Mainstreet’s multires strategy reaps top returns

RENX  Residential  •  Apartments  •  National, Calgary

Calgary real estate investor Bob Dhillon has a simple plan to grow his rental apartment business; provide homes for growing numbers of millennials and international students. Investment firm  Raymond James says it’s working, with 49 per cent total return in 2019.

GTA office market offers Q3 surprises: Avison Young

RENX  Commercial  •  Office  •  Toronto / GTA

The amount of available sublet space increased in the Greater Toronto Area office market, and downtown vacancy rose slightly during Q3 2019, according to Avison Young. The increase in sublet space is unusual, jumping 371,000 square feet between quarters.

Morguard CEO prepared for recession

Commercial  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)  •  RENX

Most investors dread the prospect of a recession. Morguard Corporation (MRC-T) chief executive Rai Sahi, on the other hand, is setting up his company to take advantage of an inevitable downturn in real estate markets.

Strategic Storage acquires Toronto self-storage Facility

Commercial  •  Canada Newswire  •  RENX

Strategic Storage Growth Trust II, Inc., a private real estate investment trust sponsored by an indirect subsidiary of SmartStop Self Storage REIT, Inc., announced today its acquisition of a newly constructed approximately 735-unit self storage facility in Toronto.

SoftBank could take control of WeWork

Commercial  •  CBC  •  Business Insider  •  Reuters

Japanese investment firm SoftBank could take control of WeWork as part of a financial package to address the company’s cash crunch since its botched effort to sell the public its stock, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Value: Weighed and Measured › Rising condo costs signal multires revival, and the issues it brings

John Clark: Vice President , The Regional Group of Companies Inc

Edmonton selling 19.7 acres for more than $5 million

Commercial  •  Edmonton Journal

The city is looking to sell an undeveloped 19.7-acre plot of land in South Edmonton for more than $5 million. The city already has a buyer for the land but since the highest bid exceeded more than $5 million, administration needs approval.

118,000-sq.-ft. Toyota dealership coming to WEM

Commercial  •  Edmonton Journal  •  Global News  •  Automotive News Canada

A massive Mayfield Toyota dealership is planned for West Edmonton Mall and there will be some new parking along with it. The dealership, among the first of its kind, will be about 118,000 square feet — larger than two football fields.

Developers seek cash to rehab historic buildings

Commercial  •  CBC

Edmonton developers are asking the city for financial support in renovating two historic buildings. Beljan Development is refitting the Strathcona Hotel on Whyte Avenue into commercial retail space while Primavera Development Group is rehabilitating the Brighton Block on Jasper Avenue.

There’s plenty happening on Toronto’s waterfront

Residential, Commercial  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)  •  Toronto Star

Along Toronto’s waterfront’s inner harbour, excavators are creating a new mouth for the Don River, lined with parks planned to open in 2024. Elsewhere, architects and planners are designing thousands of new homes, and millions of square feet of office space.

The battle for Montreal’s Bridge-Bonaventure

Residential, Commercial  •  CBC

On the list of Montreal’s notable neighbourhoods, Bridge-Bonaventure ranks near the bottom. Last week, dozens of groups, individuals and business leaders shared their ideas about what should happen to the 2.3-square-kilometre area over four days of hearings.

Angus plans $35M mixed-use project for Montréal-Nord

Residential, Commercial  •  La Presse

Angus Development Corporation is preparing a project worth nearly $35 million to build a signature address of approximately 100,000 square feet in Montréal-Nord. Angus plans a luminous building with a public square, shops and organizations.

Evacuation order partially lifted as Halifax crane removal continues

Residential, Commercial  •  CBC

An evacuation order for residents and businesses near the site of a toppled construction crane in downtown Halifax was partially lifted on Monday as work to remove the crane continued.

Jeff Bezos’ master plan for his empire

Commercial  •  The Atlantic

Where in the pantheon of American commercial titans does Jeffrey Bezos belong? Andrew Carnegie’s hearths forged the steel that became the skeleton of the railroad and the city. John D. Rockefeller refined 90 per cent of American oil.

Canadian owner to open U.K. HMV stores

Commercial  •  Toronto Star

British music and film retailer HMV Group Plc will relaunch its online store on Nov. 1, as part of a turnaround plan under new Canadian owner Doug Putman.

Top five U.S. markets for office transactions

Commercial  •  CP Executive

Some 200 million square feet of office space traded for a total of $53.4 billion year-to-date through August, at an average price of $263.90 per square foot, according to Yardi Matrix data. More than 40 per cent — $22.1 billion — was concentrated in five metros.

Canadian home sales rise again in September

Residential  •  Canada Newswire  •  CBC  •  Financial Post

Home sales recorded via Canadian MLS Systems advanced for the seventh consecutive month, raising them 18 per cent above the six-year low reached in February 2019 but leaving them about eight per cent below highs reached in 2016 and 2017.

Section 23 building legacy in Calgary’s housing market

Residential, Commercial  •  Calgary Herald

One of Calgary’s nicest commercial offices is a 5,400-square-foot, four-storey home to Section 23 Developments, but it is now up for lease as the company is planning a move into more spacious offices in Quarry Park.

Stability finally coming to Calgary market

Residential  •  Calgary Herald

Calgary’s real estate market is stabilizing with a continuation of rising sales and falling inventories. However, the market is nowhere  near the picture of health it was a half decade ago, says Calgary Real Estate Board‘s Ann-Marie Lurie.

Fort Mac condo board struggles to find insurance

Residential  •  CBC

After the 2016 Horse River wildfire that burned down more than 2,400 structures in Fort McMurray, residents of the 40-unit Winchester Greens condominium building considered themselves lucky. Three years later, the condo board is struggling to find insurance coverage.