The commercial property tax rate is at least double the residential rate in eight of the 11 surveyed cities, with commercial ratepayers in Montreal, Toronto and Quebec City shouldering the most disproportionate shares.

Newly released third quarter results from the REALPAC/FPL Canadian Real Estate Sentiment Survey reveal senior executives looking forward more hopefully and reflecting on last year's better times.

REALPAC characterizes the landlord-tenant dynamic as a chain of economic stress, with many commercial landlords likewise suffering a drop in revenue and financially beholden to their lenders.

Some of Canada’s most prominent commercial real estate players are tackling the challenge of COVID-19, asset class by asset class.

REALPAC’s recent survey of 15 Canadian open-end real estate funds offers insight into when and why fund administrators would suspend the ability for investors to redeem their holdings.

Fittingly, a currently posted update points to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s plea for “cultural influencers” to get involved.

Multifamily assets delivered the lowest income return of the property sectors to institutional investors in the Canada Property Index last year, but produced strong total returns on a foundation of 7.3 per cent capital growth.

A 6.65 per cent average total return on the Canada Property Index's 2,723 directly held standing assets, scattered across eight major markets, cloaks significant variances between property sectors and from market to market.

The defining features of open-end real estate funds are well matched to investors with long-term needs for stable, predictable returns, as seen in the largely institutional mix reported in the survey.

ESG provides a framework to set priorities, steer action and monitor progress toward more resilient assets, with 93 per cent of respondents reporting that criteria linked to sustainability, supporting local communities and shunning corruption influence their investment decisions.

A surging industrial sector helped to counterbalance slipping retail values and push up 2018 investment returns on Canadian commercial real estate.

Tax ratios for 11 of Canada's largest cities demonstrate that commercial ratepayers consistently carry a disproportionate share of the municipal property tax burden.

More than a year after the Fair Rental Act was introduced, rent control is back in the spotlight with new research suggesting it is doing more harm than good when it comes to rental construction and affordability.

REALPAC is calling on the new administration at Queen's Park to revisit Ontario's inclusionary zoning regulation.

This was the third consecutive year the REALPAC/IPD Canada Property Index showed improved returns on residential investment, and the second year running that residential was the top-performing property sector.

Robust economies in Toronto and Vancouver, a continuing slump in Calgary, retailing challenges and sustained high demand for rental housing all play into an index-wide total return of 6.7 per cent.

Annual results of the REALPAC/IPD Canada Quarterly Property Index, released late last week, reveal a year of below-average performance for index participants' directly held standing assets.