Starlight buys 68-building SW Ontario apt. portfolio

RENX  Residential  •  Apartments  •  Ontario

Starlight Investments is ending 2021 with a bang, acquiring a portfolio of 68 assets comprising 1,106 rental units across Southwestern Ontario. Starlight says this transaction completes its 2021 Canadian multiresidential acquisition plans.

Developers bid $260M for Beacon Hall Golf Club

Residential, Commercial  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)

Argo Development Corp. and Paradise Developments Inc. – two established Ontario homebuilders – bid $260 million this month for the 200-acre Beacon Hall Golf Club in Aurora, Ont., according to two members of the club.

Fusion Homes buys Guelph Innovation lands for dev.

RENX  Residential, Commercial  •  Land  •  Ontario, Toronto / GTA

Guelph-based Fusion Homes has acquired the 329-acre Guelph Innovation District lands where the firm says it plans “the most significant development in the history of Guelph.”

The Saskatchewan Edge › Owners and tenants beware: Airbnb vs. Vrbo

Barry Stuart: Managing Partner and Senior Sales Associate , ICR Commercial Real Estate

Slate proposes 49-storey mixed-use tower

Residential, Commercial  •  Urban Toronto

Slate Asset Management has proposed a 49-storey mixed-use tower at 1 St Clair Ave. W. in Toronto’s Deer Park area. The Gensler-designed tower would include 340 residential units, ground-level retail and office space on the fourth through 11th floors.

Menkes proposes 28-storey residential tower

Residential  •  Urban Toronto  •  RENX

Menkes has proposed a 28-storey residential tower at 289 – 299 Balliol St. in Toronto’s Davisville-Mount Pleasant area. The Turner Fleischer Architects-designed building would contain 260 units in a mix of 22 studios (8.5%), 117 one-bedrooms (45.0%), 44 one-bedroom + dens (16.9%), 47 two-bedrooms (18.1%), 3 two-bedroom + dens (1.2%), and 27 three-bedrooms (10.4%).

Canadian shopping centres see early crowds: Oxford

Commercial  •  Retail Insider

Canadians started their holiday shopping early largely due to concerns over supply chains. “People are craving a return to normal and shopping centres offer an engaging way to get into the holiday spirit,” said Oxford‘s head of retail Bradley Jones.

Google absorbs Sidewalk Labs; CEO likely has ALS

Residential, Commercial  •  Bloomberg  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)  •  The Verge

Urban-technology company Sidewalk Labs, which abandoned a high-profile city-building project in Toronto a year and a half ago, is disbanding after CEO Dan Doctoroff announced a probable diagnosis of  amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

Roots sees profit margins improve on fewer promotions

Commercial  •  Globe and Mail  •  Canada Newswire  •  Toronto Star

Roots Corp. (ROOT-T) is seeing profit margins improve as the Toronto-based retailer continues to cut down on promotions, more consistently selling its apparel and accessories at full price. Its gross profit margin increased to 65.2 per cent in the third quarter.

Couche-Tard acquires 17 U.S. convenience stores

Commercial  •  Canada Newswire  •  RENX

Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. (ATD-A-T) announced today an agreement with Slidell Oil Company and related entities under which Couche-Tard has acquired 17 convenience stores operating primarily under the Purple Cow banner as well as 23 wholesale fuels accounts across three Southeastern states.

T.O.’s CN Tower reopens after falling glass

Commercial  •  CTV  •  CBC  •  blogTO

The CN Tower and surrounding areas are closed after a report of falling debris from the structure. On Thursday afternoon, police responded to Bremner Boulevard and Rees Street for reports of falling glass from the CN tower.

Real estate podcasts

Residential, Commercial  • 

Sohaib Shahid, Conference Board of Canada: Canadians will feel the bite of rising prices even more in 2022, Down to Business, Episode 131
David Zipper, urban mobility expert: How do we build better public transit?, City Space 
Suzanne Sears, Best Retail Careers International: Retail staffing challenges during COVID, The Retail Insider Podcast Network

T.O. removes minimum parking space requirements

Residential  •  Urban Toronto  •  Daily Commercial News

Toronto City Council has adopted an amendment to remove most of the stipulations that have required new developments to provide a minimum number of parking spaces. Limits on the maximum number of parking spaces that can be built will be added.

Bank regulator leaves mortgage stress test unchanged

Residential  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)  •  Canada Newswire  •  Financial Post

The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions said the mortgage stress test for uninsured mortgages would continue to require borrowers to qualify at a rate of 5.25 per cent even as home prices spiral upwards and household debt rapidly increases.

VIDA acquires nearly 500 N.S. residential units

Residential  •  Canada Newswire

Halifax-based VIDA announced it has acquired a portfolio of nearly 500 units located primarily in the town of Truro, N.S., from Wallace Living. Privately held VIDA focuses on keeping rents low amidst an escalating problem of housing affordability in Canada.

RISE Properties closes 2021 with 7th U.S. acquisition

Residential  •  REMI Network

Victoria-based RISE Properties Trust announced it has finished off a busy year with the purchase of its seventh U.S. Pacific Northwest rental property – the 10th at Hoyt in Portland for $75 million on Dec. 8. The 178-unit building is 100 per cent occupied.

Feds eye foreign owner ban on non-recreational homes

Residential  •  Bloomberg  •  Financial Post

Justin Trudeau has handed Housing Minister Ahmed Hussena a series of tasks – including some targeting foreign buyers – to make home ownership more affordable. The PM asked for measures that include a temporary ban on non-recreational residential sales to foreign buyers.

Luxury Oakville townhomes caught in messy business divorce

Residential  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)

A war of words over the insolvency of a luxury townhouse condominium project in Oakville has pitted Timothy R. Price, former chairman of Brookfield Financial Corp., against custom-home builder Boreal Capital Partners with anxious buyers caught in the middle.

New CEO brings technology to Van. board

Residential  •  STOREYS

“I saw an opportunity to leverage technology, which the music industry has been turned upside down by,” says Jeff King, the new CEO of the REBGV. “I think real estate is about to have a similar seismic shift happen.”

Housing starts up M-O-M in November: CMHC

Residential  •  Winnipeg Free Press  •  Canada Newswire  •  Victoria Times Colonist

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. says the annual pace of housing starts in November rose 26 per cent compared with October as starts of apartments, condos and other types of multiple-unit housing projects climbed higher.