Altree buys properties, plaza; set to launch T.O. condos

RENX  Residential  •  Condominiums  •  Toronto / GTA

After spending three years acquiring the properties on which to build Highland Commons, Altree Developments is getting ready to start construction of the 539-unit condominium in Scarborough. Sales will begin this month for Phase 1 of the two-building development.

Big opportunity to develop ‘small apartments’: Lobo

RENX  Residential  •  Apartments  •  National

B.C. and Alberta have proportionately more apartment transactions and more new apartment construction than Ontario and Quebec, which SVN Rock Advisors CEO Derek Lobo attributes to 45 years of rent controls which hampered apartment development and contributed to affordable housing shortages.

Hackman to develop T.O.’s $250M Basin Media Hub

Commercial  •  Toronto Star  •  Urban Toronto  •  City of Toronto media release

Hackman Capital Partners, a L.A.-based entertainment production firm, has won the right to finance, develop and operate a $250-million media production hub on city-owned land in Toronto’s Port Lands through a competitive bid process to develop the “Basin Media Hub.”

B.C. floods most expensive natural disaster of 2021

Residential, Commercial  •  Globe and Mail  •  Globe and Mail  •  Ottawa Citizen

The flooding in southern B.C. will be the largest natural catastrophic disaster for the insurance industry in 2021, says DBRS Morningstar’s Marcos Alvarez. “Increases in average annual insured weather-related losses are higher in Canada than at the global level,” Alvarez said.

Mtl. industrial rents have doubled since 2018: CBRE

Commercial  •  La Presse  •  RENX

Montreal industrial rents have almost doubled since 2018, says CBRE senior VP Jean-Philippe Daunais. Conversely, office rents will remain under downward pressure in the future. Daunais was participating in a roundtable on Montreal market prospects, organized by the Urban Development Institute.

The Industrial Real Estate Show › Podcast: Investing in industrial real estate, with investor Ron Rohde

Chad Griffiths: Partner, NAI Commercial

Expect a full economic rebound: Colliers report

Commercial  •  Globe Newswire

Colliers‘ 2022 Canada Outlook expects the economic rebound will continue into 2022 but growth will slow due to continued supply chain issues and labour shortages. As well, demand for industrial space will remain strong with e-commerce, data centres and self-storage driving demand.

CF launches new waste recycling stations at Ontario mall

Commercial  •  Sustainable Biz Canada

Cadillac Fairview (CF) has launched a waste recycling station at its CF Lime Ridge shopping centre in Hamilton. The station is the first of its kind to be offered at a CF shopping centre in Ontario.

Sobeys opens flexible store format

Commercial  •  Canadian Grocer

Earlier this month, Sobeys opened the doors to its new-concept store Orangeville, Ont., that uses the “Flexstore” system by European design and shopfitting firm Interstore | Schweitzer. The modular concept allows grocers to expand, reduce or make other adjustments to departments.

Food inflation keeps Loblaw grocery sales flat

Commercial  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)  •  Financial Post  •  La Presse

Food inflation was a factor in keeping grocery sales flat in the third quarter for Loblaw Companies Ltd. (L-T) even as customers are eating at home less often compared to this time last year.

Metro posts higher profit despite sales decline

Commercial  •  Globe and Mail  •  Canada Newswire  •  Toronto Star

Grocery retailer Metro Inc. (MRU-T) reported higher net earnings in Q4, even as sales decreased year-over-year. The Montreal-based retailer, which owns banners including Metro, Super C and Food Basics, reported net earnings of $194 million or 79 cents per share in Q4.

REOC third-quarter financial results

Residential, Commercial  • 

‎Parkit Enterprise Inc., (PKT-X), Newsfile
Skyline Investments Inc., (SKLN.TA), Globe Newswire

Brookfield faces ‘imminent default’ on Chicago tower

Commercial  •  Financial Post

Brookfield Asset Management (BAM-A-T) faces “imminent default” on a downtown Chicago office tower as it struggles to stay current on debt payments. The 175 West Jackson Blvd., property was 62 per cent occupied as of September, according to a mortgage report.

KKR, GIP to buy data centre REIT CyrusOne for $15B

Commercial  •  Bloomberg  •  IPE Real Assets

KKR & Co. and Global Infrastructure Partners agreed to acquire data-centre owner CyrusOne Inc. (CONE-Q) in a transaction valued at roughly $15 billion. The buyers agreed to pay $90.50 per share, a 25% premium to CyrusOne’s share price on Sept. 27.

Walmart falls behind Home Depot in market value

Commercial  •  Bloomberg  •  Business Wire  •  Canada Newswire

Walmart Inc. (WMT-N) has fallen behind Home Depot (HD-N) in market value despite having much higher revenue. Buoyed by strong third-quarter earnings, Home Depot climbed 4.5%, lifting its market capitalization to more than $409 billion. Walmart fell two per cent to $401.4 billion.

China’s real estate woes sap investment products

Commercial  •  Regina Leader-Post  •  Canada Newswire

Chinese investors are abandoning an age-old attachment to property investment products and seeking returns in equities and other corners of the capital markets, as the authorities crack down on the debt-fueled property sector.

Soaring inflation rate raises odds of earlier rate hike

Residential, Commercial  •  Financial Post  •  Toronto Star  •  Toronto Star

Inflation is nearing its fastest pace since the Bank of Canada began using the consumer price index to set interest rates in the early 1990s, increasing the odds the central bank will raise borrowing costs early in the new year.

Housing sales, price gains to ease in 2022: RBC

Residential  •  Financial Post

Increased housing demand is the result of buyers rushing to land deals before interest rates rise, says RBC senior economist Robert Hogue. Tight supply that will keep prices up in the near-term is expected to ease “significantly” later in 2022.

Elder care homes on pace for record investment

Residential  •  Financial Post

Elder care homes are attracting capital at a record pace in Canada, as investors who stayed on the sidelines during the height of the COVID pandemic seek out properties in anticipation of an influx of aging baby boomers, says CBRE.

Home price growth paused in October: Teranet

Residential  •  Globe and Mail

Canadian home prices were flat in October from September as a slowdown in housing sales weighed, although a limited supply of homes for sale could lead to fresh price escalation, the Teranet-National Bank Composite House Price Index showed on Wednesday.