Jason Unrau
Northern News Services

Inuvik (Mar 26/04) - In what will be the largest one-time real estate deal in the town's history, Northern Property Real Estate Investment Trust (Northern Property REIT) announced Friday that it has agreed to purchase 200 rental units.

Northern Property REIT already owns a 45-unit building and has an interest in the upcoming Capital Suites project.

Company president and CEO James Britton credits Inuvik's stable economy and future business prospects with the decision to make this deal.

"There will be lots of activity (on the properties) as we plan to spend a significant amount of money in upgrades," he said. "Our style is to invest in our properties and bring them up to our standards."

Though nearly $4 million has been earmarked for upgrades, Britton says there are no plans for a rent increase in the "foreseeable future."

Involved in the deal are Dolomite Properties, Buena Vista Properties and Gwich'in Properties.

Buildings affected by the deal include Mountainview Apartments, Nihjaa Apartments, Lakeview and Parkview Apartments and 50 row-houses currently owned and operated by Gwich'in Properties.

Northern Property also announced that Dolomite proprietor Dan Smith will be brought in as Inuvik Regional Manager following completion of the deal.

As part of his responsibilities, Smith will oversee the establishment of a Northern Property rental office that will likely be located in the same building as the liquor store.

"The winner out of all this will be the tenants," Smith said. "A lot of small operators in town just don't have the resources to improve their buildings quickly."

While more than one fifth of all rental units in town are involved in this deal, Smith said it is not Northern Property's intention to dominate the market.

"Residential management requires more depth so if a company wants to do the job right, it needs a large enough portfolio to maintain a proper infrastructure."

Formerly Urbco, Northern Property REIT was founded in Yellowknife in the late 1960s. It maintains an office in the capital but its headquarters are located in Calgary.

This deal will increase the company's rental unit holdings to approximately 2,500, in addition to the 300,000 square feet of office space it owns around the country.