While most of the information needed to assess a development site in Ottawa is already public, finding that info across zoning maps, planning documents and city databases is another matter.
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While most of the information needed to assess a development site in Ottawa is already public, finding that info across zoning maps, planning documents and city databases is another matter.
It’s what prompted Anthony Bassi of Ottawa’s Bassi family to build Asset Avenue. The platform maps municipal planning applications across Ottawa, estimates what could be built on individual lots and performs preliminary financial analyses of multi-family properties.
The 24-year-old built Asset Avenue initially as an internal tool for his family’s construction and development business, where it’s been used to follow Ottawa’s development pipeline, monitor the number of proposed units in different neighbourhoods and assess potential real estate investments.
“It’s all public data that I’ve kind of just put into a certain way for others to understand more clearly,” Bassi told OBJ. “We use this as a kind of backstop and see, as a benchmark, do these deals make sense?”
Bassi grew up around and now works with the family business, which was founded in 1963. “I’ve been involved in construction and real estate my whole life,” he said. “These were like my first words.”
An interest in technology led him to look for ways to automate some of the research involved in evaluating properties and monitoring construction activity. His new platform has three main components: a development tracker, a lot analysis tool and what Bassi calls the “Deal Room.”
The development tracker places municipal planning applications on a digital map and shows where various projects have been proposed. It provides details such as height, number of units and application status. The City of Ottawa already publishes this data across different tools, but Bassi said it is difficult to navigate and interpret. For example, a proposed building can have its documentation and application split between application pages, PDF files, geographic data and different city system layers.
“They don’t do the best job of really showcasing it, unfortunately,” he said. “It’s scattered across dev apps, PDFs, the GIS layers that no one really understands how to use. That’s what I wanted to put all in a way that could be easily accessible.”
The map also lets someone considering a development see what other projects have been proposed nearby. Bassi cited a developer who was contemplating a 185-unit building near an Ottawa highway, but when he examined the area through Asset Avenue, he saw several other proposed developments.
“Just off that visual of seeing four large skyscrapers on the map, his competition radar went off,” Bassi explained.
The platform’s lot analysis tool provides a preliminary estimate of what could be constructed on a particular property. It examines zoning, permitted uses, potential building size and other variables.
“It’s kind of similar to SimCity,” Bassi said. “Can I put a building here and how tall can it go?”
He cited someone who wanted to replace a house with a small multi-unit building but was uncertain what the property could accommodate.
“All I did was send him the link to Asset Avenue,” Bassi recounted. “Within minutes, he received indication that the property could likely hold six units instead of the 10 units he envisioned.”
The results do not constitute municipal approval or professional planning, but instead give the user a good idea of what is, and isn’t, possible.
Finally, the “Deal Room” adds financial analysis to the mix. It examines multi-family listings using asking prices, estimated rents, expenses and Canadian interest rate data. Users can review measures including capitalization rates and debt-service coverage, then change assumptions to reflect their own property or financing information.
“This is Canadian math,” Bassi said. “Most of the property analysis products are designed for the United States. Here, you’ll be able to click on a multi-family listing and see the real numbers of what this will actually bring to you in Canadian dollars.”
The platform draws information from the Bank of Canada, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., Statistics Canada and municipal zoning bylaws. The platform does caution that listing information may be only estimates, and that Asset Avenue is not a lender, brokerage or adviser in any capacity.
“This is a showcase tool only,” Bassi said. “This is not financial advice.”
Bassi built Asset Avenue himself, using artificial intelligence to create and refine the software, including changes required to display thousands of proposed developments without overwhelming a mobile device. However, he distinguishes between using AI to help write the software and using it to produce financial calculations.
”We don't use AI to do the math," Bassi said. "It's all code. Everything you're getting isn't a hallucination or maybe it's going to change depending on when you ask it. It's the number it is."
Most users of Asset Avenue are individuals rather than large firms, according to Bassi. The platform is available in Ottawa, Toronto and Calgary, where Bassi has had time to connect it to city databases.
"The biggest shock for me was, 'Wow, this is all public data. I didn't know Ottawa had this,’" he said. "Anyone is allowed to go see this. It's just unfortunately not shown in an attractive way."
Asset Avenue offers free access to most of the site's functions and advertises a paid plan for expanded underwriting, lot analysis and exports. Bassi said he’s considering advertising, memberships and fees for more detailed analyses as the platform grows.
"If I do monetize, it'll be something most likely that's on the smaller side of a monthly membership or a by-deal membership.”
He also wants to expand to seven additional cities, including Vancouver. For now, he describes Asset Avenue as a second set of calculations.
"This is just one set of eyes," he explained. "You can export every deal you do into an Excel or a PDF and give it to your accountant. Then you can have a second set of eyes asking, 'Does this make sense?'"
