Artis’ Winnipeg plans include new hotel

Artis’ Winnipeg plans include new hotel

In three years, a new 40-storey apartment building should be towering over Winnipeg’s most iconic intersection but the additions won’t end there if Artis REIT‘s (AX.UN-T)  president/CEO Armin Martens has its way. Martens said Thursday there is a second foundation pad on top of the Winnipeg Square underground shopping mall earmarked for a new five-star hotel.

Winnipeg Free Press – CBC News – Winnipeg Sun – Winnipeg Sun

Marriott, Starwood stockholders approve merger

At last, Marriott International Inc. (MAR-Q) and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. (HOT-N) have the go-ahead from their stockholders to merge. Marriott will acquire Starwood for $17.6 billion Cdn in a deal creating the world’s largest hotel company. The combined firms will own about 5,700 hotel properties with more than 1.1 million rooms among 30 brands in more than 100 countries.

CoStar Group – Bloomberg – CTV News – Business Insider

Shopping mall investments reap gains: AY

Retail sales grew by 2.2 per cent in 2015 and are forecasted to increase at a higher rate this year, aided by the performance of the country’s top shopping centres, according to a new Avison Young study and infographic on the Canadian retail real estate landscape.

Property Biz Canada – Vancouver Province – Ottawa Business Journal – Globest.com

AY gains foothold in Phoenix with GPE acquisition

Toronto-based Avison Young has entered the hot Arizona market for the first time with the acquisition of The GPE Cos. of Phoenix. Financial details were not disclosed. The GPE Cos., which consists of GPE Management Services LLC and GPE Commercial Advisors LLC, was a privately held, third-party real estate firm.

Commercial Property Executive

GTA an island of CRE strength: Barron

The amount of commercial space leased in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) in the first quarter was 6.9 per cent higher than a year earlier, with downtown offices playing a major part, said Stuart Barron, Cushman & Wakefield‘s national director of research and real estate finance research.

Property Biz Canada

Shopify makes space for introverts and extroverts

Shopify Inc.’s  (SH-T) Toronto office is located in the downtown core. “The office is designed to reflect Shopify’s core values of transparency and the open exchange of information,” explained director of product Satish Kanwar. “It’s also built for flexibility to suit a variety of work needs whether you’re an introvert or an extrovert.” 

Financial Post

Healthcare REIT expands portfolio in major deal

Physicians Realty Trust (DOC-N) executed purchase and sale agreements for 47 medical office facilities, signed letters of intent for three medical office facilities and is also in the midst of negotiating the acquisition of two additional medical office facilities owned and anchored by the Catholic Health Initiatives regional health systems, for a total price of approximately $724.9 million US.

Commercial Property Executive – Globest.com

Multi-family REITs hold strong despite softening

U.S. multi-family fundamentals are beginning to soften, after several strong years, with apartment completions expected to peak in 2016. This peak should result in an increasing vacancy rate over the next two years. Notwithstanding these early indicators, multifamily REITs are expected to outperform REITs in other sectors.

Commercial Property Executive

How to invest in Canadian crowdfunded RE

Now that we have identified how to select a crowdfunding platform, we can discuss how to choose which real estate assets will result in a high return on your investment I have put together 5 tips to use as a guideline when investing in crowdfunded real estate assets.

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Profile: Charles Wiebe, president, FVREB

Charles Wiebe, the new president of the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board (FVREB), just happens to be an award-winning thespian on the side. Wiebe, who has been a commercial realtor in the Fraser Valley since 1989, still remembers his first deal – a commercial building on a five-acre lot in Abbotsford for the sum of $1 million.

Business In Vancouver

IKEA boss on online vs. in-store retailing

Many businesses pursuing multi-channel retailing are doing it wrong, IKEA Canada president Stefan Sjostrand says. For one thing, online product should never be less expensive than product in physical stores, Sjostrand said. “The customer doesn’t think in channels. Why should it be cheaper to buy on the web versus in the store?”

Vancouver Sun – Globe and Mail

Lululemon expands ‘lab’ stores to U.S.

Lululemon‘s (LULU-Q) new lab looks nothing like its 363 other stores around the world. Nestled on a quiet street in New York’s NoHo neighbourhood, it’s more posh fashion boutique than yoga pant peddler. Bicycles hang on a wall near the entrance, a nod to the city’s commuter lifestyle; sewing machines sit on tables in the back.

Bloomberg

Dollar stores thrive in any environment

During the dark days of the recession, it only made sense dollar stores would thrive. While other retailers pared back their store counts (or shut down altogether), U.S. chains like Dollar General (DG-N) were doing fabulous sales and opening new locations. Now we are out of a severe recession and dollar stores are continuing to perform well.

Commercial Property Executive

U.S. industrial rent growth to peak in 2016

Rent growth for industrial properties in the U.S. was triple the growth compared to the rest of the world last year, but industry experts expect some deceleration in 2016. According to the recently released Prologis Logistics Rent Index, global industrial rent growth reached 6.0 per cent last year. The U.S. dominated that increase, with rent growth of 9.0 per cent.

National Real Estate Investor – National Real Estate Investor

11 emerging U.S. tech office markets

PHOTO GALLERY: If the tech giants that have driven office sector momentum in the San Francisco Bay area continue to drive up the city’s rents, where are the newer tech players planting roots?

National Real Estate Investor – Bloomberg

Featured Column

WeLive something new that’s really very old

The idea of shared living space is nothing new. But on the other hand, it’s entirely new in the hands of the recent entrants to the market.

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Market Trends and Research

Building permits jump on strength in Alberta

The value of Canadian building permits issued in February jumped by 15.5 per cent on strength in the energy-producing province of Alberta, which had been hit by the oil price slump, Statistics Canada said on Thursday. The increase, which follows a 9.5 per cent drop in January, far exceeded the 4.8 per cent gain forecast by analysts in a Reuters poll.

Reuters

U.S. retail rents could rise this year

Retail properties are still recovering from the last economic downturn. The sector has posted positive net absorption rates three times since the recovery got underway in 2010, while balancing that out with vacancy rates that have dropped steadily. The result: asking and effective rents grew by 2.0 per cent and 2.2 per cent, respectively, in 2015, according to Reis Inc.

National Real Estate Investor

Real Estate Companies

New York Common hires Brookfield for first time

The New York State Common Retirement Fund has hired Brookfield Asset Management (BAM.A-T) for the first time. The U.S. pension fund gave the manager $654 million Cdn to invest in real estate, placing $523 million directly into Brookfield’s Strategic Real Estate Partners II fund. The rest has been set aside for co-investment opportunities.

IPE Real Estate – Bloomberg

REOC Financial Reports

	REITs & REOCs – Fourth-quarter 2015 report
	RENX has prepared a table with a convenient list of the companies and a summary of links to their reports that will be updated quarterly. Fourth-quarter results are now arriving. Canadian REITs & REOCs – Fourth-quarter 2015 report

 

Real Estate Investment Trusts

Six REITs show value, stability

The Canadian market has been a relative outperformer this year, buoyed primarily by a resurgence in energy and materials sectors. The real estate sector, specifically REITs, has also performed well – the S&P/TSX REIT index has posted a total return of 10.7 per cent for the first three months of 2016 and has surged over 18 per cent since Jan. 18.

Globe and Mail (Subscription Required)

U.S. REITs become big net sellers

True to their 2016 guidance announcements this winter, the nation’s publicly traded REITs have started out the year as big net sellers of property. Through the first quarter of this year, REITs have sold more than $15 billion in properties and bought less than $6 billion. The gap alone doesn’t fully tell the full story.

CoStar Group

Legal Corner

Franchisee suing McDonald’s following accusations

Glen Bishop, a former McDonald’s (MCD-N) franchisee who says he was forced to give up control of three restaurants is suing the fast-food chain’s Canadian arm, alleging it cost him millions of dollars even though a government review of his use of temporary foreign workers ultimately cleared him of wrongdoing. The company has not yet filed its response.

Globe and Mail

Retail

L Brands to restructure Victoria’s Secret business

Victoria’s Secret owner L Brands Inc (LB-N) reported March sales at established stores above analysts’ expectations and said it would restructure its business to focus on core categories. L Brands said it would create three units within its Victoria’s Secret business – Victoria’s Secret Lingerie, Pink and Victoria’s Secret Beauty – and eliminate certain merchandise categories.

Reuters – Wall Street Journal

Retail mogul back in court with another bankruptcy

Isaac Benitah, whose family empire got court protection from creditors in 2014 for its home goods chains Bombay and Bowring, is back in court over its men’s wear specialist International Clothiers. Its parent company filed last month an intention to make a proposal to its creditors under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act.

Globe and Mail

Restaurants and Eateries

Starboard CEO leaves Darden after shaking up Olive Garden

Jeff Smith, the activist investor who led a revolt at Darden Restaurants Inc. (DRI-N) in 2014 and helped revamped its Olive Garden chain, will step down from the board as his firm diminishes its role at the company. Smith, chief executive officer of hedge fund Starboard Value, resigned from Darden’s board on Monday, the company said.

Bloomberg

Technology

How to cut through CRE tech space clutter

According to Tanner McGraw, CEO of Apto, it wasn’t too long ago that a broker with a Smartphone seemed cutting-edge. Fast-forward to today and there are dozens of tech companies offering innovations to help CRE professionals automate or streamline some aspect of their business.

Globest.com

Seniors industry searches for silvertech apps

The stereotype the elderly don’t have a fondness for technology hasn’t stopped seniors housing operators from trying to find the right gadgets, recently dubbed “silvertech,” that will benefit their residents. Today, seniors are the last demographic where technology hasn’t made a profound impact on day-to-day life.

National Real Estate Investor

Other

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