CALGARY - Real estate firm CBRE says Canada hit a record level for commercial real estate sales in the third quarter and is on track to beat an annual record set during the 2007 boom.
The firm says sales of office space, apartments, land and other commercial properties hit $11.2 billion in the quarter ended Sept. 30 and forecast that for the full year there will be more than $35 billion in deals across the country to surpass the current $32.1-billion record.
In the third quarter, Toronto kept its top spot for commercial investments at $3.5 billion and Vancouver saw $1.6 billion in transactions, with activity in both cities above the 30-month average.
In Calgary, where office vacancies have shot to record highs, sales still managed to jump 146 per cent compared with the same quarter last year to $1.2 billion.
Foreign buyers helped push the national numbers up with almost $3 billion in spending in the last quarter -- up 22 per cent from the first half of the year -- with most of the buying directed at hotels.
CBRE said improved oil prices and market sentiment have helped the Calgary market, while overall Canada has benefited from investors looking for stable returns in a low-growth world.
