Artis REIT refocusing on industrial: CEO

Commercial  •  Winnipeg Free Press  •  RENX

In an understatement, Winnipeg-based Artis REIT CEO Armin Martens called COVID-19 a “serious distraction.” Artis (AX-UN-T) is now looking to reset with a focus on industrial properties, up from 23 to 35 per cent in the past three years and climbing.

Colliers’ Arlene Dedier named Business Leader Champion

RENX  Commercial  •  Human Resources  •  National

Revenue in her service line has increased 150 per cent year-over-year for the past decade, and that alone is reason to fete Arlene Dedier’s accomplishments. Dedier, director of Colliers Project Leaders in Toronto, is being applauded as Catalyst’s 2020 Business Leader Champion.

Brookfield eyes takeover of $15.3B Spanish REIT

Commercial  •  Bisnow

Brookfield is mulling a takeover bid for Spanish REIT Merlin Properties, which has a portfolio with a gross asset value of $15.3 billion Cdn. Brookfield has contacted the shareholders about buying a stake in the company or even taking it private.

Canderel buys Montreal office building; plans new build

RENX  Commercial  •  Office, Industrial  •  Greater Montreal

Canderel has purchased 6600 Saint-Urbain in Montreal from Olymbec to expand its presence in the Mile-Ex neighbourhood, an increasingly popular hub for artificial intelligence firms. It also plans a major new office build in the same district, says CEO Brett Miller.

Winnipeg airport planning study ready for takeoff

Residential, Commercial  •  Winnipeg Free Press  •  Daily Commercial News

On Tuesday, the province released a request for proposals to study and forecast noise exposure around Richardson Winnipeg International Airport and make planning recommendations. Two potentially sizable development proposals near Polo Park are on the line.

The Saskatchewan Edge › My digital detox in a wired world

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

Alleged fraud cases involve real estate

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

One case alleges a scheme siphoned $80 million out of one of Ontario’s largest builders of public infrastructure. Another has left more than 100 investors from Brampton’s Sikh community scrambling to recover $9 million that vanished in two real estate deals.

Whistler strata windup reveals threat to CRE owners

Commercial  •  Western Investor

Commercial stratas have become popular in B.C. However, a Whistler lawsuit against Concord Pacific rings a wake-up for commercial strata owners in mixed-use developments: their business is worth only the real estate value of the space it occupies.

Metro sales up more than 10%

Commercial  •  Toronto Star  •  Canada Newswire

Metro Inc. (MRU-T) said Wednesday it had a $263.5-million profit in its latest quarter, up from $222.4 million a year ago, with sales up more than 10 per cent as more Canadians cooked at home due to the pandemic.

CMLS Mortgage Commentary for August

Commercial  •  Globe Newswire

CMLS Financial, one of Canada’s largest, independently owned mortgage services companies, has released their latest Commercial Mortgage Commentary, an in-depth analysis of the commercial mortgage market in Canada.

REIT/REOC business updates

Commercial  • 

Firm Capital Property Trust, (FCD-UN-X), Canada Newswire

Summit Industrial Income REIT, (SMU-UN-T), Canada Newswire

REIT second-quarter financial results

Residential, Commercial  • 

CAPREIT, (CAR-UN-T), Globe Newswire

Granite REIT, (GRT-UN-T), Stockhouse

European Residential REIT, (ERE-UN-X), Globe Newswire

Minto Apartment REIT, (MI-UN-T), Canada Newswire

Summit Industrial Income REIT, (SMU-UN-T), Canada Newswire

Sun Residential REIT, (SRES-X), Yahoo Finance

True North Commercial REIT, (TNT-UN-T), Canada Newswire

WPT Industrial REIT, (WIR-UN-T), Globe Newswire

Pandemic hits Hudson Yards developers hard

Residential, Commercial  •  CNBC

PODCAST: Stephen Ross, The Related Companies founder and owner of the NFL’s Miami Dolphins, discusses reopening and the state of commercial real estate projects like Hudson Yards in Manhattan.

Airbnb reportedly close to filing for IPO

Residential  •  Financial Post  •  Reuters

San Francisco-based Airbnb Inc. plans to file paperwork for a stock market listing in the next few weeks paving the way for its shares to start trading as soon as the fourth quarter, according to sources.

Marriott sees cash burn slowing as bookings recover

Commercial  •  Reuters

Marriott International (MAR-Q) said it expects cash burn for the year to be slower than previous estimated as bookings slowly recover from the coronavirus lows that pushed the hotel chain to post its first quarterly loss in nearly nine years.

McDonald’s sues ousted CEO, alleging relationships

Commercial  •  Reuters  •  Financial Post  •  CTV

McDonald’s Corp. (MCD-N) said on Monday it sued former CEO Steve Easterbrook to recoup 10s of millions of dollars in severance and benefits, claiming he covered up and lied about sexual relationships with at least three employees.

Siddall asks Canadian banks to avoid risky mortgages

Residential  •  Bloomberg  •  Financial Post

Evan Siddall, CEO at Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., implored the nation’s lenders to “reconsider” offering mortgages to highly leveraged households, saying excessive borrowing will worsen the pain of the coming economic adjustment.

Security deposit legal: Quebec building owners

Residential  •  La Presse

Corporation of Real Estate Owners of Quebec (CORPIQ)  believes it has found a way to make security deposits legal by offering future tenants a form to fill out where to claim they are paying it “freely and voluntarily.”

Northern housing market hotter than ever: Realtors

Residential  •  CBC

Realtors in Whitehorse and Yellowknife, where most Northern transactions take place, said they are seeing more activity this summer — and at higher prices — despite the pandemic. “We were a bit surprised that the market didn’t stall,” said realtor Marc Perreault.

Rental flexibility may be coming to Burnaby ‘urban villages’

Residential  •  Burnaby Now

Property owners in Burnaby’s “urban villages” may soon be able to build rental housing above shops without needing to go through the lengthy rezoning process. City council gave staff approval recently to move forward on a zoning bylaw amendment.