A researcher with the Vancouver Economic Commission says he is not overly concerned as numbers show Vancouver’s downtown office vacancy rate has hit 10 per cent for the first time in almost 20 years.
According to real estate firm Avison Young, the first quarter of this year brought Vancouver’s downtown office vacancy rate to 10.8 per cent, up from 9.6 per cent at the end of 2022.
The last time that the vacancy rate broke the 10 per cent threshold was in the last quarter of 2004.
Avison Young attributed the increase to more subleased properties being available as companies re-evaluate their office space requirements.
The firm says the greatest pressure to sublease space was on technology companies, which are increasingly keen to cut expenses and have more ability to allow staff to work remotely.
It adds that 59 per cent of Metro Vancouver’s sublease space in the first quarter of 2023 was found downtown, which has seen a 34 per cent increase in sublease vacancies since the end of December 2022.
While Vancouver’s downtown core saw an increase in the vacancy rate, suburban areas like Burnaby and Langley saw their vacancy rates decrease.
The Yaletown area, close to the downtown core, has the highest vacancy rate among all the Metro Vancouver subregions studied by Avison Young.
Expert still bullish on city’s future
James Raymond, a senior manager of research at the Vancouver Economic Commission, said the vacancy rate going up in the downtown core wasn’t surprising as more people are working remotely due to the pandemic.
According to Raymond, Vancouver’s office vacancy rate remains one of the lowest in North America — with the latest numbers showing San Francisco recording a 29.4 per cent vacancy rate and Toronto sitting at 13.6 per cent.
“It’s actually, [in] some way, become a bit of a relief after quite a really tight office vacancy rate for a long time,” he told CBC News. “We were expecting it. It’s not really a surprise, and we’re still pretty bullish about Vancouver’s long-term prospects.”
Raymond says that the commission continues to receive interest from tech companies and representatives from other industries who want to move to Vancouver but acknowledged higher vacancy rates would have an impact on downtown businesses.
“We want downtowns to be busy and lively,” he said. “Vancouver’s lucky that we have a lot of residents who work and live downtown.
“We’re more vibrant than some other places compared to, say, Calgary and even some other places like Los Angeles downtown.”
The researcher said that the city would have to get creative about the types of developments occurring downtown in the years to come, pointing to the need for artist, industry, and child-care spaces.
TORONTO – Restaurant Brands International Inc. reported net income of US$357 million for its third quarter, down from US$364 million in the same quarter last year.
The company, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, says its profit amounted to 79 cents US per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with 79 cents US per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue for the parent company of Tim Hortons, Burger King, Popeyes and Firehouse Subs, totalled US$2.29 billion, up from US$1.84 billion in the same quarter last year.
Consolidated comparable sales were up 0.3 per cent.
On an adjusted basis, Restaurant Brands says it earned 93 cents US per diluted share in its latest quarter, up from an adjusted profit of 90 cents US per diluted share a year earlier.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 95 cents US per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Fortis Inc. reported a third-quarter profit of $420 million, up from $394 million in the same quarter last year.
The electric and gas utility says the profit amounted to 85 cents per share for the quarter ended Sept. 30, up from 81 cents per share a year earlier.
Fortis says the increase was driven by rate base growth across its utilities, and strong earnings in Arizona largely reflecting new customer rates at Tucson Electric Power.
Revenue in the quarter totalled $2.77 billion, up from $2.72 billion in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Fortis says it earned 85 cents per share in its latest quarter, up from an adjusted profit of 84 cents per share in the third quarter of 2023.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 82 cents per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
TORONTO – Thomson Reuters reported its third-quarter profit fell compared with a year ago as its revenue rose eight per cent.
The company, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, says it earned US$301 million or 67 cents US per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30. The result compared with a profit of US$367 million or 80 cents US per diluted share in the same quarter a year earlier.
Revenue for the quarter totalled US$1.72 billion, up from US$1.59 billion a year earlier.
In its outlook, Thomson Reuters says it now expects organic revenue growth of 7.0 per cent for its full year, up from earlier expectations for growth of 6.5 per cent.
On an adjusted basis, Thomson Reuters says it earned 80 cents US per share in its latest quarter, down from an adjusted profit of 82 cents US per share in the same quarter last year.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 76 cents US per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
