately $2.0 million in class-B units.

Desjardins Group shuts down FairSquare Realty

Desjardins Group is shuttering its real estate brokerage FairSquare Group Realty in a reversal for the Quebec financial services firm, which had bought the business in the first year of the pandemic when the country’s real estate market was booming.

Home Capital posts higher provisions for bad loans

Alternative lender Home Capital Group Inc. set aside more money for bad loans in the fourth quarter than it has at any time since the financial crisis in another sign that stresses are forming in the economy.

Yet another vacant unit tax

As if property owners in Toronto didn’t have their hands full filing returns for the city’s vacant unit tax, along comes the federal Underused Housing Tax affecting people who own homes in Canada, whether or not they are Canadian citizens.

Virtual transactions aided real estate fraud in Toronto: Experts

The shift to virtual transactions during the pandemic contributed to a rise in cases of Toronto-area real estate fraud in which imposters linked to organized crime have fraudulently taken out mortgages and sold homes without the homeowners’ knowledge, experts say.