Starlight Investments
Corporate brand
UnclaimedStarlight Investments is a privately held Canadian real estate investment and asset management company focused primarily on multifamily housing and commercial property.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
Starlight Investments is a Canadian real estate investment and asset management company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Founded by Daniel Drimmer in 2011, the company operates primarily through the acquisition, ownership, financing, development, and management of multifamily residential and commercial real estate. Its portfolio has expanded through major transactions involving real estate investment trusts, apartment properties, and purpose-built rental housing. A significant early turning point came in 2012, when Drimmer acquired TransGlobe REIT, his former company, in a transaction valued at approximately C$1 billion. Starlight also acquired 72 additional buildings through a subsidiary from the Public Sector Pension Investment Board. These transactions established a large institutional platform at an early stage of the firm's development and reinforced its focus on income-producing real estate. Starlight's residential portfolio grew further through the acquisition of Northview Apartments REIT in February 2020. The company subsequently became one of Canada's largest private owners and operators of multifamily housing. Reference material describing its 2024 position attributes to Starlight ownership of more than 70,000 multifamily units, including approximately 54,000 in Canada and 10,000 in the United States, as well as roughly 8 million square feet of commercial space across more than 600 properties. The same material characterizes it as Canada's largest private landlord. The business also expanded beyond direct property ownership. In 2018, it created Starlight Capital, a real estate securities investment business. Starlight Capital later announced the Starlight Hybrid Global Real Assets Trust, intended to provide retail investors with access to a diversified real-assets investment vehicle. In April 2022, Starlight Capital acquired Stone Investment Group, expanding the group's investment-management capabilities and strengthening its position in Canadian purpose-built rental housing. The company has also used sponsorship and naming-rights arrangements as part of its public-facing activities. In January 2021, it entered a five-year agreement with the City of Langford, British Columbia, under which Bear Mountain Stadium at City Centre Park was renamed Starlight Stadium. Starlight's growth has occurred amid public debate about institutional ownership, rent increases, and tenant displacement in Canada's rental-housing market. In 2016, tenants and local politicians criticized proposed renovation-related evictions, commonly described in Canadian reporting as renovictions. The company has also faced complaints concerning landlord practices. Research cited in the company's Wikipedia coverage reported that financial landlords, on average, filed for eviction at higher rates and raised rents more after acquiring buildings than other landlord types. In 2024, Starlight received approval from Ontario's Landlord and Tenant Board on two occasions to increase rents above provincial guideline levels, including an exception reported in June 2024. These issues form an important part of the public discussion surrounding the company, although the available reference material does not establish that every complaint or allegation was legally proven.
History
Starlight Investments was founded in 2011 by Daniel Drimmer as a privately held real estate investment and asset management company in Canada. From its beginning, the company pursued an acquisition-led strategy centered on income-producing properties, particularly multifamily housing. In 2012, Drimmer acquired TransGlobe REIT, a company with which he had previously been associated, in a transaction reported at approximately C$1 billion. Through a subsidiary, Starlight also acquired 72 buildings from the Public Sector Pension Investment Board. These deals gave the company a substantial property base and accelerated its development as an institutional real estate owner. Starlight later broadened its platform beyond individual property transactions. In 2018, it established Starlight Capital as a real estate securities investment company. In November of that year, Starlight Capital announced the Starlight Hybrid Global Real Assets Trust, an investment product designed to give retail investors access to a real estate-oriented fund. This marked a move toward connecting the group's real estate expertise with externally accessible investment products. The company continued to expand its rental-housing holdings. In February 2020, Starlight acquired Northview Apartments REIT, a transaction that materially increased its multifamily apartment portfolio. In January 2021, the company entered a sponsorship agreement with the City of Langford in British Columbia. The five-year arrangement included naming rights for the stadium at City Centre Park, changing its name from Bear Mountain Stadium to Starlight Stadium. In April 2022, Starlight Capital acquired Stone Investment Group. The transaction further enlarged the group's investment-management operations and was described in the reference material as making Starlight the largest owner and operator of purpose-built rental housing in Canada. During the same year, Starlight's Canadian Residential Growth Fund III raised C$1.2 billion, with 61 percent of the capital reportedly coming from foreign investors. The company described this as the first occasion on which foreign investors contributed capital to one of its funds. By 2024, reference material attributed to Starlight more than 600 properties, over 70,000 multifamily units, and approximately 8 million square feet of commercial space. The reported residential holdings included about 54,000 units in Canada and 10,000 in the United States. These figures place the company among the largest private landlords in Canada and illustrate the scale reached through its acquisition, investment, and asset-management model. Starlight's expansion has also generated controversy. In 2016, tenants and local politicians raised concerns about proposed renovictions, a term commonly used for renovation-related displacement of tenants. The company has faced additional complaints about landlord practices. Research cited in the reference material found that financial firms tended to raise rents more aggressively and file eviction applications more frequently after acquiring buildings than other categories of landlords. In Ontario, Starlight was reported to have obtained two approvals for rent increases above provincial guideline levels, one of them in June 2024. These events have placed the company within wider debates over institutional ownership, affordability, tenant security, and the financialization of rental housing.
- 2024
Reported portfolio scale and above-guideline rent approvals
[1]Reference material reported more than 600 properties, over 70,000 multifamily units, and two Ontario approvals for above-guideline rent increases.
- 2022
Stone Investment Group acquisition
[1]Starlight Capital acquired Stone Investment Group, strengthening the group's investment-management platform.
- 2022
Canadian Residential Growth Fund III raises C$1.2 billion
[1]The fund raised C$1.2 billion, with 61 percent of the capital reportedly coming from foreign investors.
- 2021
Starlight Stadium naming agreement
[1]A five-year agreement with the City of Langford renamed Bear Mountain Stadium at City Centre Park as Starlight Stadium.
- 2020
Northview Apartments REIT acquisition
[1]Starlight acquired Northview Apartments REIT, expanding its multifamily rental-housing holdings.
- 2018
Starlight Capital is created
[1]The group created Starlight Capital as a real estate securities investment company.
- 2016
Tenant criticism over proposed renovictions
[1]Tenants and local politicians criticized proposed renovation-related evictions associated with Starlight properties.
- 2012
TransGlobe REIT acquisition and additional building purchases
[1]Drimmer acquired TransGlobe REIT in a transaction reported at approximately C$1 billion, while a Starlight subsidiary acquired 72 additional buildings from the Public Sector Pension Investment Board.
- 2011
Starlight Investments is founded
[1]Daniel Drimmer founded Starlight Investments as a privately held Canadian real estate investment and asset management company.
Products and positioning
Institutional-scale private real estate ownership and asset management, with a strong emphasis on Canadian multifamily rental housing and complementary commercial and investment-management activities.
Residential real estate · 2011
Multifamily rental housing
Starlight's principal operating area is the ownership and management of multifamily apartment properties, especially purpose-built rental housing. The portfolio spans Canada and the United States and represents the core of the company's private-landlord and asset-management platform.
Commercial real estate
Commercial real estate
The company also owns and manages commercial real estate. Reference material for 2024 attributed approximately 8 million square feet of commercial space to Starlight across its broader property portfolio.
Investment management · 2018
Starlight Capital
Starlight Capital is the group's real estate securities and investment-management business, established in 2018. It extends Starlight's activities from direct property ownership into investment vehicles and securities-oriented products.
Real estate investment fund · 2018
Starlight Hybrid Global Real Assets Trust
Announced by Starlight Capital in 2018, the trust was intended to provide retail investors with access to a fund focused on global real assets and related real estate investment exposure.
Residential real estate fund · 2022
Canadian Residential Growth Fund III
This residential real estate investment fund raised C$1.2 billion in 2022. The reference material states that foreign investors supplied 61 percent of the capital, marking the first reported foreign-investor participation in one of Starlight's funds.
Controversies
2024
Above-guideline rent increase approvals
The company was reported to have received two Ontario Landlord and Tenant Board approvals for rent increases above provincial guidelines, including one reported in June 2024.
2016
Renoviction criticism
Tenants and local politicians criticized proposed renovation-related evictions at Starlight properties. The issue became part of broader criticism of the company's landlord practices.
Marketing campaigns
- 2021Starlight Stadium naming-rights sponsorship
Canada · British Columbia
Starlight entered a five-year sponsorship agreement with the City of Langford that included naming rights for the stadium at City Centre Park.
Outcome. Bear Mountain Stadium was renamed Starlight Stadium.
Brand decisions
2022
Acquire Stone Investment GroupM&ABackground
Starlight Capital was expanding its investment-management capabilities alongside the property business.
Action taken
Starlight Capital acquired Stone Investment Group.
Aftermath
The deal expanded the group's investment platform and was described as making it the largest owner and operator of purpose-built rental housing in Canada.
2022
Raise capital for Canadian Residential Growth Fund IIIStrategyBackground
Starlight sought additional capital for residential real estate investment.
Action taken
The Canadian Residential Growth Fund III raised C$1.2 billion, with 61 percent reportedly supplied by foreign investors.
Aftermath
The fund represented the first reported instance of foreign investors contributing capital to one of Starlight's funds.
Capital raised. C$1.2 billion (2022)
2020
Acquire Northview Apartments REITM&ABackground
The acquisition supported Starlight's expansion in Canadian multifamily rental housing.
Action taken
Starlight purchased Northview Apartments REIT.
Aftermath
The transaction enlarged the company's apartment portfolio and reinforced its focus on multifamily properties.
2018
Create Starlight CapitalStrategyBackground
Starlight sought to complement direct property ownership with real estate securities and investment-management activities.
Action taken
The group created Starlight Capital as a real estate securities investment company and announced the Starlight Hybrid Global Real Assets Trust.
Aftermath
The group expanded into investment products intended to provide broader investor access to real-assets exposure.
2012
Acquire TransGlobe REIT and 72 additional buildingsM&ABackground
Starlight was building an institutional-scale property platform shortly after its founding.
Action taken
Daniel Drimmer acquired TransGlobe REIT in a transaction reported at approximately C$1 billion, while a subsidiary acquired 72 buildings from the Public Sector Pension Investment Board.
Aftermath
The transactions substantially expanded Starlight's real estate holdings and established an acquisition-led growth model.
Reported transaction value for TransGlobe REIT acquisition. C$1 billion transaction (2012)
Recent events
Sources2 sources
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