Commercial Real Estate News

Timbercreek Mortgage Investment Corporation Closes Offering of Class A Shares

Timbercreek Mortgage Investment Corporation announced today it has completed its public offering of 4,887,500 Class A Shares of the Fund, which includes an additional 637,500 Class A Shares that were issued pursuant to the exercise of the over-allotment option for gross proceeds of $48,875,000.

Real estate name reborn in Foothills

One of the strongest real estate brand names has to be Royal LePage and broker/owner Ted Zaharko has built up his Foothills company to the third-largest in Western Canada. It is No. 11 in volume across the country and is an organization that provides employment to some 250 agents in three Calgary locations and others in Okotoks, Black Diamond, Airdrie and High River.

Calgary Herald2011-01-28

Real Estate Investment Trusts

Morguard REIT Announces Normal Course Issuer Bid

Morguard REIT announced that the Toronto Stock Exchange has accepted its notice of intention to make a normal course issuer bid through the facilities of the TSX. The notice provides that Morguard may, during the twelve month period commencing January 28, 2011 and ending January 27, 2012, purchase for cancellation on the Toronto Stock Exchange up to 3,035,337 units in total, being approximately 10% of the public float of outstanding Units.

Lanesborough REIT Announces $3.63-million second closing of pubic offering

Lanesborough REIT announced today that it has completed a second and final closing of the previously announced offering of a minimum of 7,000 and a maximum of 16,000 investment unitsat a price of $1,000 per Unit. Pursuant to the second closing, LREIT sold an additional 3,630 Units which, together with the 12,637 Units sold on December 23, 2010, resulted in LREIT selling the maximum number of Units permitted to be under the Offering.

Five countries with low taxes

With the world's largest economy at over $14 trillion GDP, the United States maintains a high standard of living with a relatively low overall tax rate, compared to other nations. With a total tax burden of approximately 26.9%, its workers enjoy the highest income per hour in a free market economic system.

Immigration fuelled Canada’s population growth in Q3

Driven by a net inflow of international immigrants (+84,200), Canada’s population increased by an estimated 129,300 (1.5% quarter over quarter at annual rates) in the third quarter of 2010. Following a sharp drop in the second quarter of 2009, and coincident with the recovery of the economy, Canada’s rate of population growth has steadily accelerated since the third quarter of 2009.

Daily Commercial News2011-01-28

Retail

Shoppers sinks on CEO departure

Shoppers Drug Mart Corp.’s shares sank by nearly 6 per cent on Thursday morning, a day after stunning investors with its announcement that chief executive officer Jurgen Schreiber is leaving the company in mid-February. During late-morning trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange, its shares lost $2.28, or 5.82 per cent, to $36.90.

Wal-Mart is flexing its muscles

Canada’s retail landscape is getting more competitive with the announcement that Wal-Mart Canada plans to open up to 40 giant new supercentre stores in the next year. The announcement Wednesday is evidence that the world’s largest retailer is not going to sit idly by while other American retailers eat its very profitable Canadian lunch.

U.S. chains eyeing expected retail boom in Canada

A new breed of prospectors is gearing up for a modern Canadian gold rush — far from the pickaxe-toting old-timers of the Klondike, these are a savvy, business-suited bunch looking to cash in on rich veins of Prada purses and cheap blue jeans. They are major U.S. retailers, department stores and mall moguls, and their cross-border foray anticipates that consumers here will open their wallets wider by 2012.

Starbucks warns of lower full-year profit

Starbucks Corp., the world’s largest coffee chain, expects rising coffee prices to hit profits more than it previously thought and forecast full-year earnings below analysts expectations.That news sent its shares down more than 2 per cent, even as the company reported profits and U.S. sales that handily topped Wall Street’s targets.

Vancouver developer offering free temporary retail space

Whether it’s the short-lived firework shops opened before Halloween or the seasonal calendar stores opened before Christmas, temporary retail shops are proving to be a successful way to create a niche demand. A Vancouver developer is taking advantage of the trend, enticing local retailers to set up shop in its temporary space near Broadway and Kingsway free of charge.

Liquidation World Announces a Private Placement of up to $7 Million

Liquidation World Inc.intends to raise up to $7 million by way of a non-brokered private placement financing of convertible junior subordinated secured debentures. The Debentures are convertible at the option of the holder into Common Shares of the Company at a price that is 20 percent above 10 day VWAP prior to the closing date per share.

Recovery in U.S. Warehouse Leasing Gaining Speed

Warehouse leasing accelerated sharply in fourth-quarter 2010, helping to drive down vacancy rates amid record-low deliveries of new industrial commercial properties last year, according to CoStar's Year-End 2010 Industrial Review and Outlook.

DR Horton posts loss as foreclosures spike

DR Horton Inc., the top U.S. homebuilder, reported a larger-than-expected quarterly loss, citing a spike in foreclosures and lingering anxiety among homebuyers, and warned that it would struggle to return to profitability this year. DR Horton shares were down 5 per cent at $12.58 (U.S.) in midday trading.

JLL Adds Lending and Servicing Platform

Jones Lang LaSalle has made its move into loan origination and servicing, inking a deal to acquire a portion of Primary Capital Advisors, an Atlanta-based commercial real estate lending and serving group. While Jones Lang LaSalle has always facilitated lending, this move allows the firm to serve as a lender through Primary Capital’s Freddie Mac Program Plus Seller/Servicer.

Hospitality Real Estate Execs' Confidence Shifts Into Overdrive

The beginning of a recovery last year in the hotel commercial property sector is expected to accelerate into a full-blown resurgence in 2011. Hospitality executives and analysts are expressing a surprisingly robust level of optimism, even exuberance, about market conditions this year. Bullishness about the state of the hospitality market in 2011 was on full display at this week's Americas Lodging Investment Summit in San Diego.

China Real-Estate Tax Seen As Mild But Part Of Broader Effort

China property developers said they don't expect the new real-estate tax trials in two major cities to hurt demand for homes, but some analysts warned the trials are only one part of a broader effort to crack down on speculation and curb prices that could lead to a softening in the property market.

Mixed-Use on Steroids

Mixed-use development has been one of the few bright spots in real estate in the last few years. Successful mixed-use projects are almost always located in dense urban or suburban areas, usually close to public transportation. It’s a sign of the times that the residential component tends to be rental rather than for-sale.

Wal-Mart ‘supercentres’ on way latest in good news

Take a bow, Winnipeg. You’re on the map.An announcement Wednesday that Wal-Mart Canada will be opening three of its so-called “supercentres” — full grocery stores combined with its traditional department stores — in Manitoba by the end of the year is just the latest example of a major retailer banking on Winnipeg.

Group to probe $400M Quebec arena cost

The real cost of a new hockey arena in Quebec City, currently estimated at $400-million, is expected to be known only around the end of the year. A spokesman for Quebec City's municipal government says work will begin in February to determine whether the $400-million figure cited by Mayor Regis Labeaume is accurate. Francois Moisan says it will take between six and nine months for the evaluation to take place.

New bridge across river should link city to future

Should Edmontonians again be frugal and build another plain, functional bridge as the main bridge into our downtown? Or should we invest in a beautiful, elegant bridge? These questions are upon us. The city's transportation general manager, Bob Boutilier, has made it clear that the 99-year-old Walterdale Bridge is going to soon crumble and a replacement bridge is a priority.

Hydro Ottawa offering businesses incentives to conserve

Hydro Ottawa is offering incentives to local businesses as part of a province-wide push to reduce electrical consumption over the next four years.But despite a number of programs available to both small and large-sized businesses, representatives at the utility say they have their work cut out for them. "It's a big sales job because we're changing habits, we're changing culture," said Roger Marsh, the chief conservation officer for Hydro Ottawa.

CBC2011-01-28

Other

Decades-old buildings believed prone to earthquake failure

Buildings constructed with six-inch concrete walls could collapse if the Lower Mainland is hit by a major earthquake, says a professor at the University of British Columbia.Perry Adebar, an engineer, traveled to Chile last year after the South American country was hit by a magnitude 8.8 quake. While there, Prof. Adebar studied a number of the more modern buildings that had crumbled to the ground.

Snow blamed in roof failure at Leduc retail store

For the third time in less than a week, a roof has collapsed in the Edmonton area because of heavy snow. Emergency personnel were called to The Brick furniture store in Leduc at 5:15 a.m. Wednesday following a partial roof collapse believed to be caused by excessive snow. There were no injuries.

Realtors deal with Port Hope evacuation scare

Port Hope has a proud history. The small Ontario town of 16,000 sits on the north shore of Lake Ontario, 100 km east of Toronto. The town has an abundance of finely built heritage residences that appeal to the many retired people who have chosen to make the town their home. As every Realtor knows, selling heritage homes is not without some complications.