New Westminster News Leader – New Westminster IGA to close.

The IGA Marketplace grocery store in New Westminster will close later this year.

Scott Coburn, vice-president for H.Y. Louie Company (operators of the store) said although the company would like to remain operating at the 1025 Columbia St. location, the decision was made to shut because it is no longer financially viable.

 On Jan. 17, the company gave six months’ notice to the property’s owner that it will be closing down. Coburn said for the last year the costs of labour, operating and rental exceeded the revenue generated.

“We have been unable to recover from this decrease in sales,” said Coburn. Read more: http://www.newwestnewsleader.com/news/187782891.html

Courtesy Financial Post

“Canadian real estate investment trusts have outperformed the Toronto Stock Exchange for four straight years and a fifth may be on the horizon.

In a year-end report, CIBC World Markets Inc. analyst Alex Avery says Canadian REITs are on pace for a total return of about 17% in 2012, which is 10 percentage points better than the S&P/TSX composite index.

This strong outperformance in 2012 was driven by a confluence of factors, including low and falling interest rates, strong property fundamentals, challenging outlooks for many other sectors, and strong demand for stable income-producing investments, representing a nearly ideal environment for real estate and REIT investing,” Mr. Avery said.”

View the full article HERE.

Melcor Developments Ltd. Announces Commencement of Strategic Process.

EDMONTON, ALBERTA–(Marketwire – Jan. 8, 2013) – Melcor Developments Ltd. (“Melcor” or the “Company”) (TSX:MRD) today announced that it has commenced a strategic process to advance its business interests through the creation of a Real Estate Investment Trust (“REIT”) in which the Company would maintain a significant interest. The Company is considering vending a substantial portion of its income-producing assets into this new vehicle. This process would provide capital to the Company, and allow it to grow and continue to pursue numerous value creating opportunities in strong western Canadian economies. A Special Committee of independent Directors of the Board, Chaired by Gordon Clanachan, has been constituted to oversee the strategic process.

The Company cautions that the Board of Directors has not set any deadline for completing any transaction, and that any such strategy may, or may not, be executed. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that the Company will ultimately pursue, or complete, any transactions, and investors, or potential investors, should not trade based on this information.

The Company has engaged RBC Capital Markets and CIBC as its financial advisors and Bryan & Company LLP as its legal advisor with respect to this process.

Morguard North American REIT signs two deals in U.S. worth a total of US$633M.

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. – Morguard North American Residential Real Estate Investment Trust (TSX:MRG.UN) has signed a pair of deals worth a total of US$633 million to buy 6,474 apartments and townhouses in the United States.

Under the first deal, the trust will acquire a dozen apartment and townhome complexes including a total of 3,752 units in Dallas, Denver, Tampa, Fla., Raleigh, N.C., and Atlanta.

The second deal will see the trust buy a dozen apartment and townhome complexes including a total of 2,722 units in Pensacola, Fla., Mobile, Ala., and south-west Louisiana from Morguard Corp.

The trust said it will assume about US$400 million in mortgages and pay the rest using other available sources of funds.

“Given investors’ exceptionally strong interest in apartments, it was only a matter of time before that interest extended to brokerage firms that specialize in bringing buyers and sellers of apartment properties together, and perhaps providing them with financing at the same time.

In a deal that closed on the last day of 2012, Berkadia Commercial Mortgage acquired Phoenix-based Hendricks & Partners, a national multifamily sales brokerage firm with 37 offices in the U.S. Berkadia is a commercial real estate lender and special servicer that was formerly part of Capmark Financial and is now owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway investment firm.”

View the full article HERE.