Good Afternoon and Welcome to the 2024 Annual General Meeting of the Unith olders of Minto Apartment Real Estate Investment Trust. My name is Allan Kimberley, and I am the Lead Trustee of the Board of Trustees for the REIT. Unfortunately, Roger Greenberg, the Chair of our board, is feeling under the weather. Roger is attending but has asked me to chair today's meeting. This meeting is being held entirely by virtual means through a live broad webcast, and we welcome everyone in attendance today. A recording of this webcast will be posted to our website for a period of time after the meeting. I would like to first begin by introducing Jonathan Li, our President and Chief Executive Officer and one of our trustees, and John Moss, our General Counsel and Corporate Secretary.
I am also pleased to introduce each of the other members of our current Board of Trustees in attendance on our webcast today: Heather Kirk, Jo-Ann Lempert, and Jacqueline Moss. Finally, I would like to thank those unit holders who have chosen to participate in this webcast today and to all those who submitted their proxies in advance on a timely basis. Before our meeting, we intend to proceed with the following formal items on the agenda, following which there will be a brief presentation by Jonathan on behalf of management. The first item of business is the presentation of the financial statements and auditor's report for the year ended December 31 2023. The second item of business is the election of the trustees. The third item of business is the reappointment of KPMG LLP as Minto Apartment REIT's auditors.
The fourth item of business is the approval of a non-binding advisory say-on-pay resolution accepting the REIT's approach to executive compensation. Before we begin, we have a few administrative matters to note in light of today's virtual meeting format. Voting during today's meeting will be conducted through this online platform. When we are ready to table an item of business for a vote, you will see the voting option appear on your screen. If you have voted in advance of the meeting and do not wish to revoke your previously submitted proxies, then you do not need to do anything at this time. Unit holders and duly appointed proxy holders will also have the ability to ask questions through this online platform. To submit a question, click on the Q&A messaging icon located on the lower left side of your computer screen.
When submitting a question, please identify whether it relates to a motion being considered as a part of the formal business of this meeting or whether it is general in nature. We will address questions directly related to a particular motion at the appropriate time of the meeting and save general questions until after the formal business section of the meeting has been completed. Questions with common themes may be grouped together for efficiency. John Moss, our General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, will read the questions aloud when requested, and either I or a member of the management team will respond. We will make every effort to answer all of your questions during today's Q&A period. However, in the interest of time, we will limit that portion of the meeting to 15 minutes and will address any unanswered questions in a timely manner afterward.
With the consent of the meeting, I will act as chair of the meeting, and I will ask John Moss, our General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, to act as Secretary, and Broadridge Investor Communications Corporation by its representative, Alisha Mohammed, to act as scrutineer. I now call the meeting to order. I have been advised that on April 5 2024, the notice- and- access notice together with a form of proxy, are mailed to each unit holder of record as of March 13 2024, the record date for the meeting, advising that the notice of meeting and management information circular are available online. We have received an affidavit of mailing from Broadridge Investor Communications Corporation, and I ask that the secretary keep a copy of it with the minutes. I have been provided with a scrutineer's preliminary report on attendance indicating that a quorum is present.
As such, I declare this meeting has been duly convened and constituted of the transaction of business for which it has been called. When a formal report of the scrutineer is available, it will be kept with the minutes of the meeting. Only registered unit holders of record at the close of business on March 13 2024, or their duly appointed proxy holders are entitled to take part in and vote at this meeting. Each trust unit and special voting unit represented at this meeting is entitled to one vote. In order to make the best use of our time today, certain individuals have been asked to move and, second, various motions. This is not intended to limit in any way your right to participate in this meeting.
Unit holders who wish to make comments related to these motions may do so through the online platform after the motion has been seconded in the manner previously noted. As noted earlier, there will also be an opportunity to ask general questions. We will now proceed to the first item of business for the meeting and present the financial statements for the year ended December 31 2023. A copy of the financial statements was provided previously made available to unit holders. Unit holders do not have to take any action regarding the financial statements, but if any unit holder has questions related to the statements, I would suggest that they be asked later in this meeting during the question-and-answer period. The second item of business is the election of trustees.
The REIT currently has seven trustees whose term of office will expire at the end of the meeting, and the number of trustees to be elected at this meeting is seven. Each of the current trustees is a nominee for reelection. The management information circular provides detailed biographies setting out the valuable qualifications and diverse backgrounds of the trustee nominees proposed. In addition to me, the nominees for election are Roger Greenberg, Heather Kirk, Jo-Ann Lempert, Jonathan Li, Jacqueline Moss, and Michael Waters. If elected, these nominees will hold office until the next annual meeting of the unit holders or until his or her successor is elected or appointed. I am pleased to report that based on the proxies received by the scrutineer in advance of the meeting, each trustee nominee received votes in favor from at least a majority of votes cast.
We will now consider the election of trustees. To facilitate the introduction of the nominees, we refer you to the slide on the webcast. I declare the polls open on all resolutions. John, are there any questions or comments submitted in connection with the nomination and election of trustees?
No, Allan. We have not received any questions related to this item.
As mentioned, I have taken the liberty of asking certain unit holders to make the motions for the elections of the trustees and other motions today. I will now ask Edward Fu, Minto Apartment REIT's Chief Financial Officer, to move, and Paul Baron, the REIT's Senior Vice President of Operations, to second a formal motion for the nomination of the seven nominees as trustees of the REIT.
Mr. Chair, I so move.
Mr. Chair, I second the motion.
Thank you. I have been advised that no other nominations have been made in accordance with the advance notice provisions under the REIT's declaration of trust. Accordingly, I declare the nominations closed. As required by the rules of the Toronto Stock Exchange, the REIT has adopted a majority voting policy related to the election of trustees. Details regarding this policy are provided in the management information circular. Under this policy, a trustee is required to tender his or her resignation if he or she receives more withhold votes than most cast for his or her election. Based on those proxies received for the election of trustees to be elected, none of these nominees would have to tender their resignation under the policy.
I will now ask Edward Fu to move and Paul Baron to second a formal motion for the election of each of the seven persons nominated as trustees of the REIT to hold office until the next annual meeting of the unit holders or until they resign or their successors are elected or appointed.
Mr. Chair, I so move.
Mr. Chair, I second the motion.
I will now ask registered unit holders and duly appointed proxy holders to cast their votes through the online portal. As a reminder, if you have already voted or sent in your proxy, there is no need for you to do anything unless you wish to change your vote. Thank you for casting your votes. The scrutineers will tabulate the votes cast. The third item of business is the appointment of KPMG LLP as auditors of the REIT and the authorization of the trustees to fix their remuneration. The trustees, on the recommendation of the audit committee, propose that KPMG LLP be appointed as auditor of the REIT until the next annual meeting of the unit holders or until their successor is duly appointed and that the trustees be authorized to fix their remuneration. John, are there any questions or comments submitted in connection with the appointment of the auditors?
No, Allan. We have not received any questions related to this matter.
I will now ask Edward Fu to move and Paul Baron to second a formal motion for such appointment and authorization.
Mr. Chair, I so move.
Mr. Chair, I second the motion.
Thank you. We will now vote on the motion. If you have not already done so, I will ask registered unit holders and duly appointed proxy holders to cast their votes through the online portal. Thank you for casting your votes. The scrutineers will tabulate the votes cast. The fourth item of business is to approve a non-binding advisory say-on-pay resolution accepting the REIT's approach to executive compensation. A full description of the REIT's approach to executive compensation is set out in the REIT's management information circular. John, are there any questions or comments submitted in connection with this item?
No, Allan. We have not received any questions related to this item.
I will now ask Edward Fu to move and Paul Baron to second a formal motion that, on a non-binding advisory basis and not to diminish the role and responsibilities of the board of trustees, the unit holders accept the REIT's approach to executive compensation disclosed in the REIT's management information circular dated March 13 2024.
Mr. Chair, I so move.
Mr. Chair, I second the motion.
Thank you. We will now vote on the motion. If you have not already done so, I will ask registered unit holders and duly appointed proxy holders to cast their votes through the online portal. Thank you for casting your votes. The scrutineers will tabulate the votes cast. Ladies and gentlemen, that brings us to the end of voting on the items of business before this meeting, and I, therefore, declare the polls closed. Thank you for casting your votes. I am pleased to report that, on the election of trustees, the preliminary voting results show that each trustee nominee received votes in favor from a majority of votes cast.
Accordingly, I declare that the proposed trustee nominees have been duly elected as trustees of Minto Apartment REIT to hold office until the next annual meeting of the unit holders or until they resign or their successors are duly elected or appointed. On the appointment of auditors, the preliminary voting results show that a majority of votes cast were in favor of the reappointment of KPMG LLP as auditors of the REIT. I declare that KPMG LLP are reappointed auditors of the Minto Apartment REIT and that the trustees are authorized to fix the auditors' remuneration. On the non-binding advisory say-on-pay resolution accepting the REIT's approach to executive compensation, more than a majority of the votes cast were voted in favor of the resolution. I declare this motion to be passed. The final voting results will be available after the meeting and posted to the REIT's SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca.
There being no further business, I will now ask Edward Fu to move and Paul Baron to second a formal motion to terminate the meeting.
Mr. Chair, I so move.
Mr. Chair, I second the motion.
Thank you. I declare the motion carried and the meeting terminated. Now that the formal part of the meeting is concluded, I would like to welcome our President and CEO, Jonathan Li, to make a brief presentation on behalf of management. John.
Thank you, Alan, and good afternoon, everyone. I am pleased to have the opportunity to speak with you today. Before I begin, I want to remind listeners that certain statements about future events made in this presentation or in responses to questions are forward-looking statements for the purposes of applicable securities law. Forward-looking statements are not assurances of future performance and are subject to risk and uncertainties that are difficult to control or predict. The actual results, performance, or achievements of the REIT and its business may be materially different from the anticipated results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by forward-looking statements. Unit holders should consult the more detailed discussion of the risk factors relating to the REIT and its business in our most recent Annual Information Form and Management's Discussion and Analysis.
Forward-looking statements are based on the officers' and trustees' beliefs and opinions, and undue reliance should not be placed on any forward-looking statements. The REIT does not undertake to update or supplement any forward-looking statements unless required to do so by applicable law. Please also note that this presentation will reference certain non-IFRS financial measures. Although we believe these measures provide useful supplemental information about the REIT's financial performance, they're not recognized measures and do not have standardized meanings under IFRS. Please see the REIT's most recent Management's Discussion and Analysis for additional information regarding non-IFRS financial measures, including reconciliations to the nearest IFRS measures. Leaning on slide 18, this slide provides a current snapshot of the REIT. We have investments in six major Canadian urban markets with 28 high-quality properties in the portfolio and two properties under development.
At the end of 2023, our portfolio had average monthly rent of $1,877 and occupancy of 97.3%. The pie chart highlights our geographic diversification among some of Canada's major cities based on the fair value of our properties. This represents a major transformation of our portfolio compared to where we started in 2018. At that time, 59% of the REIT's fair value was in Ottawa, 34% was in Toronto, with the small remainder in Alberta. Now, we have a significant presence in Montreal and Calgary and access to the Vancouver and Victoria markets through our convertible development loan program, also referred to as CDLs. Geographic diversification in urban markets was a key objective at the time of our IPO, and we are pleased to have achieved it. We believe it makes the REIT a more attractive investment.
Our financial performance improved in 2023 due to strong operational execution, robust rental market conditions in our core urban markets, accretive asset sales, and disciplined capital allocation decisions that reduced our variable-rate debt exposure. We generated approximately 10% growth in revenue and 12% growth in normalized net operating income compared to 2022, and our funds from Operations per unit and adjusted Funds from Operations per unit improved quarter-over-quarter through the year. In addition, we continued to execute on our capital recycling strategy as we sold three properties in Edmonton and exited that non-core market. We continue to make progress on attractive growth opportunities in our pipeline, including intensification projects, advances on convertible development loans, suite repositioning, and deploying value-enhancing capital. We raised our cash distributions by 3.1%, the fifth consecutive year in which we have increased unit holder distributions.
We are proud to achieve a three-star rating and Green Star designation in the 2023 Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark Assessment. This was a strong endorsement of our sustainability efforts. Strengthening the REIT's balance sheet was an absolute priority for us during 2023 and into 2024. I am pleased to note that by early 2024, our variable-rate debt as a percentage of total debt was reduced single digits as a result of our efforts. You can see a summary of the measures we took on this slide to reduce variable-rate debt and strengthen our financial flexibility. In addition to the Edmonton asset sales, we sold two properties in Ottawa comprising 311 suites in January of this year. We are extremely proud of the Ottawa asset sales, which truly represent a win-win transaction. The purchaser of the assets was Ottawa Community Housing, or OCH.
On the one hand, the REIT received a fair price for the assets, and on the other, OCH was able to purchase the assets for significantly less than replacement costs, and they were able to maintain affordability in these suites over the long term. In addition, we generated significant proceeds from upward refinancing activities. We received $ 30 million from the repayment of a loan, and we made a series of disciplined capital allocation decisions outlined in the table. Since the REIT's inception in 2018, it has generated stable and resilient financial performance. The three charts on the top of this slide show our strong normalized Adjusted Funds From Operations per unit performance, steady growth in distributions, and Net Asset Value per unit at the end of each year.
The slight decline in net asset value from the peak reflects increased capitalization rates that are primarily attributable to higher interest rates, partially offset by increases in forecast net operating income. Below those charts, you can see that while we have increased our suite count significantly compared to 2018, we have maintained a conservative debt-to-gross-book value ratio and solid liquidity. This supports our strong and sustainable distributions. Throughout 2023, we were keenly focused on delivering growth in Funds from Operations per unit. Our commitment to operational excellence and disciplined capital allocation decisions drove the acceleration of sequential quarterly cash flow per unit growth in 2023, reaching over 21% in the Q4 . I would now like to briefly talk about our other organic growth initiatives. One of them is intensification at our existing properties.
We are currently developing 192 new suites at our Leslie York Mills property and 225 at our Richgrove property, both in Toronto. Stabilization for these properties is expected in 2026. The potential intensification project at our High Park Village property remains an attractive opportunity to add almost 700 units of housing supply to the market, and we will continue to carefully consider restarting this project in the future. We also have convertible development loans tied to 4 new apartment properties being developed or co-developed by Minto Properties. These CDLs provide us with exclusive purchase options upon stabilization. When the option to purchase arises, we will strategically evaluate them with consideration given to purchase price, cost of financing, impact on future Funds from Operations per unit, leverage, and prevailing market conditions at that time. The 4 properties represent more than 1,000 suites in brand new assets in trophy locations.
I will now conclude with our business outlook before taking your questions. The fundamentals underpinning our sector continue to be strong. Even with recent measures announced by the federal government, our population growth remains the highest in the G7. There is an insufficient supply of new housing and a growing affordability gap between home ownership and renting, which is fueled by an elevated interest rate environment. Accordingly, we believe that demand for rental housing in our markets will remain strong for this foreseeable future. Our high-quality urban portfolio is well-positioned to capitalize on the positive industry fundamentals and the disciplined capital allocation decisions we have made have positioned us well for the future.
Going forward, we will remain focused on the following: continuing to optimize revenue and expenses, growing cash flow per unit, exploring further refinancing opportunities, minimizing the credit facility balance, and continuing to critically assess growth opportunities in our pipeline. We are confident that executing on this strategy will enable us to generate strong returns for unit holders. That concludes my presentation this afternoon. We are now pleased to answer any questions that you may have with respect to the REIT, its financial statements, and its operations during the year. John, are there any questions?
No, Jon. We have not received any questions. Thank you. I would like to thank everyone for attending this meeting and for your support of the REIT. We look forward to seeing you again next year.