Our story · since 2002
Helisis is a Montréal family business with its own management team, and we keep every building we buy or build. Today we look after more than 500 apartments, from heritage greystones near McGill to new mass timber in Lachine.
One of our first buildings · Brossard, 2002
Before the first building
Xiao Dong Zhang and Hong Sun came to Canada in 1999 with their young son. Three years later, they bought their first building: eight apartments in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve.
Twenty-four years on, their son works beside them with a full team of leasing, maintenance and management staff, and the family still owns every building it builds.
I · 2002 to 2013
Xiao Dong Zhang and Hong Sun bought their first building in their own names in June 2002: an eight-unit building in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve. Two buildings in Brossard, on the South Shore, followed, and both are still in the family today. In 2006 they founded the family company that would later become Helisis.
II · 2014 to 2018
In 2014 the family bought its first greystone in Milton-Parc, a short walk from McGill, and the second generation joined: their son Kai started Helisis that year. Most of our buildings there date from the early 1900s. One, on the corner of Sherbrooke, was honoured in 1998 by the City's Opération patrimoine architectural, run with Héritage Montréal, and several films have been shot inside. They are maintained with that heritage in mind.
III · 2019 to 2021
Helisis grew beyond student housing: our first commercial buildings in Verdun and apartments in Côte-des-Neiges. On Rue Wellington, we turned the second floor of our building into Spacial, a coworking space designed with Ivy Studio that also hosted community events. In 2020, an illustrator was commissioned to paint each of our buildings; those watercolours appear throughout this site.
IV · 2021 to today
Helisis then moved into development, in partnership with Gestion Kokolakis and its founder, engineer Tania Kokolakis. Solaris in Boisbriand has 133 apartments over nine storeys and was designed to use about 27% less energy than the code requires. ANDAS in Lachine has 53 apartments in six storeys of mass timber, with the structure left exposed in every unit. Helisis retains and operates both buildings.
“We hope to provide spaces where our tenants can live and work with dignity.”
Our mission since our first building, in 2002
Our McGill buildings were acquired for their proximity to campus. Elsewhere, we invest in neighbourhoods with transit, services and parks within walking distance.
Property management is carried out in-house, with our own team across Greater Montréal and a 24/7 emergency line. Maintenance requests are submitted online and followed up by our staff.
We hold the buildings we acquire, so maintenance and capital work are planned for the long term rather than for resale.
New construction uses materials chosen for decades of service, such as mass timber. Existing buildings are upgraded continuously: in 2024, two of our Plateau buildings were converted to bi-energy heating with Énergir.
What the family does outside of real estate: education, newcomers, health care and family business.
PÉR HEC · since 2018
In 2018, Kai co-founded the HEC Montréal chapter of the Student Refugee Program, run with World University Service of Canada (WUSC). Students at HEC sponsor a young refugee's first year in Montréal, from studies to housing. Seven students have been welcomed since, and Kai still serves as the program's treasurer.
Fondation HEC Montréal · Club des 100
Kai is a member of the Club des 100, a circle of donors to the Fondation HEC Montréal. Its members fund scholarships for HEC Montréal students.
Photo: Vavarx, CC0
HEC Montréal · Familles en affaires
As a second-generation member of a family business, Kai sits on the advisory committee of Familles en affaires at HEC Montréal, which supports research and teaching on family enterprises.
Photo: Canmenwalker, CC BY 4.0
Fondation Santé Urbaine · 2026
Verdun is home to our office and our first commercial buildings. Helisis donated to the campaign to expand and modernize the Hôpital de Verdun, which adds a new pavilion with 144 single rooms. The foundation uses the gifts for equipment and tools for the care teams.
Photo: Thomas1313, CC0
Pallia-Vie and Sault-Saint-Louis · since 2023
In 2023, Helisis sponsored the Fondation Pallia-Vie golf tournament and made a donation, helping keep end-of-life care free at its 12-room care home in Saint-Jérôme. Closer to home, Helisis also gives to the Maison de soins palliatifs Sault-Saint-Louis in LaSalle.
Photo courtesy of Pallia-VieThe family and its partners also build and run other businesses, often side by side with Helisis.
Development partnerTania Kokolakis's development company, our partner on Solaris and ANDAS. Learn more 
Coworking · Verdun, 2021 to 2025The coworking floor we created on Rue Wellington with Ivy Studio, and a room the neighbourhood could use. Learn more Marketing Marketing studioOur in-house studio for websites, campaigns and content, now open to outside clients. Helisis Marketing The next generation
Xiao Dong Zhang and Hong Sun bought the first building in 2002 and still lead the company. Their son, Kai, joined in 2014 and runs operations and development, with partners like Tania Kokolakis. Over two decades, the portfolio has grown from eight apartments in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve to new mass timber construction in Lachine. The approach has not changed: careful acquisitions, quality construction, long-term ownership and attentive management.
