Minto Apartment REIT has sold two Ottawa properties to the Ottawa Community Housing Corporation for $86 million.

The two properties, known as Tanglewood and Chesterton/Bowhill, are located near each other in the Nepean area and comprises 311 suites. Tanglewood and Chesterton/Bowhill were sold unconditionally for $32.million and $53.8 million respectively, the parties announced in a news release.

“We are pleased to be playing a role in addressing the affordable housing issue in Canada by conveying these assets to OCH, who can maintain their affordability indefinitely,” said Jonathan Li, Ottawa-based Minto’s president and CEO.

“We are also very pleased to generate cash from internal sources to reduce leverage in a transaction that is accretive to [funds from operations] and [adjusted funds from operations] per unit.

Minto said the transaction reduces both the average age of its portfolio and future capital requirements while strengthening the REIT’s balance sheet.

The divestment has reduced Minto’s debt-to-gross-booking-value ratio by 187 basis points to 40.9%, and lowered its portfolio’s exposure in Ottawa to 37% from 39%.

Photo: Minto Apartment REIT