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Toronto office market: Landlords can ‘name their price’

5 years ago

More than two million square feet of leasing deals completed in Q1 of 2019 continued the unrelenting pressure on Toronto’s office sector, according to Avison Young‘s new market report. GTA-wide office space absorption was 763,000 square feet during the quarter.

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Peter Busby, the architect best known for a storied career of sustainable design, sits in the boardroom of his firm’s downtown Vancouver office across from developer Bruce Langereis, where they discuss their vision to build the world’s largest wood tower.

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Lifetime Developments has massive development plans for Markham – five luxury towers ranging from 28 to 48 storeys – but they are in limbo as a result of height restrictions relating to air traffic landing and taking off at nearby Buttonville Airport.

Canada still has a shortage of off-campus, purpose-built rental student housing as new supply lags demand from increased enrollment. “Student housing is a subset of the apartment industry,” said Derek Lobo of SVN Rock, which just released a white paper.

Marcus & Millichap

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Beijing’s crackdown on foreign investments is deterring Chinese companies from making large purchases of Canadian hotels. Foreign purchases accounted for only about six per cent of the total acquisitions in the Canadian hotel market last year, according to Colliers International.

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Jazz legends Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong once stayed at Kitchener’s The Walper Hotel. However, over recent decades, its appeal – and appearance – declined. Today, thanks to a $10-million transformation and reinvention led by Perimeter Development, it  is back in ascendancy.

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Vancouver’s Sahota family has pleaded guilty to a majority of bylaw charges related to the neglect of the Balmoral and Regent Hotels it owns in the Downtown Eastside. The city has filed notices of expropriation for both buildings.

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Toronto’s housing crisis is being fuelled by the emergence of “ghost hotels” — profitable, short-term rentals posted on websites like Airbnb that are replacing long-term rental housing. Hosts “Emil & Sue” for example, have 96 listings.

Matrix360

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Recent corporate buy-in to the concept and record-low office vacancy rates in Vancouver’s downtown core are now ramping up the co-working trend in one of the city’s burgeoning tech hubs: Mount Pleasant.

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François J. Coutu is retiring as president of Jean Coutu Group, the Canadian pharmacy chain his father founded in 1969. Nearly two years ago, Metro (MRU-T) purchased Jean Coutu Group’s network of more than 1,300 stores for $4.5 billion.

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To optimize economic benefits, while satisfying long-term aviation demand, Toronto needs a second major airport. The Pickering Lands, acquired decades ago by the federal government for Toronto’s second major commercial airport, more than satisfies these conditions.

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When the Vancouver real-estate market was hot, presale condo buyers lined up overnight to snap up units at new projects and many people could profit by selling their contract on to another buyer.

Saskatchewan Real Estate Forum

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With interest rates being so low and volatility in the bond and equity markets so high, it isn’t surprising to see investors beginning to shift their attention toward the private equity market, and in particular the private real estate sector.

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While competition for the best deals has become fierce, private equity titans have continued to raise billions for real estate. In recent years, major players like Blackstone Group, Brookfield and Lone Star have set about raising hefty funds.

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The Treasury Department last week released new rules for the U.S. Opportunity Zone (OZ) program that will make it easier for fund managers to raise capital and for developers to begin construction.

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Brokers are busy again with the sales of hotel properties, after a slow winter with relatively few transactions. “Investor appetite continues to be very strong for hotels,” says Kevin Mallory, global head of CBRE Hotels. “That’s a surprise.”

CoStar

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Existing-home sales ran at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.21 million in March, the National Association of Realtors said Monday. That was 4.9 per cent lower than February’s pace and missed the Econoday consensus of a 5.3-million rate.

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Quebec Premier François Legault says the province will help compensate homeowners dealing with flooded properties up to $100,000 — but he also wants to ensure taxpayers don’t pay for those repairs again and again.

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The Investment Property Owners Association of Nova Scotia (IPOANS) is creating a new registry and certification program to educate its members on provincial tenancy legislation and help tenants find reputable landlords.

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For those willing to compromise on location, plenty of single-family homes are available for $250,000 or less. To get a sense of what’s available for nearly half the national average, check out these listings below:

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