Daniel Foch isn’t just another real estate voice—he’s in the trenches of the Canadian property market every day. We welcome the co-host of The Canadian Real Estate Investor Podcast to share real-world insights on REITs, direct real estate investing, AI integration in the industry, and the outlook for 2025 and beyond.
With experience across development, brokerage, and investment analysis, Daniel helps us understand which REITs have real long-term potential and why investors need to think like pros—especially in uncertain times.
Build Your Portfolio with Clarity and Confidence
Download the free DSR Investment Roadmap and get a step-by-step plan to invest with purpose.
What you want is simple: you know where you started (with dry powder in your account) and your destination (a fully diversified dividend growth portfolio). However, you have no idea how to get there!
- How many stocks should I manage?
- Which stocks to buy, when?
- Do I need to invest in all sectors?
- Do I need investment rules?
- What metrics are important?
- Do I buy them one by one or all at once?
The DSR investment roadmap covers all angles of the portfolio-building process.
Whether you’re just starting or rethinking your approach, this guide shows you how to create a process you can trust.
—> thedividendguyblog.com/roadmap
You’ll Learn
REITs vs. Real Estate: Passive or Lucrative Job?
Owning property isn’t passive—it’s a hands-on side hustle.
-
Direct investing often yields better returns, but demands time, skills, and effort.
-
Daniel emphasizes the operational risks, including renovations, evictions, financing issues, and tenant management.
-
His takeaway: stress-test your assumptions like a REIT would—model for worst-case scenarios.
How Tariffs & Politics Could Reshape the Landscape
Global trade tensions have a ripple effect on real estate markets.
-
Tariffs affect local economies: steel in Hamilton, oil in Calgary, autos along the 401 corridor.
-
These changes could shift where REITs (and renters) feel the most pressure.
-
Daniel suggests that the short-term outlook is bumpy, but in the long term, REITs can adapt.
Finding the Right REITs
What separates a smart REIT investment from a risky one?
-
Look for those with development potential and strong land positions (e.g., Allied, RioCan).
-
REITs with stagnant assets or weak repositioning strategies are vulnerable.
-
Don’t overlook grocery-anchored REITs or those with urban infill opportunities.
A Note on Office & Data Centers
Office REITs face long-term structural challenges.
-
But many landlords (like Allied) can repurpose assets into mixed-use or residential.
-
Data center REITs? Daniel sees major growth potential—especially in cold, power-rich regions like Canada.
Canadian Banks Through a Real Estate Lens
Daniel offers a unique perspective on RBC, National Bank, and Scotiabank.
-
RBC’s blanket appraisal strategy may be risky, but it builds long-term, sticky customers.
-
Scotiabank is known for investor-friendly lending up to 10 properties.
-
National Bank? Strong on SMB lending and economics research—a small player with a sharp edge.
REIT Investing Tip:
Compare the cap rates of public REITs to private market valuations. If you can’t buy a building with better yield yourself, the REIT might be your best bet.
About Daniel Foch
Daniel Foch is the Chief Real Estate Officer at Valery.ca, and Host of Canada’s #1 real estate podcast. As co-founder of The Habistat, the onboard data science platform for TRREB & Proptx, he helped the real estate industry to become more transparent, using real-time housing market data to inform decision-making for key stakeholders. With over 15 years of experience in the real estate industry, Daniel has advised a broad spectrum of real estate market participants, from 3 levels of government to some of Canada’s largest developers.
Daniel is a trusted voice in the Canadian real estate market, regularly contributing to media outlets such as The Wall Street Journal, CBC, Bloomberg, and The Globe and Mail. His expertise and balanced insights have earned him a dedicated audience of over 100,000 real estate investors across multiple social media platforms, where he shares primary research and market analysis.
Listen to his podcast: The Canadian Real Estate Investor
Related Content
We dive into the best-performing dividend stocks of 2025—so far. From mining companies to pest control, and even food and healthcare, you’ll hear about surprising names making big moves.
There are wrong reasons to invest in dividend stocks, and if you follow them, you’ll likely end up disappointed. Mike and Vero break down the traps of building a dividend portfolio without purpose.
The Best Dividends to Your Inbox!
Download our Dividend Rock Star List now and do not miss out on the good stuff! Receive our Portfolio Workbook and weekly emails, including our latest podcast episode!
Follow Mike, The Dividend Guy, on:
Have Ideas?
If you have ideas for guests, topics for The Dividend Guy Blog podcast, or simply to say hello, then shoot me an email.
This podcast episode has been provided by Dividend Stocks Rock.
Leave a Reply