Dream continues renos at Toronto boutique offices

RENX  Commercial  •  Office  •  National, Toronto / GTA

There have been many distractions as Dream Office REIT (D-UN-T) deals with pandemic-related issues, but a core Toronto project is moving ahead at almost full speed. The Dream Collection is comprised of 11 boutique buildings on Bay, Richmond and Temperance streets.

Office firm looks to China for tips, experiences on return to work

RENX  Commercial  •  Office  •  National

Steelcase has offered office architecture, furniture and technology for over 100 years, but faces fresh challenges as people return to offices during the COVID-19 pandemic. Principally, the office densification trend is “probably not going to be able to continue.”

Institutional investors partner with Van. developers

Residential  •  Globe and Mail

Vancouver has become a draw for major institutional investors seeking to invest in the city’s real estate market, and increasingly, the way in is to partner with local developers, say industry experts.

BTB sells Montreal office property for $21.6M

Commercial  •  Canada Newswire  •  RENX

BTB REIT (BTB-UN-T) announced the disposition of an office property located at 1001 Sherbrooke St. E., in Montréal for $21.6 million. Located near Lafontaine Park, BTB acquired the property for $14.2 million in November 2008. It has an occupancy rate of 69.7 per cent.

Alignvest acquires Edmonton student housing asset

Residential  •  Canada Newswire  •  RENX

Alignvest Student Housing REIT has entered into a binding contract to acquire the purpose-built student accommodation asset located at 11024 82 Ave. in Edmonton. The four-storey property offers 37 fully furnished units, with a total of 72 beds.

Developer proposes pair of Ottawa apartment high-rises

Residential  •  Ottawa Business Journal

Gatineau developer Heafey Group is proposing to construct two high-rise apartment buildings near the soon-to-be-rebuilt Lincoln Fields Shopping Centre. Heafey Group says it wants to build an 11-storey and a 12-storey tower in Ottawa’s Britannia Village.

Sponsored by Firm Capital Organization Firm Capital announces its Special Situation Finance Group

Firm Capital Corporation, a leading non-bank lender since 1988, is pleased to announce its Special Situation Finance Group that will provide “tailor made” structuring to real estate companies impacted by COVID-19. The program will provide liquidity, restructuring of existing loans …

Bow City Storage constructs new Calgary building

Commercial  •  Calgary Herald

The rise in downtown and inner-city apartment living also increases the demand for storage, and Bow City Storage is addressing that need with the construction of a secure storage building on the west end of downtown Calgary.

Couche-Tard launches cannabis pilot in Alberta

Commercial  •  Yahoo Finance  •  Bloomberg  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)

Laval-based Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD-B-T) is pairing its Circle K convenience stores with pot-selling neighbours under an Alberta-based pilot project with retailer Fire & Flower (FAF-T). Locations in Calgary and Grande Prairie will open adjacent to Fire & Flower cannabis stores this month.

B.C. extends ban on CRE evictions to July 31

Commercial  •  Vancouver Sun

B.C. is extending through July a ban on small-business evictions during COVID-19 but has failed to fix problems in an accompanying commercial rent-relief program that both landlords and small businesses have called inadequate.

COVID-19 hammers Halifax CRE sector

Commercial  •  Global News

Even before COVID-19 hit, Halifax’s CRE vacancy rate was at about 20 per cent. In the last quarter, the sublease vacancy rate in the municipality jumped 21 per cent. CBRE’s Andrew Bergen says it’s too early to assess the long-term impact, however.

REIT/REOC COVID-19 business updates

Commercial  • 

American Hotel Income Properties REIT, (HOT-UN-T), Canada Newswire

Boardwalk REIT, (BEI-UN-T), Canada Newswire

Le Château on verge of bankruptcy

Commercial  •  La Presse  •  Globe Newswire

The future of the 124 Le Château (CTU-X) boutiques is compromised. Unable to repay its debts, the 1,600-employee company admits that “there are significant uncertainties” that cast doubt on its ability “to continue operating.”

Amazon shares blow past US$3,000 mark

Commercial  •  Bloomberg  •  Canadian Grocer  •  Ottawa Citizen

Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN-Q) shares topped US$3,000 for the first time, extending a rally that has left most Wall Street analysts in the dust. Shares climbed as much as four per cent to US$3,004.88, bringing gains this year to 63 per cent.

WeWork shuttering original Soho location

Commercial  •  New York Business Journal

WeWork plans to close its first-ever co-working space — at 154 Grand St. in SoHo — this summer. “In streamlining our portfolio towards profitable growth, we have decided to move on from 154 Grand,” a WeWork spokeswoman said in an email.

Zara founder unveils $17.2B real estate empire

Commercial  •  Financial Post  •  Reuters

After making a fortune in clothing, Amancio Ortega turned his attention to real estate. The Spanish billionaire’s property holdings have soared to $17.2 billion US, his firm revealed Tuesday, giving him the largest real estate portfolio among Europe’s super-rich.

GTA house prices soar to an all-time high in June

Residential  •  Toronto Star  •  Reuters  •  Globe Newswire

Toronto-area home prices could still end the year 10 per cent above last year’s if the current trajectory holds, according to the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB). The average price of a GTA home hit $931,000 in June, an all-time high.

Cottage sales surge as Torontonians flee the city

Residential  •  Toronto Star  •  CTV

All those warnings from small cottage country mayors to stay away this spring haven’t discouraged Torontonians from hunting for vacation homes. Some realtors say the pandemic is boosting business as urbanites seek a change of scene in less populated communities.

Pandemic heats up Vancouver rental market

Residential  •  Vancouver is Awesome

Reverberations from COVID-19 are shaking up Vancouver’s rental-home market, where the tourism downturn has forced some landlords to stop renting homes via sites such as Airbnb and instead seek long-term tenants.

Fraser Valley property sales more than double in a month

Residential  •  Globe Newswire  •  CBC

The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board processed 1,718 sales on its Multiple Listing Service in June, an increase of 113.4 per cent over May, and an increase of 31.5 per cent compared to the 1,306 sales in June of 2019.