Allied Properties turns its attention to Vancouver

RENX  Commercial  •  Office  •  Metro Vancouver

Allied Properties REIT’s purchase of Vancouver’s The Landing is what the company needed to establish solid footing in Vancouver’s distinctive urban office market. Allied (AP-UN-T) is a major player in Toronto and Montreal; Vancouver was next on the list.

COVID-19’s potential impact on CRE asset valuations

RENX  Commercial  •  Hotels and Resorts, Seniors Housing, Office, Industrial, Retail  •  National

How will the recession brought about by measures to combat COVID-19 impact commercial real estate valuations? It’s still too early to know long-term repercussions but stress tests, forecasts, analyses and asset covenant-checks are under way to avoid surprises later.

Brookfield Property’s retail tenants miss payments

Commercial  •  The Real Deal  •  Bloomberg

Brookfield Property Partners (BPY-UN-T) is negotiating with 2,400 of its retail tenants across the country who have been unable to come up with the rent. That inability to pay has cut deeply into Brookfield’s bottom line. Its first quarter was dismal.

UN accuses T.O. apartment owner of renovictions

Residential  •  CBC

The United Nations has publicly rebuked Sweden-based Akelius Residential for abusing the human rights of its tenants — including thousands in Toronto and Montreal – through renoviction. Akelius owns more than 3,500 apartment units in Toronto, and about 3,900 in Montreal.

Canada’s biggest companies getting new loans, financing

Commercial  •  Global News  •  CBC

The federal government says it will provide loans and financing to the country’s largest employers to help them weather the COVID-19 economic crisis. The Liberals are promising bridge financing to companies whose financial needs aren’t being met by conventional credit.

Developers welcome full return of Que. construction

Commercial  •  CBC  •  Montreal Gazette  •  Canada Newswire

Developers in Gatineau, Que., say it’s good news work can resume Monday on commercial construction projects, even if COVID-19 has delayed the opening of one major mixed-development project in the city’s Plateau district.

Montreal’s Loews Hotel Vogue acquired by local investors

Commercial  •  La Presse

A group of buyers led by local investors is acquiring Loews Hôtel Vogue, a five-star establishment in downtown Montreal. The new owners are led by Gad Bitton and Michael Serruya in partnership with SageBlan Investments.

Mayrand supermarket transformation on hold

Commercial  •  La Presse

There were only two weeks left for the former Sears of Mail Champlain to be transformed into a Mayrand supermarket when Quebec decreed the closure of the sites. Even the VIP invitations for the inauguration were about to be sent.

Automotive Properties has agreements for 94% of rent

Commercial  •  Canada Newswire  •  RENX

To date, Automotive Properties REIT (APR-UN-T) has either collected base rents, or entered into rent deferral agreements with tenants, representing in the aggregate approximately 94 per cent of the REIT’s base rent in April and May.

Auto dealers seek incentives after 75% sales drop

Commercial  •  Ottawa Citizen

With stay-at-home orders forcing dealerships to close, automakers to halt production and potential buyers to stop driving the cars they already own, it’s no wonder new car sales have plummeted in Canada during the COVID-19 lockdown.

How Intact is handling CRE insurance relief measures

Commercial  •  Canadian Underwriter  •  Globe Newswire

Intact. Canada’s largest property and casualty insurer, is renewing some commercial policies with no changes in price, and is making mid-term policy adjustments to reflect changing risk portfolios under the current economic conditions.

Starkness and desolation at Trudeau airport

Commercial  •  Montreal Gazette

Shahram Gholmi wanders the terminal at Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport. It’s noon on Thursday. The place is empty, apart from a few staff members. His flight is at 11 p.m., but he has nowhere else to go.

Can data help lenders recover faster?

Commercial  •  CP Executive

It comes as no surprise the finance sector is adjusting to new realities shaped by the ongoing global health crisis. Learning as they go, organizations are exploring various solutions on how to manage the current uncertainty and volatility.

COVID-19 highlights need for smart building cybersecurity

Commercial  •  CP Executive  •  Propmodo

As firms across the globe strive to ensure business continuity and employee safety through remote working, they are are relying heavily on a variety of shared drives, programs and IoTs that enable remote workers to maintain workflow and project control.

Marriott International hit hard by COVID-19

Commercial  •  The Street  •  PR Newswire

Marriott International‘s (MAR-Q) first-quarter earnings missed Wall Street’s expectations, as the hotel-chain operator struggled under COVID-19. Shares of the Bethesda, Md., company, which also owns the Ritz-Carlton and St. Regis luxury hotel brands, at last check were off 3.1% to $84.50.

Shanghai Disneyland reopens with controls

Commercial  •  Globe and Mail

Visitors in face masks streamed into Shanghai Disneyland as the theme park reopened Monday in a high-profile step toward reviving tourism that was shut down by the coronavirus pandemic.

Ontario retailers shift to curbside service

Commercial  •  Toronto Star  •  CBC

Victor Cappella looks at the two racks full of custom jackets, suits and dress shirts that clients have been waiting for eight weeks to get their hands on. One more day, and they’ll be able to pick up their orders.

Innovative measures needed to meet demands: BILD

Residential  •  Toronto Star

In response to the outbreak of COVID-19, the Government of Ontario made the decision to include construction sites as essential workplaces. This permitted our industry to continue working on homes that were close to completion, while practising social distancing.

Vancouver stands by 7% property tax increase

Residential, Commercial  •  Globe and Mail

Airbnb bookings on the rise in U.S.

Residential  •  PR Newswire

Airbnb bookings in the U.S. are rebounding at an accelerating rate, implying a possible V-shaped recovery for short-term rental bookings, and potentially the accommodations industry and even the wider economy,  according to booking data supplied by AllTheRooms Analytics.