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Challenges and opportunities for smaller cap REITs

4 years ago

Canadian real estate investment trusts with market caps under $1 billion have been among the top performing REITs over the past five years. While almost all REITs unit prices have dropped due to COVID-19, smaller trusts are holding their own.

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Downtown Winnipeg’s troubled $200-million, 45-storey SkyCity project was supposed to be built by 2019 but it never broke ground. FAAN Mortgage Administrators, the trustee for SkyCity investors, recently announced the site is for sale, with no list price.

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The Bay downtown is closing its doors. In February, just six years shy of its 100th anniversary on Winnipeg’s Portage Avenue, the mammoth icon of a bygone era of downtown department store shopping will be shutting down for good.

A Montreal technology firm that makes immersive, headset-free 3D environments wants to team up with a residential real estate developer which will be marketing a new project in Canada during 2021.

Yardi Marketplace

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The federal government is giving $600 million to help small- and medium-sized businesses deal with possible lockdowns during a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The funding will be added to the $962 million invested in the Regional Relief and Recovery Fund.

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The federal Liberals are expected to name Ehren Cory as the CEO of the Canada Infrastructure Bank, according to government sources, tapping the veteran Ontario CEO as leader of the three-year-old Crown corporation. Cory is currently CEO of Infrastructure Ontario.

IMAGE: Columnist Kelly Macsymic, of ICR Commercial.

Business Manager, Stuart Commercial Inc., Sales Associate, ICR Commercial Real Estate

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Triage Development has proposed a nine-storey mixed-use building at 2674 through 2704 Yonge. 1 Alexandra, designed by Studio JCI, would feature retail at ground level, and residential suites. A total of 127 units are proposed, including 96 new residential units.

CMLS Mortgage Commentary

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OPINION: Office tenants across Canada are looking to downsize, which begs the question: Are large corporate headquarters dead? And, if not, what purpose do they serve and how will they adjust going forward?

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The sale of Mountain Equipment Co-op will go ahead after the Supreme Court of British Columbia decided to approve the sale of the retailer’s assets. Save MEC was attempting to to prevent its sale to Kingswood Capital Management.

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Indigo Books & Music Inc. (IDG-T) announced a partnership with Instacart to provide same-day delivery to Canadian customers. Indigo will be the first Canadian book, gift and specialty toy retailer on Instacart as customers look for additional shopping options.

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Just about every reason to invest in Cineplex Inc. (CGX-T) over the past three years has gone horribly wrong. Perhaps simply betting that the pandemic will eventually recede is the only remaining reason.

Stewart Title

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Cineworld (CNNWF), the world’s second-biggest cinema operator, will close all its screens in the United States, Britain and Ireland this week after studios pulled major releases such as the latest James Bond film, a source said.

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A Deloitte Center for Financial Services report predicts 2020 proptech funding could fall as low as $7.3 billion, depending on the speed of the U.S. recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. Last year, the sector raised a record-setting $15.5 billion.

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A group of investors paid $5.2 billion for Li Ka-shing’s stake in Hong Kong’s The Center, making it the world’s most expensive skyscraper. After initially making quick profits, the owners have seen vacancies surge, rents drop and dealmaking dry up.

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Summit Industrial Income REIT, (SMU-UN-T), Canada Newswire

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Home rental company Airbnb Inc is aiming to raise around $3 billion in its upcoming initial public offering, taking advantage of the unexpectedly sharp recovery in its business after the COVID-19 pandemic roiled the travel industry, sources said on Friday.

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OPINION: Vancouver housing was the pressing issue in 2018. Previous municipal and provincial governments had watched housing prices explode, with little action taken until 2016. By that point, home prices in the region had doubled in the span of a decade.

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Canada’s housing market has been defying gravity lately, and there have been warnings of a reckoning to come. However, while some see double-digit declines ahead, Capital Economics believes home prices will rise 12 per cent by the end of 2022.

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Before COVID-19, analysts and investors were keeping a keen eye upon trends emerging within key Canadian real estate markets, including Halifax.. Halifax has been a fascinating city to watch, particularly after the approval of the Centre Plan in 2017.

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The Wedge, a sustainable new residential tower by Cox Developments in Victoria, has commenced construction. The announcement comes after the $50-million development’s recent Gold Nugget Grand Award win as the Best On-The-Boards Multifamily Community.

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