$411 Million for 76 Acres in an Urban Growth Centre, Priced as a Shopping Centre.
Primaris is buying Upper Canada Mall from Oxford and CPP Investments at about $415 a square foot, with 70% in-place occupancy and a Hudson’s Bay box to fill. Under it sits a Town-adopted plan for more than 5,000 homes.
Urban Land Group · October 2, 2026
Primaris REIT has agreed to acquire Upper Canada Mall in Newmarket for $411 million in cash from Oxford Properties and CPP Investments, with closing expected by October 31, 2026. The centre is 990,114 square feet on 76 acres at roughly 23% site coverage, draws 6.6 million visits a year, and reports $888 per square foot in same-store sales productivity on $271 million of annual retail sales. Tenants include Apple, Aritzia, Lululemon, Uniqlo, Sport Chek and Winners.
Figure 1 — The transaction, as published.
The REIT is funding it from existing liquidity, including a $230-million equity offering that closed September 22, and roughly $150 million on its revolving credit facility, leaving about $450 million available. Management describes the deal as modestly accretive to funds from operations per unit.
Seventy per cent occupied
The occupancy figures are the heart of the underwriting. In-place occupancy is 70% and long-term in-place is 65%, against committed occupancy of roughly 80% — 82% excluding the vacant Hudson’s Bay space.
Figure 2 — Four measures of the same rent roll.
That leaves 263,400 square feet of former anchor and large-format space plus 33,800 square feet of vacant retail units to fill. The former Sears space is committed to two national retailers; the Hudson’s Bay and Toys “R” Us boxes are reported as under negotiation. Weighted average lease term is 4.2 years.
And then there is the land
Upper Canada Mall sits inside Newmarket Centre, one of the province’s Urban Growth Centres in York Region, covered by the Town’s Urban Centres Secondary Plan — about 290 hectares targeting 33,000 residents and 32,000 jobs. Newmarket Council has adopted an official plan amendment for the mall lands contemplating more than 5,000 residential units, 2 to 17 storeys, phased over roughly 30 years.
Figure 3 — The same site, two descriptions.
| WHAT IS DISCLOSED, AND WHAT IS NOT No capitalisation rate, net operating income or per-unit land value was disclosed, so none can be derived — the $415 per square foot and the per-acre figures are Urban Land Group arithmetic on the published price, area and acreage. The transaction is announced, not closed; the release gives an expected closing of October 31, 2026, and the financing described is existing liquidity from a $230-million equity offering that closed September 22, 2026 plus roughly $150 million drawn on the revolving credit facility. The planning status in Figure 3 is as reported at the time the Town adopted the official plan amendment for the mall lands, together with the Town’s published Urban Centres Secondary Plan. Any subsequent amendments, appeals or site-specific applications should be confirmed directly with the Town of Newmarket and York Region before anyone relies on it. Nothing here is an appraisal, an Opinion of Value or planning advice. |
| THE ULG VIEW Price it per foot before you price it per acre. $411 million over 990,114 square feet is about $415 per square foot of leasable area — for a centre doing $888 per square foot in sales, in a market of 6.6 million annual visits. On the retail metrics that is a quality asset trading at a number that looks defensible. The REIT says the deal is only modestly accretive to funds from operations, which tells you the going-in yield is thin and the return is in what happens next. What happens next is lease-up, and the buyer is underwriting it, not inheriting it. In-place occupancy is 70%, long-term in-place 65%, committed roughly 80%. There are 263,400 square feet of former anchor and large-format space to fill, including the Hudson’s Bay box — the same HBC overhang now sitting in Scarborough and Toronto industrial. Weighted average lease term is 4.2 years, so the rent roll turns over quickly in both directions. This is an operating bet by an operator, which is the right buyer for it. The part worth staring at is the land. 76 acres at 23% site coverage, inside a provincial Urban Growth Centre, with a Town-adopted official plan amendment contemplating more than 5,000 residential units over about 30 years. The purchaser’s own release describes the land upside as “over 6 acres of excess land” for retail pads. Either the residential entitlement is not being priced, or it is being priced at close to nothing — and an institutional seller just took that trade. That is the second time in a month we have seen it. Buyers are paying for stabilised, income-producing real estate and treating approved density under it as a free option. For our clients the read-through is practical: on any large-format retail site in a growth centre — Newmarket, Oshawa, Pickering, Burlington — run the residential residual beside the retail valuation before agreeing a cap rate. The owner who sells on retail metrics alone in this market is handing the density over, and the mall REITs are quietly becoming the largest land bank in the 905. |
Sources
· Primaris REIT — “Primaris REIT Announces $411 Million Acquisition of Leading GTA Shopping Centre, Upper Canada Mall,” October 1, 2026 (price, area, acreage, occupancy, sales productivity, financing, closing). https://www.voiceofalexandria.com/news/national_business_news/primaris-reit-announces-411-million-acquisition-of-leading-gta-shopping-centre-upper-canada-mall/article_77574fda-d7cf-594e-9d10-4b5a9aad90dc.html
· RENX — “Primaris REIT to buy GTA’s Upper Canada Mall for $411M,” October 2026 (seller, tenant and vacancy detail). https://renx.ca/primaris-reit-buys-upper-canada-mall-gta-411m
· Town of Newmarket — Urban Centres Secondary Plan (Newmarket Centre Urban Growth Centre; about 290 hectares; 33,000 residents and 32,000 jobs). https://www.newmarket.ca/business-development/urban-planning/long-range-planning-documents/urban-centres-secondary-plan
· Town of Newmarket — Upper Canada Mall Master Plan, 17600 Yonge Street, official plan amendment (Town planning application page). https://www.newmarket.ca/LivingHere/Pages/Planning%20and%20development/Planning%20Applications/Current%20Applications/Upper-Canada-Mall-Master-Plan-17600-Yonge-Street-Official-Plan-Amendment.aspx
· NewmarketToday — reporting on Council’s adoption of the Upper Canada Mall master plan amendment (5,000-plus units, 2 to 17 storeys, phased over about 30 years). https://www.newmarkettoday.ca/local-news/upper-canada-mall-gets-go-ahead-for-dense-area-development-plans-4785413
· York Region — Regional Official Plan (Urban Growth Centres and regional growth framework). https://www.york.ca/york-region/regional-official-plan
Charts by Urban Land Group. Per-square-foot and per-acre figures are Urban Land Group arithmetic on published figures and are not an appraisal or an Opinion of Value. Planning status is as reported and must be confirmed with the Town of Newmarket and York Region. Urban Land Group has no involvement in this transaction. General market commentary; not investment, financial, planning or legal advice.