Allied REIT isn’t quite as active in Vancouver as out East, but a notable buyer nonetheless…

By Paul Brent

For many real estate companies, it has been a tough year to complete acquisitions.

That has definitely not been the case for Allied Properties REIT (AP.UN-T), which last month announced two more deals to increase its 2014 tally to $225 million.

While the frenetic deal-making activity may have taken many observers by surprise, Allied anticipated the dam would break this year, according to Michael Emory, the REIT’s president and chief executive. “We got a sense late last year and early this year that the pace of acquisitions was going to pick up. It was more a function of availability than anything else.”

The REIT, known for acquiring older, trendy office space in the downtown cores of major Canadian cities, has racked up seven purchases so far this year, the latest two in Toronto: 555 Richmond Street West and 460 King St. W.

That’s a change for Allied Properties REIT.

Stabilized rental property

“I don’t think that we acquired anything much in Toronto, especially in terms of the stabilized rental property portfolio, last year or the year before that,” said Emory. “We did, of course, acquire The Well with RioCan and Diamond …read more

Source:: RENX

Richport Town Centre, a large strip retail and office complex located on a 5.37 acre site on Ackroyd Road has sold for a reported $74,800,000.

The property contains 116,426 SF of rentable area and is anchored by Chapters Books, Royal Bank, Starbucks, Pennington Superstore, and City Fresh Market and many other retail and office uses.

I am pleased to have acted on behalf of the buyer and seller in the sale of this office building in the Burrard Slopes area. The purchase price was $5,400,000.

This article in the New York Times highlights some challenges in incorporating social housing in a higher-end market condo building. This is an issue that may become more prominent in Vancouver as the City tries to generate new social housing units by requiring social housing in new market developments; particularly in higher density areas like the West End.

‘Poor Door’ in New York Tower Opens Housing Fight

New York Times, August 27, 2014

A 33-story glassy tower rising on Manhattan’s waterfront will offer all the extras that a condo buyer paying up to $25 million would expect, like concierge service, entertainment rooms, and unobstructed views of the Hudson River and miles beyond.

The project will also cater to renters who make no more than about $50,000. They will not share the same perks, and they will also not share the same entrance.

 The so-called poor door has brought an outcry, with numerous officials now demanding an end to the strategy. But the question of how to best incorporate affordable units into projects built for the rich has become more relevant than ever as Mayor Bill de Blasio seeks the construction of 80,000 new affordable units over the next 10 years.

 The answer is not a simple one. As public housing becomes a crumbling relic of another era, American cities have grown more reliant on the private sector to build housing for the poor and working class. Developers say they can maximize their revenues, and thus build more affordable units, by separating them from their luxury counterparts.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/27/nyregion/separate-entryways-for-new-york-condo-buyers-and-renters-create-an-affordable-housing-dilemma.html