Canada Life Real Estate Fund

Located in South East Calgary, AB, and leased to Home Depot on a long-term basis, the Fund completed a $70M, ten-year loan on the 1.1 million square foot distribution centre at a fixed interest rate of 2.6%.  The facility features interest only payments for the full term, preserving efficient leverage and improving the Fund’s LTV by 70bps to 18.3%. 

GRESB is the global environmental, social and governance (ESG) benchmark for real assets. The 2021 benchmark covers more than 1,520 property companies, representing US $5.7 trillion in real asset value.

In Q3, the Fund made its fourth submission into the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB), and it was recognized as a top performer. The Fund earned a GRESB ‘5 Star’ (top quintile) rating and placed among the top 11% of participants in the ‘Diversified/Non-listed/Core’ category. The Fund attained full marks in GRESB’s ‘Management Component’ for its robust ESG leadership, policies, reporting, risk management, and stakeholder engagement activities.

Located at the southeast corner of Yonge and Adelaide in Toronto, ON, the property includes 1 Adelaide Street East, a 30-storey LEED® Gold certified office tower, 20 Victoria Street, a nine-storey boutique office building, and 85 Yonge Street, a three-storey retail building.  In Q3 the asset was awarded the “The National Outstanding Building of the Year (TOBY)” for Office Buildings in the 500,000 sq ft to 1 million sq ft category.  Judging is based on building standards; community impact; tenant relations; energy conservation; environmental, regulatory and sustainability practices; emergency preparedness and security standards. 

Also in Q3, the building participated in the Rick Hansen Foundation’s ‘Buildings Without Barriers Challenge’ and attained the Rick Hansen Foundation Accessibility Certification (RHFAC). Through participation in the Challenge, the Fund manager was able to demonstrate to employees and tenants its commitment to creating accessible spaces for all.

After a pause through the first couple of quarters of the pandemic, Q3 Canadian investment activity picked up where it left off and produced the third highest volume on record*.   Development forms a key component of Fund strategy as it provides the ability to deliver premium risk adjusted returns in an otherwise extremely competitive investment market.  From recently completed projects such as Livmore at High Park Village (https://livmorehighpark.com) to active sites like Vancouver Centre II  (https://www.vancouvercentre.com ) and a significant long-term pipeline, the Fund is well positioned to continue to grow in prioritized markets and asset classes through its market leading development platform. 

*CBRE

The Segregated Funds described in this bulletin are offered through a variable insurance contract issued by The Canada Life Assurance Company.

Please note that unit values and investment returns will fluctuate, and past performance is not necessarily indicative of future performance.

For IVIC investors: A description of the key features of the segregated fund policy is contained in the information folder.