Opinion: Canada’s office vacancy crisis is also an incredible real estate opportunity

Opinion: Canada’s office vacancy crisis is also an incredible real estate opportunity
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The vacancy rate in Toronto’s downtown offices was 18 per cent in the first quarter of this year, according to real estate consultant CBRE.Adrien Veczan/The Canadian Press

Canada’s downtowns are being hollowed out by office vacancies. The situation is particularly acute in the biggest downtown of all, Toronto. The vacancy rate was 18 per cent in the first quarter of this year, according to real estate consultant CBRE. And in nine out of 47 large office buildings examined in a recent Globe and Mail analysis, more than a quarter of the space was either empty or for lease. Five other buildings are at least 20 per cent vacant.

For landlords, it’s a crisis. For everyone else – including landlords – it’s also an opportunity.

Real estate is always a two-sided coin. Every story of someone forced to sell low is the story of someone

Ottawa’s vacancy rates at all-time-high: Canadian real estate news for September 2

Ottawa’s vacancy rates at all-time-high: Canadian real estate news for September 2
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Here are The Globe and Mail’s top housing and real estate stories this week, with the lowest mortgage rates available in Canada today, commentary from our mortgage expert and one home worth a look.

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Vacancy rates in downtown Ottawa hit all-time high as public service employees continue to work from home

Ottawa’s downtown core is seeing record-high vacancy rates, and real estate insiders say the federal government’s work-from-home policy is the culprit, reports Adam Stanley. The federal government is Ottawa’s largest employer, with more than 113,000 people working in the city, but many of them are still working remotely. In an effort to revitalize the downtown area, commercial real estate veterans are calling for the government to require its employees to return to the office.

Major mortgage insurer cuts back on disclosing information about homeowners with underwater