Commercial Real Estate News Toronto – 1/2 November 2009
Can places like the Brick Works succeed without parking?
The Royal Canadian Military Institute, a squat, dun-coloured oddity nestled between two glittering office towers on University Avenue, has attracted some fuss lately. No one is terribly upset that this building with limited historical value is being torn down; the developers plan to replicate its 1907 façade as part of the new tower.
National Post Mon Nov 02 2009
Price of urban dream park may be more development
When the former Downsview military base was closed 15 years ago, dreams of a sprawling, full-amenity green space on the scale of New York’s Central Park danced in Toronto heads. Today’s plan for Downsview is more High Park-sized, as managers squeeze in ever more development to raise funds for creating Parc Downsview Park – not quite what residents had hoped would result from plans for a “national urban park.”
Toronto Star Mon Nov 02 2009
Dundee REIT to buy $140-million of office buildings Dundee REIT – D.UN-T
Dundee REIT will spend $140-million to buy office buildings in Toronto and Ottawa. The company said funds from operations – an important measure of profitability for real estate companies – was $16.2-million, or 54 cents a unit, compared to $15.8-million, or 50 cents, in the same quarter a year ago. It saw its lease rate across all properties decrease to 94.9 per cent from 95.9 per cent a year ago.
Globe and Mail Wed Nov 04 2009
Canadian Commercial Real Estate Better Off Than U.S. Real Property Association of Canada
The Real Property Association of Canada and FPL Advisory Group released the results of their Fourth Quarter 2009 Canadian Real Estate Sentiment Survey. Overall, Canadian real executives’ sentiment on real estate markets has moved up meaningfully over the past quarter, more so than in the U.S. The Canadian Real Estate Sentiment Survey is identical to a survey of real estate executives in the U.S.
Canada News Wire Wed Nov 04 2009
Toronto Sale Goes Against Grain
In the midst of a dismal sales market, a Toronto investment firm has pulled off a deal that harkens back to the days of soaring values. But Northam Realty Advisors Ltd.’s sale of 151 Front Street West in Toronto for 192 million Canadian dollars ($180 million) says more about the property than it does about the market.
Wall St. Journal Wed Nov 04 2009
HST better for consumers, businesses
As economic troubles appear to fade worldwide, many Canadian businesses and consumers have more reason to look optimistically at 2010. One reason stands out in Ontario and British Columbia, where governments have announced firm intentions to replace their antiquated retail sales taxes with smarter harmonized sales taxes, the HST.
Financial Post Wed Nov 04 2009
Agents keep lock on MLS, for now Canadian Real Estate Association
Real estate agents won’t lose their grip on the listings process as part of the Canadian Real Estate Association’s settlement with the Competition Bureau of Canada. CREA had signalled this week that its Multiple Listings System may need to be thrown open to competitors to satisfy the bureau – giving consumers more choices on how to buy and sell homes and lowering costs.
Globe and Mail Thu Nov 05 2009
Brookfield profit drops but beats estimates Brookfield Asset Management – BAM.A-T
Brookfield Asset Management Inc., an investor in property, power and other infrastructure assets, said on Friday its profit dropped 34.5% in the third quarter, but results beat estimates. Toronto-based Brookfield said it recorded a profit of $112-million, or 17 cents a share, compared with $171-million, or 27 cents a share a year ago.
National Post Fri Nov 06 2009
Brookfield profit falls but acquisitions eyed Brookfield Asset Management – BAM.A-T
Profit at Brookfield Asset Management Inc. fell about 35 percent in the third quarter, but the investor in property, power and infrastructure assets said it was sitting on huge amounts of capital and ready to pursue acquisitions. Toronto-based Brookfield, a major stakeholder in Brookfield Properties , said its profit dropped as lower power prices in the sluggish economy offset slight increases in rent income.
Reuters Mon Nov 09 2009.
Canadian real estate markets elude US collapse PricewaterhouseCoopers
While conservative banking practices and stricter regulation kept lending in check and most Canadian real estate investors were saved from overleveraging, they are still worried about suffering more economic shocks if the US can’t get its financial house in order more quickly. This, according to the annual Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2009 report, released by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Urban Land Institute.
Canada News Wire Wed Nov 11 2009 – Globe Investor
One-storey LCBO at King-Spadina makes no sense
It’s enough to drive a person to drink. There it is, one of the most important intersections in Toronto, King and Spadina, and what appears on the corner – a liquor store? Nothing wrong with that, really, but it’s a one-storey LCBO. One paltry storey in a location that could have used many. Perhaps in a city obsessed with towers, it’s not surprising that there are no minimum height requirements.
Toronto Star Tue Nov 10 2009
Road tolls touted as Toronto’s economic cure
Congestion charges, also known as road tolls, could help make the Toronto-area economy more productive. About 71 per cent of the region’s population is dependent on the automobile. Not only is that costly for commuters, traffic tie-ups hurt the economy, says the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Toronto Star Tue Nov 10 2009
Allied Properties REIT ready to buy Allied Properties REIT – AP.UN-T
Allied Properties Real Estate Investment Trust is ready to buy more properties in Toronto and Montreal, building on an existing portfolio of urban office space, the REIT said yesterday. That was a more optimistic outlook than earlier this year, when Allied said it was not optimistic on prospects to buy new property, even though it had cash available.
National Post Fri Nov 13 2009 – Reuters
Investors dive back into Canadian commercial property PricewaterhouseCoopers
Canada’s commercial real estate market is rebounding faster than many in the industry projected just a few months ago. A survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Urban Land Institute, conducted in July, found that executives expected anemic returns and scant activity for at least the next year, as investors licked their wounds and waited for better times in 2011.
Globe and Mail Thu Nov 12 2009 – Globe and Mail (second article)
City of Toronto seeks office space as payroll still growing
Despite a hiring “slowdown,” the City of Toronto is running out of office space to house its workers. The city’s 2010 capital budget, which is up for public comment Friday, recommends spending $500,000 to study the best way to acquire about 225,000 square feet, mostly downtown – equivalent to about one-quarter of city hall. The space crunch results from hiring in previous years, including 1,300 workers added last year.
Toronto Star Fri Nov 13 2009
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