Retail real estate is showing signs of life again in Metro Vancouver, with sales volumes climbing and new opportunities emerging as the sector adapts to shifting consumer habits and changing tenants.
That’s according to experts speaking at the Vancouver Real Estate Forum April 24.
“There was definitely an uptick in 2024 for sales volume of retail assets in Metro Vancouver over 2023,” Tony Letvinchuk, managing director of Macdonald Commercial., said during a panel discussion.
He cited data from real estate consultant Altus Group Ltd., which showed sales in the region surpassing $350 million in June 2024.
Letvinchuk noted sellers and buyers were completing deals in June, prior to the proposed increase in federal capital gains inclusion rate, which never ended up going into effect.
He said during the panel that transit-oriented hubs in Metro Vancouver are also helping the retail sector.
In a follow-up email to BIV, Letvinchuk said such projects have resulted in “multiple high-density nodes” within the same municipality such as Metrotown and Brentwood in Burnaby.
Speaking at the same panel, Shape Architecture Inc. senior vice-president Maria Holly said the Hudson's Bay Co. filing for creditor protection presents opportunities in the retail sphere.
“The demise of [HBC] has been anticipated and reflects the ongoing shifts in the department store model,” she said. “These closures will allow repositioning of spaces for better performing tenants, tenants that can help drive traffic and sales to the property.”
