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Friday Free-for-all-y’all!

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169 Comments

Yup. It’s that time of the week again. Let’s do our regular end of the week news roundup and open topic discussion thread, yee-haw! Here’s a few stories to git y’all started:

–an ‘eduation’ about the reality of realty prices in other areas
–Go Tiny to go home
–We’re building more houses!
–The new prices, they go down?
–The Zuck will save our real estate market
–No retirement for you mom and dad
–It’s a buyers market!
–Sharp rise in US foreclosures

So what are you seeing out there? Post your news links, thoughts and anecdotes and have an excellent weekend!

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[…] “I met with friends that were going on and on about an uncle that kept buying and flipping houses last year. They said, “He made 50k on that one, then bought that and flipped it for 80k, then bought that and flipped it for 70k,…”. I said, “He would have been better off buying one property and doing one sale and increasing his holding period, he made money because he was part of an irrational rising market not because of house flipping super powers. I said transaction costs would have killed him. They looked at me with shock, because they were expecting the story to pump me up with real estate lust. Needless to say, they bought a place last year and are renovating it with the intention of flipping it. In addition, Their neighbour is elderly and they… Read more »

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[…] neighbour…. I hope stupidity is rewarded accordingly.” – Anonymous at vancouvercondo.info October 16th, 2011 at 7:52 am Share:TwitterFacebookRedditStumbleUponDiggLike this:LikeBe the first to like this post. This […]

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Shocked

Can anybody explain why there are only 8 open houses in Vancouver and 6 in Burnaby (other areas also showing very low numbers for open houses with the exception of Vancouver West at 44).

Also, did anybody notice there were 1200 rental ads on Craigslist for Friday Oct 14 alone?

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[…] “A local family owns two houses next to each other here in Squamish. They bought a third house directly next door and listed the first two houses. They demolished the newly purchased house and built a large house to accommodate the members of the family living in the first two houses. Then they wait…and wait. Almost two years later the two houses are still on the market. They drop the price on one by $100k. Nothing. Then a couple of days ago, they drop the price another $100k and drop the price on the second house $300k. $400,000 down in just one day. I don’t care how much money you have, that’s gotta hurt. The cheaper of the two houses is now listed at less than they bought the tear-down. They would have been better off just to tear… Read more »

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Smiling Assassin

@Lilypad, I live in the exact block you are talking about. By the park on GC and Granville. I have never smelled anything.. Weird…

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Anon

And now for something completely different …

http://lmfpobao.ytmnd.com/

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jesse

Steven Quinn: demands on civic election races:

Demand 13: That candidates refrain from promising measures to make housing more affordable in Vancouver.

LOL What could civic politicians do, me wonders… certainly anything they could do that would actually improve affordability in the long run would be woefully unpopular.

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Kitz college girlz

Your health is the most important thing you can have, and most citizens of developed societies are nowhere near fit and healthy enough. Already medical bills are the most common reason for bankruptcy in the US, and while you can't protect yourself against every form of medical eventuality, you can at least improve your fitness. You will be be living in a world where hard physical work will be much more prevalent than it is now, and most people are ill-equipped to cope.

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westerly

@ Van_Coffee

So you're the competition, huh?

I don't recall the exact address, but the taped up place was on the opposite side of the Crescent West townhouses, facing Michael Smith park. Pity. On paper, these places look pretty sweet. And on the flipside: can you imagine spending 1.X MM to by a LEASE on one of these places?!

Good luck in your search 🙂

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Best place on meth

@patriotz:

>>>Shiller found that house prices track inflation in the long run, so if they outpace inflation in the short run, they must subsequently go down, as Bracke pointed out.<<<

If that were the case for Vancouver then the average detached home today would cost $250,000 based on 1977 prices and the inflation since then.

Looks like we're a little bit out of whack.

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Lilypad

@bubba: Thanks, Bubba. Funny how when I called Richmond City Hall they played dumb about the smell and referred me to Metro Vancouver Air Quality complaints line at 604-436-6777, but they played dumb, too. Totally unhelpful. I can see why they don't want to admit the air around here stinks — bad for the only business in town — real estate. hahaha am I ever GLAD I AM A RENTER AND CAN MOVE WHEN I DECIDE!!!! 🙂

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[…] “A local family owns two houses next to each other here in Squamish. They bought a third house directly next door and listed the first two houses. They demolished the newly purchased house and built a large house to accommodate the members of the family living in the first two houses. Then they wait…and wait. Almost two years later the two houses are still on the market. They drop the price on one by $100k. Nothing. Then a couple of days ago, they drop the price another $100k and drop the price on the second house $300k. $400,000 down in just one day. I don’t care how much money you have, that’s gotta hurt. The cheaper of the two houses is now listed at less than they bought the tear-down. They would have been better off just to tear… Read more »

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Li Kai Shing

Hoo Boy

Can tell market is goink down toilet.

Bob Rennie campaign poster for Surrey Mayor

http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/bnc/w4m/2652270…

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bubba

Errata:I meant SELLERS caught in the 5 year window…….

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bubba

I think the buyers will caught in the old " 5 YEAR Window".

They say, on average the RE turnover rate is 5 years.

However, at this juncture, too many will be locked in at high purchase prices, and can't afford to sell as prices drop.

This unfortunately clashes head -on with less liberal lending practices, as well as the buyer pool (say 25-40 year olds) have been wiped out.

Interesting times…starting about "NOW"……

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Anonymous

Economists used to believe that we had to hold our noses and put up with high inequality as the price of robust growth. But more recent research suggests the opposite: inequality not only stinks, but also damages economies.

In his important new book, “The Darwin Economy,” Robert H. Frank of Cornell University cites a study showing that among 65 industrial nations, the more unequal ones experience slower growth on average. Likewise, individual countries grow more rapidly in periods when incomes are more equal, and slow down when incomes are skewed.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/16/opinion/sunday/…

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Anonymous134282

More noise on the HST theme.

Previous link was:

"Drop B.C. HST on new homes now, realtors say"
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/st…

New link:

"B.C. builders want HST transition help. Aimed at stemming massive job losses"
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/st…

Personally, I look forward to the massive construction job losses.

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fixie guy

143 Anonymous Says: "Did this magically cause a housing bubble and bust in Iceland…."

That is what caused it in Iceland. False dilemma regardless, I never claimed it's what caused the bubble here. Quite the opposite, repeatedly. In the US federal deregulation policies made the bubble possible as a secondary effect. It allowed financial industries to hide and disperse risk until the system was poisoned and ground to a halt (see TARP.) Here the feds made it a PRIMARY policy to take those risky assets from lenders via the CMHC. That they continued doing it after watching the disastrous effects elsewhere makes us infinitely dumber, that we brag about it to the world future laughing stocks.

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fixie guy

@144 Devore: Yes "experts overseeing experts" is exactly the BS Bush used as justification – and it hasn't been going on forever, his administration was the first to roll it out as core policy – ignoring that regulatory agencies aren't institutions of trust. If trust was a given, we wouldn't need regulatory agencies. It shows how uncritical we've become.

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YLTN @ Work

Bubbaliscious China:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/11/us-chin…

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[…] “Two recent Vancouver anecdotes: 1) Friend sold her house in Kits/Kerrisdale area for just over $2.1MM earlier this year. Buyer is trying to flip it but it has just sat on the market @ $2.4MM for almost 6 months. 2) Similar story on East Van side from a realtor in the area. Earlier house in the area was put on the market for $999K, and was sold for $1.4MM. It has sat now for several months at $1.5MM. Still no buyers for either of them. I imagine after the property transfer tax, realtor commissions, and other holdings costs (interest, property tax, insurance) that if they don’t sell by the end of the year they are going to be losing money on these ‘investments’.” – Joey Jo Jo Jr. at vancouvercondo.info October 14th, 2011 at 6:16 pm […]

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Anonymous

"You have to wonder why he bailed BEFORE the 2010 Olympics…gee everyone wants to buy RE that revolves around a 2 week event"

When Whistler started out the developer had the vision and the investors had the money. The objective is to switch those. Once the developer has the money he leaves the investor with the vision. His job is done. He took the money and left the vision for the investors. A similar thing is taking place here in Vancouver we are just a few years behind in the process.

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bubba

@Anonymous:

Yeah, I remember Whistler Pre Joe Hussein/Intrawest days.

Not much their in early 1980's.

You have to wonder why he bailed BEFORE the 2010 Olympics…gee everyone wants to buy RE that revolves around a 2 week event

Same will apply to Golf Courses with condos (Bear Mountain), Time shares etc that lock Real Estate into some recreational anchor.

Watch it tank and taxes go up.

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bubba

@Anonymous:

Not sure how often . I know the City gets inundated with calls when it happens, the smell blankets large areas, but that was the acknowledged source. I think Delta and other areas have the situation/same problem

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Anonymous

"Whistler’s been tanking for years and no ‘professionals’ want to admit it for fear of being blamed for causing the stampede. Only suckers have bought in whistler in the last 10 years (and arguably before that)- the ski hill went into bankruptcy for heaven’s sake! What are people thinking! Do you really think that Joe Hussein didn’t see this coming?"

Whistler was built on real estate and time share sales. The ski hill was never really profitable. Once the real estate was developed and sold the business model was done.

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