Canada Life Real Estate Fund

Established in 2005, the Canada Life Real Estate Fund invests in units of the Great-West Life Real Estate Fund. 

 

Building Blocks
Episode 1

October 8, 2024

In our first episode, we sit down with Steve Marino, Executive Vice-President of Portfolio Management, and Craig England, Vice-President of Portfolio Management, to explore a variety of topics including GWLRA’s asset valuation process, the impact of rate cuts, sector outlook, and the role research plays in shaping investment decisions.

Introducing GWL Realty Advisors’ Segregated Real Estate Funds

July 23, 2024

Three segregated real estate funds that enable investors to diversify their holdings with high-quality, income-producing properties.

Fund Performance

as of December 31, 2024
$5.9B

in real estate assets

$6.3B

in total assets

105

properties

Source of return

2015201620172018201920202021202220232024
Income 4.5%4.5%4.5%4.3%4.2%3.8%3.7%3.3%3.5%3.7%
Capital 0.1%0.9%1.8%2.7%4.9%(1.3)%7.8%3.9%(6.5)%(4.3)%
Total 4.7%5.4%6.3%7.1%9.1%2.5%11.6%7.2%(3.0)%(0.6)%

Compound rates of return

(gross of investment management fees)
Three Month 0.0%
Year-to-date (0.6)%
One Year (0.6)%
Three Year 1.1%
Five Year 3.4%
Ten Year 4.9%

Diversification by property type

By property type (millions)

Retail 10.1% $ 588
Office 26.9% $ 1,566
Industrial 27.9% $ 1,627
Residential 28.4% $ 1,657
Other 6.7% $ 392

Diversification by region

By region (millions)

British Columbia 11.4% $ 666
Alberta 10.6% $ 616
Prairies 1.1% $ 67
Ontario 65.9% $ 3,837
Quebec 9.9% $ 579
Atlantic 0.8% $ 45
U.S. 0.3% $ 20

Quarterly Highlights

Q4 2024 Canada Life Real Estate Fund Bulletin

Total fourth quarter performance was muted at -0.04%, this represented a 46bps improvement relative to Q3 and 31bps improvement relative to Q2 performance. Total return for the calendar year was -0.62%, comprised of an annual income return of 3.72% that outpaced capital depreciation by 31bps. 0.93% of negative performance was attributed to the mark to market of the Fund’s mortgage financing as bond yields have been retracting since Q4 of 2023.