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Calgary, Edm. economies boost purpose-built rental

4 years ago

Developers are building or planning 94 purpose-built rental projects in Calgary, and 84 in Edmonton, participants in a multiresidential panel at the  Alberta Real Estate Forum heard. However, it could be a while before some of those projects come to fruition.

Western Wealth Capital continues to expand its U.S. multifamily portfolio in large chunks, with the acquisition of Onnix, a 659-unit apartment community in one of its favourite markets, Tempe, Ariz. The 30-acre property sold for $154.5M.

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Greybrook Realty Partners has acquired a prime parcel of land at 2231 St. Clair Ave. W. in Toronto. Greybrook and Marlin Spring intend to develop a mid-rise condominium residence consisting of over 220 units and more than 12,000 square feet of commercial space.

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An Oshawa development has had a significant positive impact on the environment before construction even begins on the project itself. Ironwood will be a multi-phased development in Oshawa, east of Toronto, being constructed by Podium Developments and Building Capital.

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Bastion Development is proposing an 11-storey tower called Cassis, across from a future SkyTrain station. The Francl Architecture-designed tower will include 79 units, including five, two-storey townhouses; ground-floor retail space; and two levels of underground parking with 120 stalls and EV stations.

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COVID-19 has robbed downtown Montreal of most of its 400,000 office workers and 127,000 university students. Only about 12,700 Montreal university students were attending classes in person in Q3, according to an Urban Development Institute study — a drop of 90 per cent year-over-year.

Partner, Robins Appleby LLP

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The provincial government is introducing the Ontario Rebuilding and Recovery Act, 2020, a package of legislative and policy measures which, if passed, would accelerate the construction of major infrastructure projects.

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The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) has serious concerns after a new survey found Canadian shoppers plan to spend 66 per cent of their holiday shopping budget at big box stores and through online giants like Amazon.

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Le Château Inc. (CTU-X) says it is seeking court protection from creditors to allow it to shut down and liquidate its assets. The clothing retailer says it can no longer continue its operations as a going concern.

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Fresh Perspectives is an ongoing series looking to find out how consumer behaviours are changing, what are the biggest challenges for produce and what is the outlook for this critical department? Up today are Sobeys’ Yan Branco and Mireille Thibodeau.

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Things are looking grim at the moment, but Jones Lang LaSalle says Ottawa’s retail real estate market has a good chance of a “fast recovery” due to relatively little new retail space under construction that’s poised for an imminent delivery.

REIC -- Advance your knowledge

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The accompanying tables show the top 10 major upcoming Ontario and Quebec construction projects in Canada. They are all in the planning stage and are mainly new projects, but may also involve additions and/or alterations.

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The office cafeteria at the Kraft Heinz Co.’s Canadian headquarters is quiet, but in the kitchen, the grill sizzles. Alon Chitiz is flipping burgers, while nearby an iPad keeps track of the SkipTheDishes driver coming to pick up an order.

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San Francisco-based Gap said Thursday it will be closing 220 of its namesake Gap stores – or one-third of its store base – by early 2024. Gap said it also plans to close 130 of its Banana Republic stores in North America in three years.

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New York governor Andrew Cuomo extended the ban on COVID-related commercial evictions and foreclosures on Tuesday. Landlords are now prevented from attempting to oust commercial tenants through Jan. 1. The moratorium had been set to expire on Oct. 20.

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Toronto’s red-hot rental market has cooled and PadMapper’s Crystal Chen says landlords are getting desperate: “I’ve seen two months of free rent with at least a year-long lease as well as things like six months of free parking or storage.”

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Calgarians will have to pay new fees in order to park in front of their house if council approves proposed changes next month. Currently, those who live in 80 permit parking zones can register their plates to park close to home.

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Housing sales in Calgary did much better than originally forecasted. Data compiled by the Calgary Real Estate Board shows a 12 per cent improvement in sales activity during the third quarter of 2020 over the same period last year.

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The median home sale price increased 15% year-over-year to $320,625 — the highest on record, according to a new report from Redfin, the technology-powered real estate brokerage. In the week ending Oct. 18, home prices were up 16% from the same week a year earlier.

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