The Globe and Mail reports in its Saturday edition that the stock market is going through an affordability crisis. The Globe's Ian McGugan writes that share prices in Canada and the United States have shot up in recent years and not always for the best reasons. What seems to be driving them, at least in part, is an outburst of inflated expectations. Still, there are pockets of value in the market. Canadian real estate trusts (REITs) that specialize in apartments also merit some attention. They are generally despised and for good reason: Falling immigration levels and rising competition from newly completed condos are creating headwinds for landlords.
Still, these REITs cater to Canada's massive need for housing, a need that is not going away any time soon. The decision last week to take Minto Apartment REIT private at a generous premium to its previous trading price demonstrates that at least some people see significant long-run value in these beaten-down businesses.
Patient investors might now want to consider Killam Apartment REIT or Canadian Apartment Properties REIT. Both businesses seem at least somewhat cheap. In a market that has become steadily less affordable, that is a rare and wonderful thing.
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