Toronto anchors Canada’s commercial real estate rebound
National net absorption reached +2.6 million square feet (msf) in Q1 2026 alone, building on the positive absorption recorded nationally in 2025. That’s a notable turnaround after -17 msf of negative net absorption between 2020 and 2024, according to Avison Young’s data.
Trophy and class A assets are leading that recovery: since 2025, Trophy sales have accounted for 25% of total office square footage transacted nationally, compared with just 8% between 2020 and 2024.
Benchmark downtown class A cap rates in Toronto sit at 6.00% in Q2 2026, per the Avison Young survey.
CBRE reported a fourth consecutive quarter of positive office absorption, led by Toronto, Calgary, and Montreal, as tightening premium office supply begins boosting demand across other asset classes.https://t.co/UZgoyunkVa
— Canadian Mortgage Professional Magazine (@CMPmagazine) July 7, 2026
In multifamily, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) forecasts positive rental household formation nationally in 2026, driven by younger cohorts who are more likely to rent as homeownership costs remain out of reach.
According to CMHC’s Spring 2026 Housing Supply Report, Canada’s housing starts rose 6% in 2025, driven largely by record purpose-built rental construction. Toronto’s high-density urban multifamily cap rate stands at 3.90%, the tightest of any major market surveyed.
