101 Sheldon Dr. in Cambridge, Ont., is part of a group of light industrial properties sold by Skyline Commercial REIT to a King Sett Capital fund. (Courtesy Skyline Commercial REIT)
Skyline Commercial REIT has sold six industrial buildings in Cambridge, Ontario for $58.2 million, pushing its total sales since January 21 past $355 million.
The portfolio, which is over 291,000 square feet, was bought by King Sett Real Estate Growth LP No. 7. The deal wrapped up on January 31.
Based in Guelph, Skyline Commercial REIT has been reshaping its industrial assets over the last year and completed four big deals so far in 2022. But now that most non-core holdings are sold off, this flurry of activity is starting to slow down.
The latest sale includes these addresses: 15, 101 and 131 Sheldon Dr.; 1177 and 1195 Franklin Blvd.; plus 1425 Bishop St. N.
This sale cuts Skyline’s properties in the Cambridge area – just west of Toronto – by more than half.
“The REIT maintains a strong presence in the City of Cambridge, with three properties totalling 223,583 square feet of industrial space,” said REIT president Michael Mackenzie in Tuesday afternoon’s announcement.
Skyline’s updated industrial holdings
Mackenzie told RENX last week that the trust is modernizing its portfolio. When it started back in 2012, it held many smaller multi-tenant buildings with small bays.
Those types of properties are mostly gone now. Instead, they’re focusing on newer buildings with bigger tenants who have solid leases. There’s also more attention on logistics and warehousing-industries that are really driving demand for light industrial spaces across Canada.
Lately, Skyline also sold:
– four buildings located in Montreal suburbs Lachine and Dorval totaling 402,709 square feet to King Sett Real Estate Growth LP No. 7 and Candev Immobilia Inc., for $80.13 million;
– eighteen small-bay industrial properties across Ottawa-24 buildings altogether adding up to about 692,613 square feet-to Woodbourne Capital Management and Epic Investment Services LP for $154.5 million;
– two industrial sites around the Greater Toronto Area measuring roughly 207,689 square feet to Pure Industrial for $62.8 million; and
– during last year (2021), they sold four other Ontario locations (Ayr, London, Mississauga and Windsor) totaling over 597,000 square feet which brought them $87.4 million before expenses.
Mackenzie had hinted at the Cambridge sale when talking with RENX recently saying another portfolio was under contract too. He expects that will probably be their last big sell-off though some assets remain available.
“This was a fulsome strategy that we had and have pretty much completed at this point,” he said last week. “We’ve really changed the complexion of the portfolio.”
A bit about Skyline
Skyline Commercial REIT is privately owned and manages commercial real estate mainly focused on acquiring industrial or logistics-focused sites along major highways and transport routes throughout Canada.
The REIT is offered as an alternative investment through Skyline Wealth Management Inc., which acts as its preferred exempt market dealer.
The company behind Skyline Commercial REIT is managed by Skyline Group Of Companies.
