Mini Mall Storage Properties Trust kicked off December by announcing a new structure for $1.25 billion of debentures and credit facilities, including what it calls Canada’s “largest-ever inaugural unsecured debenture offering by a real estate issuer,” valued at $750 million.

The offering involves $450 million of Series A senior unsecured debentures and $300 million of Series B senior unsecured debentures. They were offered on a private placement basis in Canada, jointly led by RBC Capital Markets and BMO Capital Markets.

Calgary-based Mini Mall also announced its existing $525-million revolving credit facility has been converted to an unsecured facility, which the company states in its release allows “greater financing flexibility.” 

Mini Mall trust is a privately held entity which operates under the Avenue Living group of companies. The self-storage fund owns and operates over 10.8 million square feet of self-storage space in the U.S. and Canada.

“As the largest-ever inaugural unsecured debenture offering by a real estate issuer in the Canadian bond market, this transaction is a milestone we are immensely proud of,” Anthony Giuffre, founder and chief executive officer of Avenue Living, said in the announcement. 

“Achieving this within five years of commencing operations is a testament to the strength of our organization and Mini Mall’s commitment to our defensible platform.”

Proceeds destined for debt repayment, acquisitions

Proceeds from the debenture offerings will be used to refinance existing debt, fund property acquisitions, and for other corporate purposes, according to the release. 

“We are thrilled about this landmark moment at Mini Mall Storage Properties,” Jason Jogia, co-founder and CIO of Avenue Living, said in the announcement. “This offering follows the assignment of our investment-grade rating from Morningstar DBRS at BBB (low) with a Stable trend.

“We are excited to see the exceptional demand we have received from institutional investors, and we remain focused on delivering superior self-storage solutions across North America.”  

The Series A debentures offer 4.284 per cent annual interest and will mature on Dec. 1, 2028. The Series B debentures are at 4.751 per cent annual interest, and will mature on Dec. 1, 2030. Both rank equally with all other unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness of Mini Mall, the company states.

Mini Mall's growing portfolio

Mini Mall has been steadily growing its holdings, particularly in the U.S., during the past fiscal year. In a September interview with RENX, Jogia talked about the acquisitions of approximately 1.8 million square feet of properties in several markets, including Atlanta and New Orleans.

The U.S. Sunbelt has been a particular focus for Mini Mall, which acquired a portfolio of 11 properties from Metro Self Storage across four U.S. centres during the fall.

Mini Mall's portfolio now tops 70,000 storage units, making it a Top-20 storage owner-operator in North America.

Avenue Living Group is a property owner-operator established in 2006, with over $9 billion in assets under management across 16 states in the U.S. and seven provinces in Canada. 

The firm’s multi-family division manages more than 22,700 doors throughout the North American heartland, while its agriculture fund manages 50,000 acres of farmland.