10 condo price reductions in Vancouver
Looking for a condo in Vancouver but waiting for prices to drop? Well here’s some real estate price reductions for you in central Vancouver.. Is this the beginning of a slide in home values or a small dip before prices rocket back up again? I’ll leave that for you to decide. Price drops here range from $10,000 to $40,000. All of these listings have been on the market for more than 90 days, and all links lead to the property listing on MLS.ca
6460 MAIN ST – Original price: $395,000 | Asking: $369,000
“Bonus of $1,000 for accepted offer by August 15″
888 PACIFIC ST – Original price: $449,000 | Asking: $419,900
“Wake up & enjoy building amenities..”
1099 E BROADWAY – Original price: $349,900 | Asking: $325,000
“Faces Broadway but quiet inside”
336 E 1ST – Original price: $339,00 | Asking: $319,000
“Easy parking rental in building.”
950 CAMBIE ST – Original price: $488,000 | Asking: $478,800
“close to all amenities & other new buildings”
550 BEATTY ST – Original price: $429,000 | Asking: $415,000
“Upgraded kitchen cabinets for those who don’t want the conventional”
1238 BURRARD – Original price: $429,000 | Asking: $405,000
“Market rent $1650/mo.”
3788 W 10TH AV – Original price: $458,000 | Asking: $438,000
“Quick access to UBC and downtown.”
189 NATIONAL AV – Original price: $480,000 | Asking: $440,000
“Bright open kitchen with granite countertops“
6026 TISDALL ST – Original price: $279,000 | Asking: $265,000
“35% down payment required. Adult building.”
There are more listings, but I grow weary of typing. If there is interest I’ll make this an ongoing feature.
December 28th, 2006 at 10:57 am
Hi Corton, Thanks for the feedback, I think you have some very good points, but I also think the negativity you see is a natural effect of a boom on the potential buyer side. When the cycle is going down you'll see more negativity on the seller side. I think loss aversion is just a part of human nature and can manifest itself as negativity.Those of you who respond, are you specialists in this area, or speculators? Should I be offering medical advice? Probably not.I would not like to limit commentary to those that are specialists in real estate. I think the view of the non-specialist (potential buyer) is just as important in a case like this. I would say you should not offer medical advice, unless you have experience with a specific ailment. There are people here who experience previous boom and bust cycles in Vancouver real estate and I think their experiences can be informative.But the "HA, see, told ya so" attitude is unpleasant and not at all useful Well I never 'told ya so', but there are lots of people out there that have. I won't take responsibility for their comments or censor them unless they are completely out of line.Believe it or not, I am interested in providing people with useful information. Thats part of the motivation behind the price drops listing. If people feel its the right time to buy for them personally then they may appreciate having some of the potential 'bargains' highlighted. As you say (paraphrasing) 'one mans trash is another mans treasure'.What information would you find personally useful right now? What where you seeking when you came upon this site? I'd be happy to provide it if I'm able to.Thanks again for the post. Though I take issue with the term 'gibberish', I hope you'll stick around and add to the discussion.
December 28th, 2006 at 10:03 am
…So far I read nothing but bitterness, negativity and useless gibberish….My apologies, I should not say useless. And I should not be anonymous. I sense a very negative atmosphere from the contributors. I notice that the greater number of regular contributors have the attitude that the Real Estate industry is responsible for what has happened to the price of property in Greater Vancouver. I notice someone join in the conversatin who obviously is looking for some assistance and they get nothing but very pesimistic responses. Those of you who respond, are you specialists in this area, or speculators? Should I be offering medical advice? Probably not. Who wants to bet that we'll being seeing a lot more of these over the winter and into next spring? Well yeah, you will. The market has been going up at an unsustainable rate for too long. It does not take an expert in any field to know that nothing (not even a balloon) can continue to go straight up without eventually slowing down. But the "HA, see, told ya so" attitude is unpleasant and not at all useful – especially if your irregular viewers are looking for information that might assist them in forging a decision on their own situation.Every one of these places are a dump. It is no wonder why they are not selling.True. But there are as many different standards as there are cultures in Greater Vancouver. Some investors are less concerned with when their property sells, and more concerned with how much it sells for. They will get their price…if they want to keep it on the market that long. Sellers are going to ask their cocky prices when the market is as it has been. They are not going to stop “askingâ€, they are just not going to get a half dozen competing offers as they did back in April. The market is still not at an “average†or “balanced†market level yet. I have piped up here mostly due to the less than objective environment in this chat. I feel that if you are going to discuss the issues, using more observation and less unconstructive gibberish would be attractive to a greater audience.
December 27th, 2006 at 9:34 pm
So far I read nothing but bitterness, negativity and useless gibberish.I'm sorry you feel that way. I tend not to interfere on the commentary, and anyone is fully welcome to engage in constructive banter.If you're only looking for positive info on the local market, I imagine that should be easy enough to find. I do post some of it, but I post the bad news as well, and it comes filtered through a potentially imperfect human point of view.
December 27th, 2006 at 3:16 pm
I must say, this is my first time at this site. I am "in the market" and constantly looking for information. So far I read nothing but bitterness, negativity and useless gibberish. I suggest you remove the "info" from your blog title. Constructive banter would be far more useful (to everybody).
December 24th, 2006 at 6:07 am
1099 E BROADWAY – Original price: $349,900 | Asking: $325,000"Faces Broadway but quiet inside"now $308kThe rest, don't seem to be in mls anymore.
October 16th, 2006 at 4:00 pm
Every one of these places are a dump. It is no wonder why they are not selling. I have seen other places that are much nicer at more reasonable prices, and guess what, they sell overnight. Anything will sell if the price is right.
October 16th, 2006 at 11:39 am
I've been accused in the past of making things too complex"math is hard.. lets go shopping!"
October 16th, 2006 at 9:37 am
Londonernow said… its only breakeven at 50% down if you totally ignore the opportunity cost of what the 50% downpayment could earn at the risk-free rate. You are absolutely correct. I've been accused in the past of making things too complex, so I thought I'd just keep things simple. In reality, I could easily get 4% on this money risk-free, which as you point out, would still keep this as a losing proposition. In fact there are other factors, such as closing costs and homeowner's insurance that I didn't even consider, either.
October 15th, 2006 at 4:35 am
bc cele said: "It's still way overpriced. Take the listing for 1238 Burrard. At the suggested montly rent of $1650 you'd have to put over 50% down on a 25 year amortization to break even. At 25% you're around $800/month negative."its only breakeven at 50% down if you totally ignore the opportunity cost of what the 50% downpayment could earn at the risk-free rate.
October 14th, 2006 at 2:09 pm
That’s 10.5% reduction within a week. This one V585247 at VW has reduced a mere 8% from its 2005 asking price, but is still overpriced at 44% above its 2006 assessment value. A few at Pt Grey are asking over 100% more; so this is the current norm acceptable.So does high tax collection means better municipal services and/or a hefty 20%-30% pay hikes for the creative few?
October 13th, 2006 at 10:35 pm
First, sales started to dry up. Now sellers have started to lower prices. Next we’ll actually see lower sales prices.
I’ve just done a search for SFH Vancouver Westside $800k – $900k.
Came up with 58 listings. After going through them one by one I determined 20 have reduced their price. 8 were new listings, would have to be pretty desperate to lower the price within a week.
Best one was MLS® No.: V607352
Original list pricce $958,000
New price $858,000
Not only has a seller’s market ended but we are quickly moving out of CMHC’s imaginative “balanced market”.
October 13th, 2006 at 3:12 pm
Sorry link was too long and got cut off. "2006 April 25 – How Taxes Are Determined" http://tinyurl.com/tq8jeCNN Money has an article today on"The hottest part of the housing market: Taxes"Home prices may be slowing, but property taxes are heading nowhere but up. Don't get mad – get relief.By Gerri Willis, Money Magazine contributing writerOctober 1 2006: 12:27 PM EDThttp://tinyurl.com/hgoylAnd this one:Friday, 13 October 2006Vancouver 24 hoursCover picture: DT highrise condos constructionCaption: "Bubble trouble?"A report with only two sentences:"Is the housing bubble about to burst? Experts say that while meteoric price hikes have subsided, the housing market is in no threat of crashing soon."http://tinyurl.com/yh43rc
October 13th, 2006 at 1:42 pm
anon: I've heard of people that have had bad experiences in co-ops, but also people that have completely enjoyed living in co-ops. It really depends on the luck of the draw for who you end up sharing the building with.The thing with co-ops is that the legal structure is different. You don't specifically own your unit you own a share of the co-operative. This is why you need to put 35% down and why you can't get loans based on your ownership as collateral. This is also why they don't tend to appreciate like other properties.You should talk to a realtor about the pros and cons of co-ops if you are interested in them.
October 13th, 2006 at 1:33 pm
This list is much appreciated. I see the last one is a coop. This one’s more than I can afford, but I see others for way below strata condo prices. I know you need 35% down, but besides that, what’s the downside? Why do they seem to sit on MLS a long time. Someone told me that I would enjoy a coop if I liked the idea of living in a police state. I don’t consider this person too reliable. Anyone have any experience in them? Sorry for straying off topic.
October 13th, 2006 at 12:45 pm
Pope,
now that I think about it, that is rather pessimistic. There has to be at least a few thousand people in Vancouver that have that kind of money just kicking around and have always wanted to be landlords. Not to mention the rich foreign investors that must find our prices a bargain. Guess I’ll have to accept the fact that high prices will continue forever.
Ken,
yes the figures include the .56% tax property tax and the $309/month strata. I didn’t really consider maintenance as it doesn’t change the figures significantly. You are also correct about being an accountant – well in a former life. I did it for over a decade and still keep a side-line business; however, my day job is in technology. Although, budgeting is still something I deal with.
October 13th, 2006 at 11:20 am
Current RE prices are warranted and must not come down before 2010
Just ask sneaky Sam and cronies.Read more here:https://www.vancouver.ca/commsvcs/planning/cityplan/Visions/wpg/factsheets/131budget.pdfHow Taxes Are DeterminedThe amount of tax payable on a property is determined by multiplying the assessed market value of the property by the tax rate. The higher the value of the property, the more taxes are paid.Taxes are based on the market value of the property. Therefore any change that would increase the market value would also result in higher taxes. On top of that, for 2005, a 3.0% increase in the municipal property tax levy was approved
October 13th, 2006 at 9:46 am
jojuchst: Whoops! Typo. That doesn’t look much like a price reduction does it? Thats what I get for typing tired. The original asking price was actually $488k NOT $448k. So its a $10,000 price reduction, and still conveniently located close to new buildings! I’ve edited the post to correct this.
October 13th, 2006 at 8:11 am
950 CAMBIE ST – Original price: $448,000 | Asking: $478,800"close to all amenities & other new buildings"Is this an indication of a bull market?
October 12th, 2006 at 9:45 pm
Nice work Pope! You’re Vancouver’s answer to Sacramento Area Flippers In Trouble
http://tinyurl.com/n77pn
I’ve just seen a flip job on a SFH in the Main area run into trouble.
MLS listing: http://tinyurl.com/yxkk5z
Flippers bought it back in the winter/early spring – renovated like hell – then put it on the market in late summer for about $829K. It sold in about 4 weeks but the deal must have fallen through since it’s back on the market at $799K less than 2 weeks later. Interesting…a classic weasel reduction.
I’m sure it’s still a significant mark-up from their original purchase price since it was formerly inhabited by people who apparently urinated out the windows judging from the smell of the place.
They’re having an open house this weekend in case you’re in the area and need to use a washroom.
October 12th, 2006 at 9:13 pm
I like "Bonus of $1,000 for accepted offer by August 15". The other one I've seen on some listings is "act quick, this one can't last!". That looks pretty sad on a listing thats been on the market for 4 months.bc_cele, do your figures include maintenance and taxes? I've noticed you're always quick with the math, are you an accountant?
October 12th, 2006 at 9:06 pm
bc_cele: Are you suggesting that we might not have a bunch of people out there with $200k in cash they want to drop into an investment that will hopefully break even? Why so pessimistic? I mean sure, you could put that $200k into a high interest savings account and get a garaunteed return, but what fun would that be? Haven’t you always wanted to be a landlord?
October 12th, 2006 at 8:31 pm
It’s still way overpriced. Take the listing for 1238 Burrard. At the suggested montly rent of $1650 you’d have to put over 50% down on a 25 year amortization to break even. At 25% you’re around $800/month negative.
October 12th, 2006 at 8:14 pm
Who wants to bet that we’ll being seeing a lot more of these over the winter and into next spring?