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What caused the Vancouver real estate boom?

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What are Vancouver house and condo prices so high?

Speculation: Prices are going up, therefore prices will go up. Get in before you’re priced out forever. Its the only way to get really rich without even trying. Prices are practically guaranteed to go up forever. This time its different here.

Pent-up demand: Hey, we’re laid back in BC. We didn’t think about buying until everyone else thought about buying.

Rich Foreigners: We love it, we’ll take two, we don’t care what it costs. Do you have any magic beans for sale? We’re investing in magic beans as well, thats how we got so rich.

Leaky Condos: Its like NEW now! And its cheaper than the others! Lets buy it!

Low interest rates: Heck, the bank’s practically paying us to get rich.

Population growth: Ok, so population growth isn’t so hot. Still, you have to admit SOME people are moving here, just less than before the 90’s correction.

Income growth: Lets see now.. I could take on a paper route, mow a few lawns on the weekend and apply for that night watch job at the construction site.. maybe sell my plasma on the side… Yes, honey, we can make that mortgage payment!

Illegal drugs: Dude! heheh. This condo is wiiiicked! It’s like totally 3D! Quit bogarting the joint, pass the dutchie man! whoa. I can feel the shrooms kicking in, where do I sign?

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Anonymous

dosh is just an idiot who has never been to an art gallery or an opera, he thinks culture is something that comes from his ass when he sits on the toilet.

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amac

Comment by Dosh: "We are a cultural center like New York or London as much as some of the bears here hate to hear that."

ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND? Building a bunch of garish, overpriced hi-rise condos does not make a city great. What's your idea of culture? A night out in Yaletown? People move here for the weather/ocean/mountains, not the culture or nightlife. This is a sleepy seaside town for rich retirees and rich foreigners, neither of which rate culture very high on their list. Get your head out of your ass an take a trip to Montreal or New York, then you might understand what a cultural wasteland Vancouver really is.

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Toronto real estate

Hey, I am working as a Toronto real estate agent for 10 years but I never seen such an analise before. Where did you find that chard???:)

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trackback

[…] Speculation. As happens far too often in markets around the world speculation is running rampant in the Vancouver real estate market. Huge marketing teams push condo development presales and buyers hope to flip them for a quick buck. This means the market prices don’t reflect true resident demand for housing. Speculation drives market prices up beyond what resident’s incomes support. […]

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Snark

this is the best period to make up your mind and invest in that while the prices are not so high.

Is that really you Jay Banks? Or just someone linking to your site? Please tell why 'prices are not so high'. Can you find a single property in vancouver that will cashflow on rental income, because I do believe that would be the standard measure of an 'investment' property. Otherwise you're just speculating on future gains. That's turned out badly for people buying in MANY other markets over the last year.

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real estate Vancouve

The Vancouver real estate market is undoubtedly not in decline disregarding the fact you wanted to make a mockery out of it or not. In addition this is the best period to make up your mind and invest in that while the prices are not so high. I think that this place is more and more desirable considering the vast range of job opportunities.

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Anonymous

BTK

http://tinyurl.com/yrl3kj

(before the dot.com crash)

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krrish2

Thanks for all the response to the above post,I have put three institute character in the end those were andreas,evergreen and anon and the response are also very decent this is a scenario where people without any greed are posting their pure thoughts. I love all of you and for the understanding ,all those model character are there to say their own thoughts none of them are there to cut each other for example anons post at no.3 actually does not respond to evergreen and andreas but all three of them are three different sounds, need to get through every single ears. Ever green you might got some confusion but still your respond, I am agree with you there is nothing beyond happiness and family.Satisfaction is very important than renting or buying. Because of people like andreas,evergreen,anonymous and rx,our city… Read more »

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rx

I wouldn't mind buying a condo, but not at a ridiculous price. If I could rent a car for half the cost of buying one there's no way I'd buy one, so why would I buy a condo right now?

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Anonymous

I think most of the people on the blog wish to purchase a home, not a condo and have more than 50k.

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Andreas

Damn, We are always in need of industries to get jobs not to buy homes lots of people got jobs here since when ever they have start working,the question is are you able to buy home? being on bears side means no!you can not afford or you don’t like to buy or you don’t want to buy. jobs are growing every month did you buy anything since when ever.If market looks bub to you why did you miss the boat when prices were under control?????. So if we double the export from now would you be able to buy?No!no!no. What’s his point is no matter what you think of market but people from within provinces of canada,usa,and over seas are still buying. Some cut out cinnamon rools ——————– “How many of you are ready to buy a place granted the… Read more »

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Anonymous

I'm not sure why the media is stating we have so much more trade with India and China. This decoupling theory and that India and China will pick up our export slack is a bunch of bunk. We are so dependent on the U.S. for exports and our financial well being in Canada. End of story.

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hughz

My impression is that they get wowed by the import figures from China, as of 2006 it was Canada's second largest source of imports at 34.5 billion (compared to the 217.6 billion from the US). And especially the growth figures, with a 116% clip from 2002 to 2006.

What they presumably don't realize is that a lot of those containers in the port of Vancouver are going back empty to Shanghai, HK, etc.

I also see no reason why the media gets so excited about India, currently 0.5% of our imports come from there and 0.4% of our exports go there.

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Anonymous

The 75% – 76% was an estimate from stats can for 2007. Unable to locate link right now.

Hughz,

Thanks for posting B.C's current export rate.

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hughz

Try this link out:

http://www40.statcan.ca/l01/cst01/gblec02a.htm

Seems like it was right in the middle in 2006 at 79.2%.

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chip@chip@yahoo.com

"75% of all Canadian exports go to the U.S."

Do you have a link for that? It's been 85-86% for years, including last year according to this government link:
http://www.investincanada.com/director.aspx?tabid…

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sidelines

patriotz:

"'I’m just very surprised at seeing how little we export to China and India'

Just what is so surprising about it? What does BC produce that they can’t get from a closer source? India is practically on the other side of the planet, for heaven’s sake. Could this province please get over its incredible self-importance?"

I'm not sure if you're perhaps implying that I believe that BC is "the best place on earth" or something. The export numbers quoted were much smaller than I would have anticipated. That's bloody all. Guess I'm a little thick. And I'm guessing maybe you need a hug.

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patriotz

I already have someone to hug me, thank you. But sometimes I feel the need to take a great big primal scream at the endless parade of rationalizations for BC's supposed economic primacy.

I just thought that it would be self-evident that BC does not produce anything that China or India wants, and can't get from closer. Except Bryan Adams recordings, and they're all pirated over there anyway. 🙂

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evergreen

"I’m priced out right now. There is nothing I can do about it. Just gotta keep living life”.-Andreas

“Me, too. I’ve missed the boat and won’t be jumping excitedly onto any raft that comes by”.-evergreen

“you people should be buying instead of complaining – get into the houising market at what you can afford and stop worrying”.-anonymous

Complaining? I'm pretty happy living within my means.

There are more important things in life (like family, good health, peace of mind) than home ownership.

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patriotz

I’m just very surprised at seeing how little we export to China and India

Just what is so surprising about it? What does BC produce that they can't get from a closer source? India is practically on the other side of the planet, for heaven's sake. Could this province please get over its incredible self-importance?

Russia (Siberia) is right on the border with China and not all that far from India, and Australia is much closer to both of them as well.

"Japan is Australia’s leading market for exports of goods and services ($35.5 billion in 2006-07), followed by China ($26.4 billion), the United States ($15.5 billion), the Republic of Korea ($14.9 billion) and New Zealand ($12.7 billion)."

Kinda figures.

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patriotz

Vancouver is home to… EA sports and the 2010 Olympics?

Hey, you forgot Lululemon!

And now, a Toll Brother's daughter is walking the walk!

Florida Taking Its Toll (Brothers) On Daughter's Condo

"You just can’t make this stuff up. Apparently even a big builder’s daughter can’t seem to keep faith in the Florida housing market. According to an SEC filing, Wendy Topkis, daughter of Toll Brothers co-founder and Vice-Chairman Bruce Toll, is walking away from a Florida condo, just like everyone else. A Toll Bros. condo!! The Palm Beach Post says it best: Et Tu Wendy?"

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krrish2

Brand new Porsche’s, ever 4th car. Cars I’ve only seen in calendars and magazines.

What about parking?

half of the car on street and half on side walk.

what about streets structure?

too narrow.

did you see the police cars?

looks like fire fly.

except 2 street of central london did you see the rest of city?

whoop!

if you are genuine Vancouverites lived in Vancouver you should have say Vancouver British Columbia,Canada with any postal code is a BEST PLACE ON EARTH.

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Anonymous

"IF the US goes into recession it might have an effect back east, but Vancouver is different, our customers are all over the world and we’re not manufacturing widgets. We are a cultural center like New York or London as much as some of the bears here hate to hear that." Haha… I was just in London on the weekend, and there is no possible way to compare Vancouver to London. We were at the Chelsea Liverpool match on Sunday, and on the walk there saw a Bentley followed by a Lambo followed by a Ferrari. So many supercars there it's insane! Brand new Porsche's, ever 4th car. Cars I've only seen in calendars and magazines. The money in London comes from the huge number of world bank headquarters and other financial institutions… And the 2012 Olympics. Vancouver is home… Read more »

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scullboy

So is RE in NYC.

So there you go…. in both of the world's great cultural capitals, RE is crashing.

But maybe Vancouver is a GALACTIC cultural capital??

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Anonymous

So many keep referring to these countries when speaking of “decoupling”

For some reason the decoupling theory was taken as fact, when a simple reasonability test woudld have blown it out of the water. That is not to say that over longer periods of tiem (say decades), there will be a larger shifts away from U.S. production and consumption.

and how we’re going to avoid a recession here even if the US economy tanks

We won't avoid it. Also, remember that the action is at the margins. Commodity prices are based on the global situation. Even if we didn't sell a single 2×4 to the U.S, a U.S. recession would reduce the value of our exports.

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sidelines

Hey Hughz,

Could you let us know, from the BC export data you referred to, what the top 5 countries are that we export to (and the associated breakdown in percentages). If it's too much of a hassle, or requires some number crunching, whatever, don't worry about it. I'm just very surprised at seeing how little we export to China and India. So many keep referring to these countries when speaking of "decoupling" and how we're going to avoid a recession here even if the US economy tanks.

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jesse

Approximately: US 60%, Japan 15%, rest of Asia 15%, rest of world about 10%. And, as has been mentioned already, most of the exports to Asia are subsequently value-added and cycled into the US (and EU) in short order.

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hughz

No problem, that's what excel is for.

Top regions:

1.) North America, 61.2% (of which Mexico contributes 0.6 percentage points)

2.) Pacific Rim, 27.1% (of which Japan contributes 12.9 percentage points)

3.) Western Europe, 7.4%

4.) South East Asia, 1.7%

5.) South America, 1.3%

6.) The Middle East, 0.9%

7.) Eastern Europe, 0.6%

8.) Central America & the Caribbean, 0.3%

9.) Africa, 0.2%

(BTW: there is a little round error here, so the sum is 100.7%)

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krrish2

Damn, We are always in need of industries to get jobs not to buy homes lots of people got jobs here since when ever they have start working,the question is are you able to buy home? being on bears side means no!you can not afford or you don't like to buy or you don't want to buy. jobs are growing every month did you buy anything since when ever.If market looks bub to you why did you miss the boat when prices were under control?????. So if we double the export from now would you be able to buy?No!no!no. What's his point is no matter what you think of market but people from within provinces of canada,usa,and over seas are still buying. Some cut out cinnamon rools ——————– "How many of you are ready to buy a place granted the… Read more »

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scullboy

Wrong again, tard.

Being on the bears side means you've had a look at the economy and heard the local RE zombies chanting "best place on earth, buy now or be priced out forever" and decided "huh, this doesn't look like a very good investment." It's got nothing to do with your job.

LIke evergreen I've been priced out. Or at least I've been priced out of anything but a shitty Surrey condo I'd have to take a 40 year mortgage to purchase. I supposed it would be better to say the things I could afford, I wouldn't want to buy.

And who the f**k would be stupid enough to follow financial advice posted by "anonymous". Yeah that's the way to wealth.

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