I’m with Robin Hood / Mr. Data Thief on this one . He/she has done nothing wrong, and certainly is not seeking any monetary gain from it.

tulip:"ratios don’t apply to Vancouver of course"The Economist bullish on East Asian housing? Sounds like a sell signal to me 🙂

satv is getting sloppy. Not putting in as much effort with his obfuscator.

"Satv: please don't post the entire lyrics to a Brian Adams song – if you really feel its pertinent just link to them. "Or at least babelfish it. Actually, I betcha it'd come out pretty funny.

Just unbelievable numbers. Oh well, I'm out of here. I'll be back when all the condos finish and sit vacant. I'm going to Montreal, and the apartment lease I'm taking over from is managed by a real company, and the rent stay the same. I anticipate heavy turnover in GVRD rental stock, and being homeless is not my preferred way of waiting out a housing bubble.

Well I guess sometimes there's something to be said for having a government that doesn't have to cater to Donald Trumpthe benefit of a central government…so long as it's making good decisions and not horrific ones.

Satv: please don't post the entire lyrics to a Brian Adams song – if you really feel its pertinent just link to them.

At the peak of the boom in 2004, the prices of luxury apartments in Shanghai were rising at an annual rate of 50%, but the government has since successfully cooled the market with a capital-gains tax on homes resold within five years and an increase in minimum down payments.Well I guess sometimes there's something to be said for having a government that doesn't have to cater to Donald Trump, or Li Ka-Shing wannabees as the case may be. Imagine any government in Canada or the US doing such a thing.

ratios don’t apply to Vancouver of course“Across the globe, studies show that in the long term the main driver of house prices is income. The ratio of average house prices to average incomes is currently flashing red in America, Britain, Spain and quite a few other developed countries where it has soared to record highs—ie, above levels that preceded previous crashes”

Well done Jim. Riches await.

Upon closer scrutiny of THE GRAPHS, it would appear the "correction" happened last Septemeber to January and I missed it. Oh well at least I bought on the way back up.

BTW, Beirut was once known as the Paris of the Middle East

"…reminds me of the high-priced condos on the edge of Gastown and the DTES, e.g. the "W" building. Any stories from owners living there yet"The Woodwards building is still incomplete, and the Salient Group are making a new condo development by gutting and refitting a building across the street called Paris Block.I think it is fair to say the new residents will get a real eyeful if they look around their new trendy and edgy neighbourhood. Until one of the locals kills them for their wallet. They'd be better off in Beirut.

depresso said:…but Edmonton is one of the biggest shitholes in North America.Bite your tongue! That title belongs to Gary, Indiana; all other cities are just pretenders to the (porcelain) throne.

Gastown and the DTES, e.g. the "W" building. Any stories from owners living there yet? gastown is up up up more than vancouver west."W" will complete around 2009 so still under construction.best thing about gastown their is hardly any one selling.this town is reborn and have a bright future, another best thing people hardly need a cars here just walk around and enjoy life like heaven on earth,that cluster which bite people will be removed around 2009 may be to alberta farms.if some one purchased in "w"district is making almost 200k on 250k purchased.this town is bryan adams town,he had sing this song heaven long time ago,lyrics of his songs become true up and coming the best of the best GASTOWN.Heaven Oh – thinkin' about all our younger yearsThere was only you and meWe were young and wild and freeNow… Read more »

This Miami Herald story:http://tinyurl.com/2wyj6e(which I saw quoted on the Housing Panic blog) reminds me of the high-priced condos on the edge of Gastown and the DTES, e.g. the "W" building. Any stories from owners living there yet?

another anecdote re: all the beautiful carsI knew a man 2 years ago who took out a second mortgage on his home to buy a hummer (that was just after his new baby was born of course). so for myself, I don't see any of these monthly increase in numbers as depressing – because I live where first time "detached" home buyers should be coming – and like I mentioned earlier, nothing is moving around here.so all these numbers mean to me is a harder drop when things do turn.

The pop thanx for the good work always,these benchmarks are exclusively availabel only for user's here.freeko thanks to assist the pop and puting your hard work immideatly after.that theory you want to know is very very basic principle to keep the bussiness going.this is what my mother once tought me some examples are given down heredoctors never say that they will let their patient die.laywers never say that they will let their client lose.rennie or chip never say bla bla bla.patients die some times,clients lose some times,so does real estate sometimes.chipman is very simple his hold or prediction is based on fact not on speculations.his commentary changed everyday according to available source from market everyday.very simple if something is up he mention that, if some thing is down so does his commentary.hadenough saidHasn't the Olympics always sort of been like… Read more »

Edmonton is one of the biggest shitholes in North America.A mini-Dallas or Houston with Arctic winters. And Edmonton is about three times the price? Look out below.

reducimat:You remind me of an observation I have yet to enunciate. Over the last 25 years I have noticed a dramatic improvement in the quality of autos parked outside of fairly modest homes. Likely because:1.Credit is cheap2.Houses are so expensive only the truly rich can afford them.In Point Grey one neighbour (home owner-no mortgage) drives a rattle trap 10 year old Toyota. Another has a Porche and a LandRover. Guess which one is the retired teacher and which ones are the D.I.N.K.S.? Bothe their houses look pretty much the same to me.

I think we should boycott "robsnumber" as it will result in the end of "The Best Real Estate Anywhere".

The global real estate boom will come to an end, and the end will likely be spectacular for cities that have most outstripped their fundamentals. I would put Vancouver very close to the top of that list. I believe that the canadian city which will experience the worst crash will be Edmonton. The inventories there are already skyrocketing and prices are 200% above the levels from just 2 years ago. I can understand why someone finds Vancouver attractive, but Edmonton is one of the biggest shitholes in North America.

The ones who bought recently won't do much partying when Olympics hit.damn those Albertans… where the hell is that place anyway?

Pope: I paid slightly below the detached median. I had my realtor send me all the solds since January and all the current listings. If I had a time machine and could get all my renos done as of today I would sell for about an instant $200k profit,less comission, legal,taxes. However if the market dives this fall,I consider this my hubris cushion and can sit tight until 2020 when it comes back.

Had Enough:You are pretty much bang on vis a vis the fuzzy logic around the benefits of the games. My personal favourite was the study that showed the games would pay for themselves based upon increased tourism over the 20 years following the event. There will be a big party for a couple of weeks in 2010, a number of development types will have new cars and boats, and the rest of us will have something to pay off for twenty years.