Today we are welcoming back Shaun Hildebrand, President of Urbanation, for his fourth appearance on the podcast. His last time on the show was in June 2020, which was a starkly different time for real estate compared with where we are now in early 2023. After getting an update on Urbanation’s expansion, Shaun explains what the condo market looks like in the GTA and how we can expect to see it grow. He also talks about the number of assignments happening right now and the impact of condos being rented by a new demographic. Topics covered include: The slowdown that was seen in the condo market ..read more

Peter Altobelli is back with us today to once again go through his top five key takeaways from the 2022 Toronto Real Estate Forum. Peter is the Vice President of Yardi Canada, which provides many different solutions to the real estate industry. Unsurprisingly, the most common talking point at the forum was the Canadian economy. We’ll hear Peter’s take on how that will continue to affect real estate investment activity. Later, he explains the changes companies have been making to better accommodate their employees, along with the significance of ESG. Topics covered include: #1: The Canadian ec ..read more

Dean Holmes joins us today at the Canadian Apartment Investment Conference. He is Senior Vice President, Residential Operations at QuadReal, and will be talking in-depth about apartments in this episode. We hear about the contrasts between the Canadian and US market from Dean, particularly regarding rent control and tenant turnover. He’ll also talk about the incorrect approach some developers take towards amenities, plus how rent control can be positioned as an amenity. Topics covered include: What skills Dean learned in the military that translate into real estate. QuadReal’s core mission to ..read more

Returning for his second guest appearance today is Mike Bonneveld, President of Skyline Industrial REIT. Skyline’s portfolio is all industrial and spread throughout Canada, with particular attention being paid to Alberta as of late. Mike tells us about some of the deals Skyline has been involved in over the past few years, including a deal that they were completing on the day of recording. We hear about the demand and supply for industrial spaces, why it can be desirable to have a warehouse outside of the city, and what markets Mike is keeping his eye on. Topics covered include: What the port ..read more

We’re welcoming Don White, President and CEO of Private Pension Partners and Apartment Plus REIT, to the show today. In addition to apartments, the company also holds some street-front commercial space. The company is based in Winnipeg and holds most of its assets within the city as well. Don talks extensively about the differences between private and public REITs, including the benefits he sees from Apartment Plus being private. Later, the guys discuss issues in Canada with housing supply and what Don thinks needs to be changed to improve affordability. Topics covered include: How Don learne ..read more

Joining us at the RealREIT conference today is Kevan Gorrie, who is the President and CEO of Granite REIT. The company is industrial-focused and holds property across Canada, the United States, and Europe. Kevan shares what Granite’s portfolio looks like today, along with changes that have been made to it in the past few years. He tells us about the high amount of value that can currently be found in the US compared to Canada, and also discusses the ever-changing cap rates of today’s market. Topics covered include: The acquisition of Kevan’s former company, Pure Industrial, by Blackstone. An ..read more

Nitin Jain is our guest on this episode recorded at the RealREIT conference. He is the President and CEO of Sienna Living, which offers housing for senior citizens. The senior living space has a great deal of intricacies compared to other segments of real estate, which Aaron, Adam, and Nitin will discuss. Nitin explains why baby boomers have different expectations of what they expect when moving into long-term care, and we also hear about what Sienna residents have requested from the company. Topics covered include: Growing up in India and how Nitin wound up in real estate in Canada. The quic ..read more

Today we’ve got Salima Rawji, the Senior Vice President of Development at CreateTO. The organization was established by the City of Toronto to manage its portfolio of real estate assets, such as ensuring that single-use assets are minimal. Because CreateTO is government-owned, their operations are quite different compared to other real estate organizations in Toronto. Salima explains why, including the goals the city is trying to accomplish along with how they measure success. Topics covered include: The perspectives and backgrounds of the team built at CreateTO. Thinking about what the futur ..read more

Let’s welcome Phil Fraser for this episode. He is the President, CEO, and Founder of Killam Apartment REIT. Killam is based in Halifax and originally had operations only in Atlantic Canada, but now spans Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia as well. In addition to acquisitions, Killam has also constructed some of their own buildings, which Phil discusses. He also tells us about Atlantic Canada’s population growth hitting unprecedented levels and what Killam is implementing in its buildings to hit ESG targets. Topics covered include: Phil’s path from when he first realized he wanted to be in ..read more

Our guest today is Paul Lessner, who is the Senior Vice President, National Shopping Centre Leasing at JLL. Starting his career in commercial banking, he later decided to follow his passion for real estate. He joined the JLL team this year. Paul shares everything he’s seeing in retail recently, leading up to the busiest shopping season of the year. He tells us some of the surprising effects that the pandemic continues to have on retail locations, along with the impact that e-commerce is having on retailers. Topics covered include: How will this year’s busy shopping season compare to that of p ..read more