Avison Young returns to creditors for second recapitalization in two years

Avison Young has reached a second recapitalization agreement with its creditors in just over two years. The Toronto brokerage says the deal cuts its debt and preferred equity by nearly 70% and puts key financial partners into common equity.

The company disclosed the arrangement Tuesday, describing it as a follow-on to the 2024 restructuring that stabilized the firm. Leverage falls below three times EBITDA, a level Avison Young calls a historic low. The value of the common shares held by principals is preserved. A spokesperson said the package includes fresh capital and a new credit facility earmarked for acquisitions; the returning lenders were described as Wall Street institutions.

Chief executive Mark Rose cast the announcement as a growth opportunity. The strengthened balance sheet and better liquidity, he said, give the firm the means to accelerate its strategy without changing how it serves clients.

The first time came after a default on a $325 million senior term loan. Avison Young had skipped principal and interest payments for two consecutive quarters. S&P Global cut the credit rating on Feb. 22, 2024, according to Bisnow, which reported the latest plan. Within days, the firm reached a deal meant to close in a month. That deal would reduce corporate debt by as much as half. Rose characterized the equity surrendered in that exchange as minuscule.

The 2024 rescue did not end the distress. A UK judge unfroze the firm's accounts in July. That let Avison Young satisfy a back-tax judgment of roughly $10.4 million. S&P had Avison Young at CCC with a negative outlook from April 2025. The company asked for that junk rating to be withdrawn in January and began this year without it.

Avison Young markets itself as led and owned by its principals, and a spokesperson said those principals have kept a sizable interest for 15 years. The new deal also puts key financial partners into the common equity. Principal ownership stays intact; the lenders become owners too.

The acquisition line is the more concrete development. Rose described the earlier restructuring as defensive — lower rates, less debt and a minuscule equity grant. He told Bisnow after that deal that the next reports from the firm would be about its investments, hiring and acquisitions. The new facility gives that promise a funding source.

The deal leaves Avison Young with principals who run the shop and Wall Street lenders who now hold equity. Their interests mostly point the same way: lenders with common stock want the growth agenda to work. The first hard negotiation over how the new acquisition line gets spent will test that shared interest.