Now that February has come and passed, all of the biggest Canadian real estate investment trusts (REITs) have published their Q4 and year-end financial reports, officially closing the chapter on the year that was.
Recycling capital through dispositions and acquisitions is a big part of the strategy for many REITs, and those transactions offer some insight into what those companies are thinking about and their priorities.
Thus, here are the largest transactions the largest REITs in Canada — those with market caps of over $2 billion as of the end of the day on March 3, 2025 — were involved in last year. All transaction info is from financial reports published by the REITs.
Choice Properties REIT (TSX: CHP.UN)
Market Cap: $9.9 billion
2024 FFO Per Unit: $1.032 (up $0.029)
In 2024, Choice Properties completed a total of $426.5 million in transactions, split between $260.1 million in acquisitions and $166.4 million in dispositions. Five acquisitions were made from Loblaws — the REIT's majority unit holder and major tenant in its properties — for an aggregate of $178,902,000. The largest of the five, which was also the largest acquisition or disposition Choice Properties made in 2024, was that of the industrial property at 6941 Kennedy Road in Mississauga, with the REIT acquiring a 50% interest for $89,601,000 not including transaction costs ($90,845,000 when including costs).
CAPREIT (TSX: CAR.UN)
Market Cap: $6.6 billion
2024 FFO Per Unit (Diluted): $2.534 (up $0.165)
For CAPREIT, 2024 saw a total of $670 million in acquisitions and $385 million in dispositions as the REIT executed its strategy to upgrade the quality of its portfolio by selling non-core legacy assets and buying recently-constructed assets. The largest transaction CAPREIT was involved in last year was the $137 million acquisition of The Pendrell at 1770 Pendrell Street in Vancouver. The Pendrell is a 21-storey building with 173 units developed by Westbank and completed in 2019. Also in BC, CAPREIT sold three properties for $87 million to non-profits in transactions facilitated by the provincially-funded Rental Protection Fund.
The Pendrell at 1770 Pendrell Street in Vancouver. / CAPREIT
RioCan REIT (TSX: REI.UN)
Market Cap: $5.8 billion
2024 FFO Per Unit (Diluted): $1.78 (up $0.01)
Although RioCan made just four acquisitions in 2024, all in Q1 and Q2, for a total of $160,731,000, it made 13 dispositions, most of which occurred in Q4. The biggest transaction came in January 2024, when RioCan acquired a 50% interest in Lawrence Plaza in Toronto for $100.2 million in a transaction that included a density contingent consideration valued at $40.9 million. Just prior to the end of the year, RioCan then made its biggest disposition of the year, selling a 100% interest in the RioCan Centre at 8300 Highway 27 in in Vaughan to Salthill Capital for $45,400,000.
SmartCentres REIT (TSX: SRU.UN)
Market Cap: $4.4 billion
2024 FFO Per Unit (Diluted): $2.23 (up $0.00)
It was a quiet year for SmartCentres REIT in terms of transaction activity, with just two acquisitions and three dispositions for the year. All of the transactions were relatively small, with the largest being the acquisition of 51 Yonge Street in Toronto for $21,555,000. The property, occupied by a heritage commercial building, is being assembled along with 49 Yonge Street, with SmartCentres having previously proposed a thin 60-storey tower that has since been increased to 62 storeys.
Granite REIT (TSX: GRT.UN)
Market Cap: $4.2 billion
2024 FFO Per Unit (Diluted): $5.44 (up $0.47)
Entering the year, Granite REIT, which focuses on logistics, warehouse, and industrial properties, said that a priority in 2024 was "selectively pursuing strategic land and income-producing property acquisition opportunities in our target markets." However, the REIT ended the year making no acquisitions and no dispositions.
First Capital REIT (TSX: FCR.UN)
Market Cap: $3.5 billion
2024 FFO Per Unit (Diluted): $1.35 (up $0.21)
In February 2024, First Capital announced a three-year business plan that included objectives to make $100 million to $150 million in acquisitions "with a focus on multi-tenant, core grocery anchored shopping centres as well as small, but strategic tuck-ins that are expected to be important to long-term value creation," as well as $1 billion in dispositions "focused on a mix of development sites and select low-yielding income properties." To that tune, First Capital made one acquisition in 2024 — $33.5 million for a 50% interest in the Seton Gateway shopping centre in Calgary — and 10 dispositions for a total of $217.1 million. It did not disclose the sale price for each of the 10 dispositions.
The Seton Gateway shopping centre in Calgary. / First Capital REIT
CT REIT (TSX: CRT.UN)
Market Cap: $3.5 billion
2024 FFO Per Unit (Diluted): $1.333 (up $0.025)
In 2024, CT REIT acquired three new income-producing properties, consisting of one each in British Columbia, Manitoba, and Quebec. The REIT, whose controlling unitholder and most significant tenant is the Canadian Tire Corporation, said it spent $156,379,000 towards investments, which includes intensification of existing properties, but did not disclose the costs of each. It also received $23,048,000 in proceeds from dispositions, but again did not disclose transaction details.
Boardwalk REIT (TSX: BEI.UN)
Market Cap: $3.4 billion
2024 FFO Per Unit (Diluted): $4.18 (up $0.58)
In 2024, Calgary-based Boardwalk REIT completed $109.0 million in acquisitions, split between five properties all located in Alberta, and no dispositions. The largest of the bunch was the acquisition of The Circle, a 295-unit rental property at 1130 Seton Circle SE in Calgary, for $77.6 million, including costs. The purchase agreement was in place since May 2022, but did not close until January 2025. Boardwalk now also has an agreement in place to acquire the 255-unit Elbow 5 Eight at 730 58 Avenue SW in Calgary for $93.0 million. The transaction is expected to close this month.
Dream Industrial REIT (TSX: DIR.UN)
Market Cap: $3.4 billion
2024 FFO Per Unit (Diluted): $1.00 (up $0.02)
During the 2024 calendar year, Dream Industrial REIT completed $262 million in acquisitions and $80 million in dispositions. The largest of the transactions was the $80 million acquistion of a 32-acre portion of Stellantis' 269-acre assembly plant in Brampton, Ontario, which Dream made through Dream Summit Industrial LP, its joint venture with Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC. Subsequent to the year, the JV then acquired a 27.5-acre property in North Vancouver in January for $143 million, as first reported by STOREYS. That acquisition marked the REIT's entrance into Greater Vancouver.
H&R REIT (TSX: HR.UN)
Market Cap: $2.8 billion
2024 FFO Per Unit (Diluted): $1.195 (down $0.13)
For H&R REIT, 2024 saw no acquisitions and 11 dispositions, split between seven industrial properties, two office properties, and two retail properties. The largest was by far the sale of the Corus Quay building at 25 Dockside Drive in Toronto, an office complex with 479,437 sq. ft of space. As previously reported by STOREYS, the building was sold to George Brown College for $232.5 million in a sale that was announced in December 2023 and closed in April 2024.
The Corus Quay Building at 25 Dockside Drive in Toronto. / Waterfront Toronto
Crombie REIT (TSX: CRR.UN)
Market Cap: $2.6 billion
2024 FFO Per Unit (Diluted): $1.24 (up $0.07)
Crombie REIT made four acquisitions and three dispositions in 2024, with the largest transaction being their acquisition of the remaining 50% interest in The Zepyhr at 1661 Davie Street in Vancouver from Westbank. The two partners developed the project together, with Crombie owning 100% of the retail component — anchored by Safeway, which is owned by Empire Company Limited, Crombie REIT's largest unitholder — and the partners each previously owning a 50% interest in the 330 rental units.
Allied Properties REIT (TXS: AP.UN)
Market Cap: $2.4 billion
2024 FFO Per Unit (Diluted): $2.170 (down $0.21)
Allied's largest transaction also involved a property in Vancouver and Westbank: the 24-storey Deloitte Summit office tower at 400 W Georgia Street. As previously reported by STOREYS, Allied Properties REIT acquired a 90% stake in Deloitte Summit in April 2024 for $357,525,000, then acquired the remaining 10% in December 2024 for $37,436,000, for a grand total of $394,961,000. Additionally, Allied also bought out Westbank's remaining 50% interest in 19 Duncan Street, also known as Toronto House, in two phases for a total of $271,504,000.
Killam Apartment REIT (TSX: KMP.UN)
Market Cap: $2.0 billion
2024 FFO Per Unit (Diluted): $1.18 (up $0.03)
In the year ending December 31, 2024, the Halifax-based Killam Apartment REIT made four acquisitions for a total of $20,460,000 and 10 dispositions for a total of $59,170,000. The largest of the 14 transactions was the sale of a 100% interest in Woolwich, an 84-unit rental property in Guelph, Ontario, for $19,15,000 in Q2. The net cash proceeds of that transaction were $16,650,000 when factoring in a $2.5 million vendor take-back mortgage, with payment from the purchaser due within 36 months.
