In one deal, TransGlobe gains long-sought presence in B.C.
Fiona Anderson
Sun
TransGlobe Property Management made a dramatic entry into the B.C. apartment market Wednesday, purchasing approximately 900 rental units in 18 buildings throughout the Lower Mainland.
“I’ve been trying to break into the Vancouver market for a while, but it’s a very tightly held city to break into,” TransGlobe president Daniel Drimmer said in an interview.
“And for us to go into a new city, we need to have a certain critical mass. This was the first opportunity I got to get my critical mass, to make a significant splash and [get] a foothold in Vancouver,” Drimmer said.
The 18 properties, which include nine buildings in Richmond and the Ocean Park Place tower at 990 Broughton St. in Vancouver, were purchased from one vendor whom Drimmer refused to name, but described as a prominent Vancouver businessman.
The purchase completes the company’s coast-to-coast expansion, Drimmer said. Six weeks ago, TransGlobe purchased 23 residential buildings in Halifax, bringing its portfolio — including the Vancouver properties — to 10,000 apartments and four million square feet of office space across Canada.
TransGlobe, a family-owned company started in Ontario 11 years ago, specializes in affordable housing.
“We’re an expert in providing for that affordable housing market, and that’s what we liked about Vancouver,” Drimmer said. “There is definitely a need for people to have affordable housing in an apartment building.”
Average monthly rent for the apartments, which TransGlobe will also manage, is $800 to $900, Drimmer said.
“The target market for my tenants is affordable housing, and . . . we provide a very good quality apartment for that,” Drimmer said.
TransGlobe hopes to expand further in B.C., both in the residential and commercial sectors.
“We’re using this as a stepping stone to expand further in the Vancouver area and the west coast in general,” Drimmer said.
The recent spike in apartment building sales is nothing new, Tsur Somerville, at the UBC Centre for Urban Economics and Real Estate, said in an interview. Last year, there was a huge run-up in purchases of apartment buildings, spurred largely by falling interest rates.
© The Vancouver Sun 2005