Colliers Talks

Canada’s federal government has committed $176 billion over five years to boost productivity and unlock private investment. While on the surface it sounds transformative, the architects of Canada’s economic future are quietly skeptical about whether this actually works.

In this episode of the Colliers Talks Economics podcast, host Adam Jacobs is joined by Pedro Antunes, Chief Economist at The Conference Board of Canada, to unpack why Canada continues to lag peers on productivity and what it means for businesses, policymakers, and real estate decision-makers in the year ahead.

Subscribe to Colliers Talks Economics wherever you listen. Learn more about how Colliers Canada stays on top of real estate trends at https://www.collierscanada.com/en-ca.

What You’ll Learn:

● How to diagnose Canada's productivity gap

● Why federal budget catalyst effects may overpromise

● The residential construction productivity trap

● How to segment labour market health beyond headline unemployment

● Why Canada's dramatic immigration reversal creates structural uncertainty

● The AI productivity opportunity and displacement risk

Pedro Antunes is the Chief Economist at The Conference Board of Canada, leading a team of economists focused on thought leadership across productivity, labour market dynamics, trade diversification, federal budgeting, and human capital development. As a recognized spokesperson for the Conference Board, he provides expert testimony to Parliament and regularly engages with business leaders, policymakers, and media on critical economic issues shaping Canada's future.

Subscribe to Colliers Talks Economics wherever you listen. Learn more about how Colliers Canada stays on top of real estate trends at https://www.collierscanada.com/en-ca.

Could Canada’s housing crisis and economic headwinds be solved with smarter policy coordination? In this episode of the Colliers Talks Economics podcast, host Adam Jacobs is joined by Randall Bartlett, Deputy Chief Economist at Desjardins, to unpack why the condo market has cooled so dramatically, how purpose-built rental has surged in response, and what higher-for-longer interest rates and evolving demographics mean for developers, investors, and lenders.

Subscribe to Colliers Talks Economics wherever you listen. Learn more about how Colliers Canada stays on top of real estate trends at www.collierscanada.com.

What You’ll Learn:

1. Why the condo market collapsed and why it won't recover without fundamental price corrections
2. How to pivot development strategy from condos to purpose-built rental
3. The infrastructure bottleneck killing downtown viability and office occupancy
4. How to recalibrate population growth expectations and navigate their impact on project underwriting
5. Why soft costs and development charges now represent the single largest obstacle to housing affordability

Randall Bartlett is the Deputy Chief Economist at Desjardins, leading economic research and forecasting across Canadian and provincial economies, housing markets, and fiscal policy. With vast experience as Director of Economic Research at Omers, where he supported global investment decisions across asset classes, Randall brings deep expertise in macroeconomic trends, demographic shifts, and their cascading impact on real estate markets.

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Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/canadas-economic-reset-rates-inflation-real-estate/id1541655070?i=1000741709754

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1YpOxQ8P92zxChHy3BeVeq?si=wwvzvsDKR7qhkK6Tx78YgQ

YouTube: https://youtu.be/CfMqXEtP4Es

In the new Colliers Talks series, Retail Unfiltered, hosts Tina Williams and Bri-Ann Stuart discuss the hot trends and key issues that are front and centre in retail.

The conversation covers:

• How consumer behaviour is shifting and why it's essential for retailers and landlords to understand the impact of new wants and trends to their business
• Why a super focused, data-driven approach is required to achieve savings and manage assets amidst inflation and rising operational costs
• The importance of collaboration between landlords and their retail tenants, and with that, understanding each other's needs and finding co-investments and creative deal structures that spark win-wins
• Why launching pilot programs and testing new products, services and activations can spell success for retailers and their landlords

There has been a lot going on with the Canadian economy and commerce these days, and the situation carries plenty of implications for businesses and property owners.

New leadership in Ottawa; ongoing trade disorder with the U.S.; inflation and interest rate ups and downs; shifting labour and office markets; and consumer spending habits in flux – it all prompts the need for an economic check-up.

In this episode of Colliers

Talks, Colliers’ Head of Research, Canada, Adam Jacobs, and RBC Capital Markets Senior Economist, Claire Fan, discuss these issues and spell out what they mean for the commercial property market.

The conversation covers:

• The economic implications of the Canada-U.S. trade conflict
• Why Canada may have more room for economic stimulus spending than other G7 countries
• What Bank of Canada will do with interest rates if it sees more evidence of economic deterioratio
• Household spending and how it remains relatively strong, despite broader challenges
• Why RBC economists are not convinced Canada will experience a recession this year

Roughly one in four people in Canada identify themselves as having some form of cognitive or physical disability, but our built environment, while improving, continues to present obstacles for many people.

In this episode of Colliers Talks, Colliers' Tonya Lagrasta, Global Head of Sustainability, and Erin O’Hearn, Senior Property Manager, are joined by Matthew Shaw, Head, Accessible Practice, Rick Hansen Foundation.

They discuss the importance of removing barriers for people with disabilities in buildings, and the need for continuous improvement beyond simply complying with regulations.

There is also a business case for improving accessibility. Enabling more people to access, enjoy and thrive in our spaces can enhance tenant retention and improve a building’s performance.

The conversation covers:

• The challenges and misconceptions around accessibility and why relying on minimum government requirements is not enough
• Why the best approach is to focus on education, empathy and strategic planning to create more accessible spaces
• The importance of considering the entire journey and experience of a person when they arrive at a building, move through the space, and eventually depart
• Why accessibility audits of buildings are integral to the pursuit of continuous improvement

Get more insights from key Colliers experts and major industry players. Tune in to more Colliers Talks episodes.

The conversation also covers:

• Skyline's original expansion into industrial and retail markets, starting in 2012 — and the company's motivation to embrace Montreal

• Skyline taking an entrepreneurial approach to partnerships and acquisitions to ensure quick and efficient tenant management

• Tariffs forcing many industrial stakeholders in the market to pause on big decisions due to inconsistency and political noise

• How tariffs, while causing obstacles, are also driving the Canadian economy and industrial market to become more self-reliant and diversified domestically

Jordan Carlson, President of Anthem Holdings and SVP, Investment with Anthem Properties, joins Colliers Canada's Head of Research, Adam Jacobs and Senior Managing Director, Vancouver Island and Okanagan, Tyler Dolan to discuss debt markets and development.  

Developers in B.C. continue to face over-regulation, rising development costs and various government policies that make it tougher to get new homes built, Carlson says in this episode.

Anthem, a prolific home-builder based in Vancouver, is working through these challenges to continue to buy land, finance developments and build new homes to meet current and future demand.

Carlson discusses with Jacobs and Dolan the broader economic and political landscape from a developer's point of view.

Their conversation covers:

• Anthem’s background, strategic vision and approach to development
• How the current market conditions are fueling and challenging development in B.C.’s Lower Mainland
• How buyer expectations and macro factors are influencing the pre-sale condo market
• The innovative ways Anthem is financing its development and construction projects, including through an IPO program for its latest Burnaby mixed-use high-rise development
• The opportunities and obstacles in converting office space to residential inventory, and why conversion programs are unlikely to catch on in B.C.

You can tune in to all Colliers Talks episodes here.

Much like Canada’s industrial market, Pure Industrial has been evolving. Under Blackstone ownership since 2018, the company has been honing in on Canada's densest industrial markets, namely Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver, and expanding its portfolio.

In this latest episode of Colliers Talks, Colliers' Jean-Marc Dubé and Arnold Fox and Pure's COO David Owen and Senior Vice President, Leasing, Jonathan Rovira discuss the company's growth from 26 million to 43 million square feet of owned industrial space in Canada amidst a dynamic market landscape.

Over a 2013 Tuscan red, the experts dive into why they’re starting to feel more bullish about the market.

The conversation also covers:

• The impacts of lower interest rates on the market and the potential for an industrial real estate upswing

• The challenges of maintaining and upgrading older facilities within a growing portfolio

• The benefits of a customer-centric approach to sustainability initiatives including free energy audits for tenants

• Sources of optimism and economic green shoots in the Canadian market, particularly around the rise of e-commerce and same-day shipping practices

Get more insights from key Colliers experts and major industry players. Tune in to more Colliers Talks episodes.

Jeff Hyslop, Senior VP, Asset Management & Investment with InnVest Hotels, joins Colliers Canada's Head of Research, Adam Jacobs and Hotels Managing Director, Robin McLuskie to explore how Canada’s hotel market is bouncing back and showing promise in both the room demand and investment fronts, in this episode of Colliers Talks.

Canada’s hotel market is amid a recovery in both occupancy and room rates post-pandemic, with average rates surging. On the investment side, the market is heating up with transaction volume expected to surpass $2 billion by the end of this year.

The experts in this episode also discuss the boost from Taylor Swift's Eras Tour this year in Toronto and Vancouver, and the FIFA World Cup in 2026. Ongoing challenges persist though, including high labour costs and worker shortages.

Jacobs, McLuskie and Hyslop also cover:

• The opportunity to capture more inbound international travel
• The continued challenges inflation is posing to various types of travel and business
• Why the hotel investment market in Canada could be the strongest we’ve seen in decades
• The interest developers are starting to have in extended-stay accommodations
• The effects and perceptions of wildfires and the tourism industry in Western Canada

Get more insights from key Colliers experts and major industry players. Tune in to more Colliers Talks episodes.

The conversation focuses on the crucial role of ESG in driving business resilience and long-term success, while also highlighting the challenges of balancing competing interests in sustainable investing, including those of lenders, insurers, investors and tenants. This episode’s guests also discuss using a data-driven decision-making process to make the right calls when it comes to making Canada's built environment more sustainable.

The highlights include:

• At Colliers, more than 35 million square feet of our managed portfolio are currently certified to one or more ESG building performance and/or occupant experience standards. This is a 30% increase compared to last year.
• There is risk in abandoning ESG commitments, particularly as legislative and corporate requirements expand. While important decisions need to be made around how to move forward and which specific ESG elements to prioritize and when, it's essential to not turn our backs on the progress achieved so far.
• The insurance industry needs to accelerate its adaptation to the reality of ESG commitments today. In some cases, companies are spending millions on ESG resiliency measures, only to find that it is having no helpful impact on reducing their insurance premiums.
• People want more green spaces, as teams like Colliers Real Estate Management Services are routinely hearing from clients, tenants and the public. That's why the next big thing for real estate will be nature and biodiversity projects threaded into our buildings and cities.
• We must recognize that KPIs for the “E,” “S” and “G” components of ESG will differ. The ESG investments being made today have value beyond the financial win, and it's important to shine a light on that.

Get more insights from key Colliers experts and major industry players. Tune in to more Colliers Talks episodes.