Primecorp Commercial Realty acquired by Marcus & Millichap

Primecorp Commercial Realty acquired by Marcus & Millichap

Ottawa’s largest independent commercial real estate brokerage has been sold to a U.S.-based industry giant. Primecorp Commercial Realty CEO Aik Aliferis said the organization has been acquired by California-based Marcus & Millichap in a deal that closed earlier in the day. Terms were not disclosed. Founded in 1998, Primecorp has offices in Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal and Gatineau and employs a dozen brokers in the National Capital Region. 

Ottawa Business Journal – Property Biz Canada

Landmark 2017 sales attract investors to Ottawa: AY

Ottawa’s real estate market had a banner first six months of 2018, according to a report released Wednesday that said two landmark office building sales in 2017 have piqued investors’ interest in the National Capital Region. With Ottawa offering a better perceived value than many other metropolitan centres in Canada, Avison Young said in its semi-annual investment report that outside investors were coveting local properties in the first half of fiscal 2018.

Ottawa Business Journal

BOMA 2018 awards honour Canada’s ‘exceptional buildings’

Building owners and managers from across the country came together Wednesday night in Calgary to honour the best practices at the annual BOMA (Building Owners and Managers Association) Canada National Awards Gala. The event, which was part of the BOMEX 2018 conference, celebrated the achievements of owners and managers as shining examples of what the commercial real estate industry is capable of achieving.

Property Biz Canada

Oxford unveils plan for NYC’s St. John’s Terminal

Oxford Properties Group has released its plans to redevelop the historic St. John’s Terminal in New York City into 1.3 million square feet of “cutting-edge commercial office space” along the Hudson River. The building encompasses two city blocks in Manhattan. Although Oxford has amassed a portfolio of US$10 billion worth of assets under management in the U.S., this will be its first American project as the lead developer.

Property Biz Canada

Hudson Yards most expensive development in U.S. history

Stepping onto the Hudson Yards site, it’s impossible not to gravitate toward Vessel, a 150-foot-high, honeycomb-shaped art installation located in the centre of the complex. With its reflective copper cladding and $150 million price tag, the structure is emblematic of the development itself: expensive, partially enclosed, and intentionally breathtaking. While the complex is a stunning design feat, the fact that it’s being built is even more impressive.

Business Insider

Nexen moving into Calgary’s Bow tower

Oil and gas company Nexen will move its operations to the Bow tower after a deal was struck to sublease space from Cenovus Energy. Nexen is currently headquartered at the corner of 7 Avenue and 8 Street S.W. in downtown Calgary, a building which is managed by Century West. The deal will see Nexen occupy 290,000 square feet in the 58-storey Bow, which is home to Cenovus along with Encana Corp.

Calgary Herald – Property Biz Canada

Dream likes Saskatchewan despite ‘tough’ economy: Cooper

Dream (DRM-T), one of Canada’s largest residential land developers and homebuilders, likes to promote its slogan of building better communities. The real estate company has certainly put those words into action as it works to grow its footprint in Saskatchewan, particularly its major centres Regina and Saskatoon. “We have significant holdings in both Saskatoon and Regina,” Michael Cooper, president and chief responsible officer of Dream, told RENX.

Property Biz Canada

Graywood, Alterra invest big bread in Wonder Condos

An east-end Toronto site which had hosted bread factories since 1887 will become home for hundreds of people as a mixed-use development called Wonder Condos. “Everyone knows it as the Weston bakery, but it was Brown’s Bread and General Bakeries for a lot longer,” said Neil Pattison, vice-president of development and project management for Graywood, which is co-developing the condominium project with Alterra.

Property Biz Canada

Parkit announces sale of JV asset for $46.6M

Parkit Enterprise Inc. (PKT-X) announced one of the single purpose entities held by OP Holdings JV LLC is under a purchase and sale contract. The company is awaiting confirmation of the closing of the transaction. The property owned by the single purpose entity was bought by the joint venture in 2015 (consisting of an equity investment of $9 million Cdn), and is under contract to be sold for approximately $46.6 million.

MarketWatch – Property Biz Canada

SST IV acquires Oshawa land for self-storage facility

Strategic Storage Trust IV, Inc. (SST IV), a public non-traded real estate investment trust sponsored by SmartStop Asset Management, LLC, announced the acquisition of approximately two acres of land in Oshawa. Purchased in a joint venture with SmartCentres REIT (SRU-UN-T), the vacant lot will serve as the development site for an approximately 900-unit self storage facility.

PR Newswire – Property Biz Canada

Self-storage REITs to merge in $340M deal

Strategic Storage Trust II Inc. and Strategic Storage Growth Trust Inc. will soon become one. The self-storage REITs have just entered into a definitive agreement to merge in a $340-million transaction. SST II and SSGT are both public non-traded REITs sponsored by SmartStop Asset Management LLC, a diversified real estate company with $1.6 billion of real estate assets under management.

CP Executive

Tech entrepreneur resigns over Sidewalk Labs concerns

Saadia Muzaffar, the founder of TechGirls Canada, is resigning from Waterfront Toronto’s Digital Strategy Advisory Panel, arguing the tripartite government agency does not share her “urgency and concern” about its partnership with Sidewalk Labs to develop a digital-first neighbourhood in Toronto. She writes that in the Sidewalk partnership, “Waterfront Toronto’s apathy and utter lack of leadership regarding shaky public trust and social licence has been astounding.”

Globe and Mail (Subscription required) – Toronto Star – Motherboard

PLC expands operations in Texas

Park Lawn Corporation (PLC-T) announced the purchase of Wayne Boze Funeral Home and Gateway Memorial Park, both located just outside Dallas in Waxahachie, Texas. “These locations fit well with our portfolio of properties in the Dallas area and are in line with PLC’s growth strategy, which includes tuck-in opportunities in existing markets,” stated Andrew Clark, chairman and CEO of PLC. The total purchase price is US$3.4 million.

Canada Newswire

Slate continues to acquire German grocery-anchored portfolios

Slate Asset Management L.P. continues to acquire grocery-anchored real estate portfolios in Germany. Slate first acquired a portfolio of 67 predominately grocery-anchored real estate assets in Germany in December 2016. Since that time, Slate has completed six transactions comprised of 65 grocery-anchored real estate properties located throughout Germany, totalling approximately 915,000 square feet of gross leasable area.

Business Wire – Property Biz Canada

Brookfield consortium eyes possible bid for Intu

A consortium including British billionaire John Whittaker and Canada’s Brookfield Asset Management (BAM-A-T) is considering a bid for U.K.-based Intu Properties, for $3.4 billion Cdn. Peel Group, which is the investment vehicle of the Whittaker family, Saudi Arabia’s Olayan Group and property investor Brookfield said on Thursday they were weighing a cash offer for the London-listed company behind sites such as Manchester’s Trafford Centre.

Reuters – Property Biz Canada

Featured Column

The relationship between cap rates and interest rates

Earlier this week, I forwarded a client some historical data on Saskatoon commercial real estate capitalization rates. He came back to me with the comment, “Would be interesting how it (cap rate information) trends with interest rates.” So I asked our market analyst for the data, and here are my observations.

Read more

Market Trends and Research

San Francisco office rents rise to record highs

Asking office rents in San Francisco’s financial district are rising to record levels as technology companies snap up space faster than it can be built, creating demand that’s spilling into CRE across the country.  Average class-A office rents in that area set a third-quarter record by topping $81 per square foot for a full-service gross lease that calls for landlords to pay occupancy operating expenses, according to Cushman & Wakefield.

CoStar Group

Canadian M&A surges in Q3 as RE deals rebound

Canadian mergers-and-acquisitions activity nearly doubled in the third quarter, fueled by deals in the mining, real estate and cannabis sectors, according to Thomson Reuters data released on Thursday. Brookfield Asset Management‘s (BAM-A-T) $11.4 billion agreement to acquire Forest City (FCE-A-N) was the biggest deal in the quarter. Meanwhile, Constellation Brands Inc’s (STZ-N) $4-billion investment in Canopy Growth (WEED-T) highlighted the interest in Canada’s red-hot cannabis market.

Reuters

Real Estate Companies

Colliers acquires Australian project management firm

Leading global commercial real estate services firm Colliers International Group Inc. (CIGI-T) announced the acquisition of GMP Management Pty Ltd., an Australian project management firm with extensive experience in corporate property and infrastructure delivery services. Since 1989, GMP Management has been providing market-leading project management and planning services for complex projects across Eastern Australia.

Globe Newswire

Fiera Capital begins execution of new strategic plan

Fiera Capital Corporation (FSZ-T), a leading independent asset management firm with more than $139 billion under management, Tuesday provided an update on the advancement of the Firm’s 2022 Strategic Plan. The objective of the 2022 Plan is to establish Fiera Capital as a top-tier, global, multi-strategy asset manager with top-quartile embedded strategies, recognized for its talented people and for providing the best solutions to its clients globally.

Canada Newswire – Property Biz Canada

REOC Financial Reports

Latest financial results:

* Parkit Enterprise Inc., (PKT-X), Canada Newswire

Real Estate Investment Trusts

Are REITs a good investment at the moment?

Between high distributions, “OK” capital gains, and attractive P/E ratios, Canadian REITs have many things going for them. However, with a cooling real estate market, 2018 may not be the best year to buy in. But if you have a passion for real estate and don’t want the hassle of managing a property, buying REITs can be a great way to own a slice of Canada’s real estate market.

Motley Fool

Retail

Superstore launches same-day delivery in Winnipeg

Real Canadian Superstore Thursday announced an expansion into Winnipeg to bring home delivery to close to 200,000 households. Winnipeg residents can now order and have their groceries and everyday essentials delivered by Instacart straight to their doorsteps in as little as one hour. “We are a customer-led company and are always looking for new ways to make shopping more convenient,” said Herman Paek, senior vice-president, e-commerce, Loblaw (L-T).

Canada Newswire

Restaurants and Eateries

Wendy’s seeks to expand Quebec presence

Wendy’s is the latest U.S. fast-food chain eager to serve more burgers and fries to hungry Canadian diners who are spending more money than ever on quick-service food, a phenomenon that could lead to more demand for restaurant real estate in Canada’s most populous areas within hours of the American border. Wendy’s, the third-largest U.S. hamburger chain, is aggressively seeking franchisees to expand throughout Quebec.

CoStar Group – Canada Newswire

Cannabis industry news

17 Alberta shops will sell cannabis on first day

Albertans will have 17 locations to choose from when it comes to buying cannabis in store on the first day it becomes legal. Alberta Gaming Liquor & Cannabis released the list of pot shops that will be up and running with products on the shelves on Oct. 17. Of the 17 Alberta retailers issued interim cannabis licences, six are located in Edmonton, three are in Medicine Hat and two are in Calgary.

Global News – Calgary Herald

N.A. spending on legal cannabis expected to reach US$47B by 2027

According to a report by Arcview Market Research, in partnership with BDS Analytics, worldwide consumer spending on legal cannabis is expected to reach US$57 billion by 2027. By region, the North American segment will account for most of the total spending, growing from US$9.2 billion in 2017 to US$47.3 billion by 2027 and at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 18 per cent.

PR Newswire – Globe Newswire – Globe Newswire

New Development

Western Canada’s largest museum open for business

After three-and-a-half years of construction, the $375-million Royal Alberta Museum opened to the public at noon Wednesday. Visitors were greeted by an Albertosaurus roaring through the lobby and a 100-year-old Edmonton biplane, props to our capital aviation history, suspended above and a giant bronze woolly mammoth which tips the scales at over 3,600 pounds.

CBC – Edmonton Journal

Infrastructure

CPPIB, Teachers’ expand Mexican infrastructure partnership

IDEAL, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) and Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan announced they have entered into a definitive agreement to invest in Pacifico Sur, a 309-kilometre toll road in Mexico. IDEAL will retain a 51% ownership of the Guadalajara-Tepic. CPPIB – at 29 per cent – and Ontario Teachers’ together will acquire a 49% minority ownership position for an initial $314 million, with the possibility of a second payment of up to $218 million.

Globe Newswire

Other

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