Sun Life to acquire 80% interest in InfraRed Capital

RENX  Commercial  •  Investment, Infrastructure  •  International

Sun Life (SLF-T) is committing $1 billion Cdn to acquire a majority interest in, and create new investments for, London-based InfraRed Capital Partners. The infrastructure and real estate investment manager advises on $16 billion of AUM across the U.K. and globally.

Starlight expands Vancouver apartment portfolio

RENX  Residential  •  Apartments  •  Metro Vancouver

Toronto-based Starlight Investments has purchased two Vancouver-area rental apartment buildings as it continues to scale up its West Coast holdings. The $43.5-million transaction, brokered by CBRE, gives Starlight seven properties in the region.

Van. Port Authority seeks partners for $3.5B project

Commercial  •  Toronto Star

The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority is seeking investment partners to finance the construction and operation of a container terminal expansion that’s been delayed for several years. The project, at Roberts Bank in Delta, B.C., may cost as much as $3.5 billion.

End of Hamilton LRT threatens developments

Commercial  •  CBC  •  CBC  •  Hamilton Spectator

As the death of LRT continues to reverberate throughout Hamilton following Monday’s provincial announcement, there are worries about the fate of 36 planned developments across the lower city and an LRT-inspired economic uplift.

Redevelopment plan for Canada’s largest hotel

Commercial  •  Urban Toronto

A massive proposed redevelopment of the Eaton Chelsea Hotel — the largest hotel in Canada — has been evolving for four years. A revised Chelsea Green redevelopment plan application from Great Eagle Holdings has been submitted to the City of Toronto.

Vancouver passes 7% property tax increase for 2020

Residential  •  CBC  •  Vancouver Sun

Vancouver homeowners will see their highest property tax increase in at least a decade. Council passed its 2020 budget Tuesday with an average seven per cent property tax increase for next year, down from the 8.2 per cent proposed last month.

Sponsored by Yardi Making smart real estate decisions for coworking

According to coworker.com, there are more than 350 coworking spaces in Canada, with Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver as the top markets. On a global scale, the 2019 Deskmag global coworking survey results estimated that, by the end of 2019, there

WeWork clinches $1.75 billion in financing

Commercial  •  Bloomberg  •  Reuters

Cineplex board fishing for a better offer

Commercial  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)  •  Financial Post  •  Globe and Mail

Cineplex (CGX-T) is taking unprecedented steps to entice a Canadian buyer into topping a $2.2-billion takeover bid from Britain’s Cineworld Group Inc. If Cineplex does get a better offer, it will pay Cineworld what’s known as a “break fee.”

Investors looking for Vancouver hotel options

Commercial  •  Vancouver Sun

A lack of hotel rooms and solid demand from visitors for a place to sleep in Vancouver should be spurring developers to develop more hotels, say commercial property experts such as David Ferguson, director of valuation, advisory with CBRE.

Historic Winnipeg building joins digital age

Commercial  •  Globe and Mail

The Johnston Terminal building in the Forks District of Winnipeg has long been a part of the city’s industrial history, and it’s now destined to become a part of its post-industrial digital future.

Port Lands T&T makes way for redevelopment

Commercial  •  Toronto Star

T&T Supermarket announced it will be closing its only downtown Toronto location to make way for Waterfront Toronto‘s Promentory Park. The Loblaws-owned (L-T) Asian grocery store chain plans to find a new downtown Toronto location and offer online shopping.

What makes CRE lawyer John Fox tick?

Commercial  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)

John Fox, 51, is a commercial real estate lawyer representing non-profits and for-profits with a focus on affordable housing in building communities. He is a partner at Robins Appleby, based in Toronto.

ICM Asset invests in Mexican industrial park

Commercial  •  Canada Newswire

Calgary-based ICM Asset Management has entered into a partnership with an unnamed Canadian institutional investment and pension fund manager to deliver Santa Rosa Park, a 246,340 m² class A build-to-suit and spec industrial project in Guadalajara, Mexico.

ERES REIT closes on $153M Dutch property

Residential, Commercial  •  Canada Newswire

European Residential Real Estate Investment Trust (ERE-UN-X) announced it has closed on its acquisition of a Netherlands property for approximately $153 million Cdn. The Kameleon property consists of 222 residential suites, approximately 107,000 square feet of ancillary retail space and 432 indoor parking spaces.

NYC’s largest real estate finance deals of 2019

Commercial  •  The Real Deal

After a decade of growth in New York City real estate’s capital markets, the biggest financing deals are shrinking. This year’s ranking of top 10 finance deals found major landlords are still refinancing existing properties more than securing funding for acquisitions.

Vancouver average one-bedroom apartment $2,200

Residential  •  Vancouver is Awesome

A recent Padmapper.ca report found Vancouver has the second-highest average rent across Canada for one-bedroom apartments – second only to Toronto – and the highest rent for two-bedrooms at $3,030.

Baby boomers should consider cashing out now

Residential  •  Financial Post

OPINION: Long-time Canadian homeowners have benefited from declining interest rates and increasing home prices. As baby boomers continue to transition to retirement, they will be faced with decisions about whether to and when to downsize or sell their real estate.

Home co-ownership on the rise in GTA

Residential  •  CBC

As soaring real estate prices in the GTA lock more and more people out of the market, co-ownership of homes has become an increasingly enticing option for many would-be buyers. One home in Mississauga was decades ahead of the trend.

Toronto to create 40,000 affordable homes

Residential  •  Toronto Star  •  CBC

Toronto council approved a housing plan Tuesday aimed at providing more and better shelter for residents of all ages and at different rungs of the income ladder. That includes the homeless, young people looking for their first apartments, and seniors.