Big Data in Multifamily
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CMHC released their annual rental report. Let's dive in to the major takeaways.
April 4th, 2024
Read Time: 4 minutes
We're data junkies.
Our team actively tracks 13,150 apartment buildings.
That's over 1.8M units in 52 cities with more than 3,300 owners. Essentially, we try to track every single building in Ontario with over 12 units.
With big data comes insightful takeaways.
Let's dive in.
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For more information please reach out to the team directly by responding to this email.
Today we'll parse through a TON of data for you to create a few valuable insights.
Vendor Take-Back Mortgages (VTBs):
In the last 10 years, approximately 5.89% of apartment transactions in Ontario included a VTB in first position.
However 2023 saw a sharp increase over the trailing average up to 13.5% of all deals. Given the high interest rate environment, sellers are have been more willing to assist with financing in order to maintain pricing.
Top Buyers For the Last 5 Years (GTA & GGH):
Below is a list of the top purchasers for the Greater Toronto Area and the Greater Golden Horseshoe since 2019.
Certain goliaths in our industry are a mainstay. Their track record and pedigree gives them an advantage over the smaller buyers. They offer fewer "false starts". We love these players.
What's equally awesome though, is the emergence of new buyers. Particularly in the last 2 years - new REITs have been formed, and new private players have become dominant brands known for execution. These mid-sized players will play a pivotal on the buy-side in 2024.
Most Active Municipalities in 2023:
One big takeaway - the Kitchener-Waterloo region had nearly as many transactions as the GTA in 2023. We were happy to have lead a few of those key transactions last year. We expect continued enthusiasm for these secondary markets in 2024.
Largest Owners by City:
This is a fun one. Note for today's newsletter, there may be (minor) inaccuracies where one group is the property manager versus the owner, or the "building" is a development site versus an existing apartment. We're aware - but for the today's purpose directional accuracy will suffice.
Having a top 10 owners list for each city is key. When owners have an existing footprint, they have operational efficiencies and a greater ability to pay. Although in the last 3 years we've noticed certain players are more willing to stretch outside of their dominant areas - particularly if they can gain scale.
Below are the largest owners in 30 of our key Ontario cities.
Barrie: Melchior Management, 11 properties
Building Age (Ontario-wide):
Ontario's multi-family housing sector has experienced significant growth phases, notably in the mid-20th century and a current resurgence in the 21st century.
The recent increase in construction activity, especially in the 2020s, underscores ongoing demand for housing and the continuous development of urban and suburban areas in Ontario.
TL;DR
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