This month, our popular real estate special report returns. Over the course of September, we’ll look at the trends transforming the market, highlight areas where fresh opportunities are taking shape, and explore how family offices are adapting their strategies to take advantage.
It feels fitting that real estate is a September report, because autumn is a time of transition—and the real estate market is certainly in transition. It’s been a buyer’s market for years now. Will the more balanced market that’s emerging be any kinder to investors?
The mood about real estate seems to have changed, too. Last year, family offices were expressing plenty of love for the opportunities in the market. Today, however, there are signs that the love affair between family offices and the real estate sector is starting to cool off. Later this week, Joel Schlesinger focuses on this trend and starts with the big question: Given higher borrowing costs and cap rates, and still depressed valuations, how much worse can it get?
Later in the month, we’ll look at global luxury properties. For wealthy Canadians looking for a home abroad, almost anything goes, apparently. Writer Cindy McGlynn finds that interest in foreign property is surging, and she digs into exactly where Canadians are snatching up homes. Hint: George Clooney has a home there.
Meanwhile, my colleague Adam Bisby takes a panoramic look at the Canadian landscape, going city-by-city to look at Canada’s most resilient luxury housing markets. And we’ll see if, despite the tricky environment, luxury homes are still attracting buyers motivated by lifestyle and legacy goals rather than speculation.
We’ll look at succession in the family office space, specifically when it comes to real estate families. What does the transition look like? What type of families are succeeding and what can be learned from them? And the families don’t necessarily have to be big names like the Apostolopoulos family; sometimes the smaller real estate families offer more practical succession planning that can be utilized across the board.
Look for the latest from our real estate columnist, David Israelson, as well. (And check out his latest, on Why wealth migration to New Zealand is growing—fast.
To wrap up our coverage, we’ll host a live panel on Thursday, Oct. 1, hosted by yours truly. I’m looking forward to digging into the larger issues of the state of family offices and real estate, but also looking at the details, including: the panelists’ take on data centres, an update on the federal Build Canada Homes initiative, and what’s on the horizon for the condominium market. The panelists will be announced shortly, but expect a stellar follow-up to last year’s panel.
If there are any specific questions or topics you would like covered in the panel, please reach out to newsroom@canadianfamilyoffices.com. We love hearing from our readers.
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