James Edward offers a wide range of services in the real property sector. Acting as a real estate merchant bank, we raise capital and participate in deals as well as offer a number of ancillary services. James Edward is often the sponsoring agent among a syndicate of lenders or investors. On other occasions, we help raise capital while optionally committing some of our own if the investment is well-within our strategic focus and investment criteria.

James Edward leverages its expertise through a network of strategic partners including reliable property managers, advisers, developers, architects, engineers and general contractors.

Ancillary Services
  • M&A Advisory for REITs
  • Risk Management
  • Due Diligence
  • Master Lease Brokerage
  • Distressed REIT Restructurings and Reorganizations
Flexible Financing Solutions
  • Non-prime Mortgages
  • 2nd Mortgages
  • Mezzanine loans with special features such as Interest-Only, PIK, PIYC / PIYW, Upside Participation, Etc.

Our Criteria

Our real estate activities focus on income-producing properties with adequate debt service ratios of at least 1.2 times. We create value through the conversion of older income-producing properties to more current and profitable uses. This gives the manager more control over the growth in value of the property. More specifically, James Edward focuses on well-located properties that cater to seniors, health care services, graduate students or young professionals with significant cash flow and value upside potential.

Minimum Required Return

A minimum required internal rate of return (IRR) of 20% for equity investments. Fixed income investments will vary depending on the debt instrument, borrower and interest rate environment.

Geography

James Edward’s real estate activities primarily cover the Ottawa and Montréal cosmopolitan areas. Opportunities beyond are considered on an ad-hoc basis and may be undertook through local partners.

Property Type

Income-producing property: Residential, Mixed-Use and Commercial.

Transaction Size

A single deal could range from 5 to 20 million dollars in gross investment value.

Limited Partnership

James Edward uses Limited Partnerships to arrange, sponsor and syndicate attractive real estate opportunities. Through Limited Partnerships, James Edward can take direct and indirect equity stakes or extend credit through fixed income investments including non-prime mortgages, 2nd mortgages or mezzanine loans. Equity and debt investments are syndicated and tailored to fit the specific needs of the deal, including features such as Payment-In-Kind (PIK) on mezzanine loans.

The Limited Partnership (LP) structure is highly tax efficient and accommodating for investors with disparate priorities, allowing the co-existence of taxable and tax exempt investors. An LP does not pay tax on its income and is therefore treated as a flow-through vehicle – no double taxation. Its income retains its source identity. As such, investors take advantage of cost of capital allowance deductions, which are often significant.