It’s no secret that I own a studio in Regent Park. In fact, it’s affectionately become known as “The Smallest Condo in Toronto“. At just 301 square feet, there’s nothing like it in Toronto. I bought that unit back in 2010. I took occupancy of it in 2011, and I’ve rented it out for the […]
One Park Place is launching next week to Platinum agents! I’ve been writing about the redevelopment that is happening in Regent Park for 4 years now. I’ve helped clients buy into One Cole (2009), One Park West (2010), and  Paintbox (2011). And of course I actually own a unit personally in Regent Park which is known affectionately as […]
The latest stats for the downtown condo market are now available from TREB. I won’t be doing a full blown analysis today but here is a snap shot of what the numbers say for the September 2012 results. Once again, this data is for the downtown condo market only. In short, the trend that […]
One year ago I wrote a couple posts about some of the warning signs that all was not well in the “ultra luxury” segment of the condo market. You can see the posts here and here. Sales prices were not what investors were expecting, inventory was growing and prices were showing signs of weakness. Today, […]
September 13, 2012 / by Andrew la Fleur /Uncategorized
Canderel, the developer behind Canada’s tallest residential tower, Aura (78 storeys at Yonge and Gerrard), is now teaming up with Cadillac Fairview, Bell, and the Montreal Canadiens to build what will be Montreal’s tallest residential tower: Tour Des Canadiens. Canderel Investors Have an Excellent Track Record of Success Purchasers at any of the College Park […]
When we are talking about investing in pre-construction condos, a leaseback agreement is when you buy a condo from a developer and the developer agrees to lease the unit back from when once it is completed for a pre-determined rate and for a pre-determined amount of time. The money is not paid in a lump sum at closing like a cash back, rather, it is paid out slowly each month just like a tenant who pays on the first of the month. The actual tenant pays rent to the developer who in turn pays you (the owner). The tenant may be paying an amount that is more or less than the leaseback amount but the owner always receives the leaseback amount guaranteed (even if the unit is vacant!)
2. Why are leaseback offers becoming so popular?
The pre-construction market is driven primarily by investors. The investors only goal is to make money on their investment. There are traditionally 2 ways to do this: through cash flow and through capital appreciation. Cash flow is when you rent out a property for more than it costs you to own the property. Capital appreciation is when you sell the property for more than what you bought it for. There has been a lot of talk about the current prices of Toronto condos not supporting positive cash flow with the traditional 20% investor down payment in place. These leasebacks are an attempt to lure investors by giving them not just positive cash flow, but in many cases, guaranteed positive cash flow for 1 or 2 years (assuming mortgage rates do not rise dramatically in the next few years).
The August sales figures are out from the Toronto Real Estate Board. Here is what I found most interesting: 1. Sales:Listing Ratio Holds Steady Those of you who read my stuff often know that this is my favourite statistic. The sales to listing ratio held steady at 23% in August-the same number as July. Sales […]
The following is an excerpt from an article I just published over at the Remax Condos Plus blog. Â We are still in a buyer’s market The sales to listing ratio to me is the most important statistic for the downtown condo market. In one single stat, you get a snapshot of how the entire […]
Why Every Investor Should Own A Studio In Regent Park
October 26, 2012 / by Andrew la Fleur / Insights
It’s no secret that I own a studio in Regent Park. In fact, it’s affectionately become known as “The Smallest Condo in Toronto“. At just 301 square feet, there’s nothing like it in Toronto. I bought that unit back in 2010. I took occupancy of it in 2011, and I’ve rented it out for the […]
Read more
Feature on Global National: Toronto’s Condo Boom
October 25, 2012 / by Andrew la Fleur / Videos
Read more
One Park Place Launching Now
October 4, 2012 / by Andrew la Fleur / Uncategorized
One Park Place is launching next week to Platinum agents! I’ve been writing about the redevelopment that is happening in Regent Park for 4 years now. I’ve helped clients buy into One Cole (2009), One Park West (2010), and  Paintbox (2011). And of course I actually own a unit personally in Regent Park which is known affectionately as […]
Read more
September 2012 Downtown Condo Market Snap Shot
October 4, 2012 / by Andrew la Fleur / Insights
The latest stats for the downtown condo market are now available from TREB. I won’t be doing a full blown analysis today but here is a snap shot of what the numbers say for the September 2012 results. Once again, this data is for the downtown condo market only. In short, the trend that […]
Read more
More Hard Times Ahead For the Ultra Luxury Market?
September 20, 2012 / by Andrew la Fleur / Insights
One year ago I wrote a couple posts about some of the warning signs that all was not well in the “ultra luxury” segment of the condo market. You can see the posts here and here. Sales prices were not what investors were expecting, inventory was growing and prices were showing signs of weakness. Today, […]
Read more
Tour Des Canadiens Set to Replicate Massive Success of Maple Leaf Square
September 13, 2012 / by Andrew la Fleur / Uncategorized
Canderel, the developer behind Canada’s tallest residential tower, Aura (78 storeys at Yonge and Gerrard), is now teaming up with Cadillac Fairview, Bell, and the Montreal Canadiens to build what will be Montreal’s tallest residential tower: Tour Des Canadiens. Canderel Investors Have an Excellent Track Record of Success Purchasers at any of the College Park […]
Read more
10 Things Every Condo Investor Should Know about Leasebacks
September 10, 2012 / by Andrew la Fleur / Insights
1. What the heck is a leaseback?!
When we are talking about investing in pre-construction condos, a leaseback agreement is when you buy a condo from a developer and the developer agrees to lease the unit back from when once it is completed for a pre-determined rate and for a pre-determined amount of time. The money is not paid in a lump sum at closing like a cash back, rather, it is paid out slowly each month just like a tenant who pays on the first of the month. The actual tenant pays rent to the developer who in turn pays you (the owner). The tenant may be paying an amount that is more or less than the leaseback amount but the owner always receives the leaseback amount guaranteed (even if the unit is vacant!)
2. Why are leaseback offers becoming so popular?
The pre-construction market is driven primarily by investors. The investors only goal is to make money on their investment. There are traditionally 2 ways to do this: through cash flow and through capital appreciation. Cash flow is when you rent out a property for more than it costs you to own the property. Capital appreciation is when you sell the property for more than what you bought it for. There has been a lot of talk about the current prices of Toronto condos not supporting positive cash flow with the traditional 20% investor down payment in place. These leasebacks are an attempt to lure investors by giving them not just positive cash flow, but in many cases, guaranteed positive cash flow for 1 or 2 years (assuming mortgage rates do not rise dramatically in the next few years).
Read more
Three Interesting Tidbits From The August 2012 Condo Market Stats
September 6, 2012 / by Andrew la Fleur / Insights
The August sales figures are out from the Toronto Real Estate Board. Here is what I found most interesting: 1. Sales:Listing Ratio Holds Steady Those of you who read my stuff often know that this is my favourite statistic. The sales to listing ratio held steady at 23% in August-the same number as July. Sales […]
Read more
July 2012 Condo Market Stats
August 8, 2012 / by Andrew la Fleur / Insights
The following is an excerpt from an article I just published over at the Remax Condos Plus blog. Â We are still in a buyer’s market The sales to listing ratio to me is the most important statistic for the downtown condo market. In one single stat, you get a snapshot of how the entire […]
Read more