Photo credit Harshil Shah
Our weekly round-up of real estate news in Toronto, across Canada and the world for the week ending September 2, 2016.
Toronto
Condo Owners Battle Rental Companies for Control of Board (CBC Toronto)
A group of Toronto residents and owners took back control of their condo building this week from short-term rental companies they say had stacked the board of directors against them, and were allowing the building to be run like a hotel.
Young, Rich and Retired: How One Millennial Couple Made It Happen (CTV News)
Bryce Leung and Kristy Shen are wealthy, retired, globetrotting millennials. Distinctions they earned by defying a well-worn financial platitude passed down by their parents’ generation—buying a house is a good idea.
Designed for Collective Living, Toronto Home in Need of Roommates (Globe & Mail)
For years, Carol Buss has dreamed of living in a collective society based on mutual aid and camaraderie. But when the health-food store owner found that such utopias are hard to find in Toronto, she decided to create one in her Cabbagetown row house.
How Do You Raise a Family in A Shoebox? Toronto Studying Condo Hacks (MetroNews Toronto)
Dogs outnumber kids in Emily Runions’ condo-dominated neighbourhood. “I’ve been told on more than one occasion, this isn’t a place to raise children,” the young mom said. But, that doesn’t mean she and her nine-year-old daughter Sadie are leaving their 635 square foot Liberty Village space any time soon.
Former World’s Biggest Bookstore to Become 30-Storey Condo (Quill & Quire)
If all goes according to (a new) plan, the former site of Toronto’s World’s Biggest Bookstore will become home to a 30-storey condo.
Canada
Vancouver and Toronto Real Estate Markets Headed in Different Directions: TD (Vancouver Sun)
A new study suggests the two hottest real estate markets in Canada appear to be headed in different directions, as Vancouver softens and Toronto looks to maintain its momentum. In a report published Tuesday, TD Bank said Vancouver has started what is expected to be a modest correction, which will be reinforced by the recent implementation of the land transfer tax on non-residents.
See PK Subban’s Montreal Luxury Condo, Listed for $1.4 Million (Toronto Star)
Former Montreal Canadiens defenceman P.K. Subban has put his downtown Montreal condo up for sale for $1.4 million. Subban, who got traded to the Nashville Predators in June, is selling his condo at 1227 Sherbrooke St. W. in downtown Montreal, his realtor’s office confirmed.
Calgary’s Tale of Two Housing Markets: Demand for Detached Houses Rise as Condo Sales Fall (Globe & Mail)
Detached-home sales in Calgary appear set to finally turn a corner, even as the city continues to grapple with a record level of unsold condos.
CCPIB Buying Office Real Estate for $1.18 Billion (Inside Toronto)
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board said Thursday that it's buying a 50-per-cent stake in a portfolio of office properties in Toronto and Calgary owned by OMERS for $1.18 billion.
USA
Compass Raises $75 Million for Real Estate Listings (Techcrunch)
New York-based real estate startup Compass is raising yet another round of funding, this time at a valuation above $1 billion.
Around the World
Real Estate Gets Its Own Sector: A Cheat Sheet (Financial Times)
Real estate is finally being emancipated from the financial sector as MSCI and S&P Dow Jones Indices are reclassifying real-estate investment trusts (Reits)—which, deliver any additional income to shareholders within a tax-efficient structure—and real estate management and development companies as a standalone sector.
