Uncategorized

Friday Free-for-All!

69
69 Comments

It’s open topic time here at VancouverCondo.info, here’s a few stories I’ve noticed this week:

– Homeowners face increasing financially strain
– Harper: Canadian economy in good shape
– Price Hikes starting to hurt
– Foreclosures can be jackpots
– Congresswoman walks away from mortgage
– Oops. I meant ‘forward’ not ‘reply all’!
– Largest ever US house price decline
– Flip this house. Please!
– Florida for sale.

So what are you seeing out there? Post your news, links and anecdotes here and have a great weekend!

69 Comments
newest
oldest most voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Bubble Lad

Sorry – four years worth of pent up frustration crammed into one post – my bad. Apologies.

0
0
scullboy

Bubble Lad: Dude, while I'm with you, you gotta calm down… and I say this with real concern. One point you bring up that's interesting… you seem to need "BC creds" to live in BC, in order to get a job or apartment…. which I found weird. Hey Rob A., if you really are moving to Toronto, make sure to tell everyone there that downtown Vancouver is where the action is. After they get through laughing… well they'll laugh some more. Seriously dude… good luck. You gotta move fast just to keep your feet in TO, and competition for work is crazy fierce. To's actually where all the immigrants who are smart, ambitious and well educated live, and you'll have to compete with all of them. On the other hand there's way more to do, though admittedly it isn't nearly… Read more »

0
0
Rob A.

^LMAO, dude, chill out 😀 Downtown Vancouver is great, it's where the action is.

0
0
Bubble Lad

I guess it's all those wonderful cafes three feet away from main thoroughfares like Granville and Broadway where there are cement trucks whizzing by every five seconds and you get to pick the road grit out of your mixed greens that are so great (God knows they can't put them where they belong…BEHIND their business, away from the street, due to the stench of garbage filled dumpsters discarded hypos, and binners rattling through them). Does anybody who makes those comments ever venture OUT of Vancouver? Or does the entire world consist of Vancouver's West end). Aside from the scenery, Vancouver is a DUMP. And guess what, nobody who lives here had anything to do with creating the sea and mountains…SO STOP TAKING CREDIT FOR THEM! Vancouver has NO industry (try posting a resume…see how many responses you get from OUTSIDE… Read more »

0
0
Me2

The ratio for the GVRD is 72% owner occupied, not sure what Vancouver proper is it's not broken down, but would be very similiar.

0
0
me

re: Vancouver Rental Rates

I remember specifically a few years ago stats being released that half of Vancouver rented and half owned

Not bashing Anonymous – just wondering where you picked up your numbers?

0
0
Vansanity

"I also thought the razor wire on top of the fences would be a turn-off to potential buyers."

No kidding! And, yes probably $1.4M per… sales slogan goes something like: "Steps away from historic Chinatown"…"equipped with its own secured razor wire fence" 😀

0
0
Anonymous

Rentha,

Those figures are from b.c.

0
0
vanguy

Corner of venables and gore:

Strange place for three houses, but I have seen them hold open houses, and I saw people coming and going.

Not sure what prices they are asking but I'm sure it's high.

I also thought the razor wire on top of the fences would be a turn-off to potential buyers.

0
0
rentah

Anonymous said: 70% people are home owners and 30% people are renting till 2007.There was 2% to 3% percent increse in home ownership btw 05-07.

Are those the Vancouver figures. They look more like the US figures to me. I think we have a lower percentage of owners here.

0
0
GENERIC POSTER

MUG SHOT-WEEK ENDING SALES VS LISTING

"we look like we’re about 30% down in listing volume, and we’re about 30% up in sales volume"-from the best real estate anywhere.

0
0
blueskies

I guess with all the competition you’ve got try new things to stand out.

lessee… sign twirlers

this helped prevent the collapse of RE in California

and drove employment levels way up enabling the sign twirlers to purchase their own RE…..

lotsa balloons…. always an attraction

this weekend there were 3 total townhouses for sale (OPEN House on all of them) in our YT building…. never seen that many before…alas no balloons 🙁

0
0
scullboy

Hey ROb:

I was in downtown Toronto for almost 10 years. I moved about 2 years ago.

Don't worry…. they have lots of restaurants and cafes in Toronto.

0
0
Rob A.

Wow, what a great weekend in fabulous downtown Vancouver. I am appreciating this city and it's natural beauty more than ever. All my friends downtown think I am crazy for moving to Ontario, they tell me that if you like restaurants and cafes, downtown is the place to be. And I know that they are right 🙁

0
0
Anonymous

Speaking of open houses I saw an interesting twist today on the desperate bid to get attention – There where hand written yellow signs for about 10 blocks along 12th leading to a condo near Arbutus saying weird things like "Got Milk? Buy this home!" and "Massive Curb Appeal!"

Looked like two bored realtors sitting outside the front door of the building when I drove by. Odd gimmick, I can't imagine it would be very effective buy I guess with all the competition you've got try new things to stand out. Heaven know you wouldn't want to simply price reasonably.

0
0
Vansanity

Anyone know what the story is on those three homes along Gore on the corner of venables? They have been sitting there unfinished for… well…serioulsy, I don't even remember! Months and months now. I remember there were fires there delaying things at one point, but that was long ago now. Why is there no further work going on there?

0
0
Lager not Logger

Crazy amounts of open houses out there this weekend! Between Victoria and Alma it almost looked like two open houses per block!

0
0
-A-

"If you think inflation is understated, you’re more than welcome to, along with the rest of the world’s investors, go and negotiate a higher interest rate on your treasury bonds."

Jesse:

Trying to negotiate a higher interest rate on treasury bills if futile, what investors are doing is shorting the US dollar, and holding hard goods.

As soon as the Fed signals it will stop the deliberate devaluing of their currency, oil, rocks and gold, will reprice, to reflect the true value (whatever that may be given the global slowdown).

You don’t want to own a spec condo in Alberta, and you get screwed if you have a 40yr mortgage in Vancouver.

0
0
jesse

"but let’s keep in mind, that every regular Joe on the street knows, CPI is as fraudulent as a loaded dice."

Wrong. We know exactly what it is. Maybe you think there's a global conspiracy to misinterpret the CPI and hold bond rates down? That's not fraud, that's brilliant salesmanship and influence. If you think inflation is understated, you're more than welcome to, along with the rest of the world's investors, go and negotiate a higher interest rate on your treasury bonds.

0
0
-A-

“indeed will be interesting to see to what degree we get stagflation, or to what degree the boc will respond to cpi pressure. carney may test the bond market further, he seems at this point to be a bit of a inflationist; or at least interested in testing the boundaries.” Very true, but let’s keep in mind, that every regular Joe on the street knows, CPI is as fraudulent as a loaded dice. The difference is that unlike, a regular Joe, or a Reader’s Digest educated realtor/blogger/Re pimps, Carney and other central bankers are well aware that the cost of reckless monetary policy is not simply the choice of a “bit “of inflation as opposed to a recession. Economists are indoctrinated from first semester that inflation is public enemy number #1, and the regular kool aid mortgaged slave will eventually… Read more »

0
0
Krrish2

B.C.Assessments has issued a notice of assessment to more than 1.89 million people on jan,2008 based on the performance of market in 2007.

Total population for Metro 2,289,900 (2007)after reduction of total percentage of tenents the left over percentage of populations are home owners and their family members.

0
0
Anonymous

70% people are home owners and 30% people are renting till 2007.There was 2% to 3% percent increse in home ownership btw 05-07.

0
0
patriotz

Drachen, if I remember correctly, 56% of people in the lower mainland rent, which would imply only 44% owner occupancy, which would imply an even bigger uh-oh if any percentage try to sell…

Yes but rental properties get put up for sale too. What you have to look at is the number of individually titled dwelling units (SFH or strata) versus the total number of dwellings.

0
0
stagnate

indeed will be interesting to see to what degree we get stagflation, or to what degree the boc will respond to cpi pressure. carney may test the bond market further, he seems at this point to be a bit of a inflationist; or at least interested in testing the boundaries.

pre-sales: indeed a lot of people should consider themselves luck to have the option of walking, their money may be more efficient with another option.

0
0
Anonymous

This is clearly an excellent opportunity for those pre-sale buyers to just walk away without a penalty. That's what I will do.

0
0