Tag Archives: money

Open Topic

Friday Free-for-all! March 24th 2016

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It’s the end of another glorious work week and that means it’s time for another glorious Friday Free-for-all!

This is our regular end of the week news round up and open topic discussion thread for the weekend.

Here are a few recent links to kick off the chat:

–Where politicians fear success
–Best neighborhoods
–Smart or lucky?
–Foreign money problem
–Squamish?
–Cracks in the market?
–

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

advice, BC, economy, humor, hype, opinion, predictions, prices

We were right, you should have listened.

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48 Comments

Ulsterman dug up this blast from the past: a posting from this here site in 2006.  At that time we recommended Vancouver real estate as the easy road to riches.  If you followed that advice you’re probably reading this now on a solid gold iPad while you recline on silk cushions with your feet in a bath of Diva Vodka. 

 

YOU can GET RICH in REAL ESTATE!

Are you ready to become so INCREDIBLY RICH that you no longer have to adhere to the standards and conventions of ‘civilized’ society? Are you TIRED of eeking out a day-to-day existence while you can smell THE REEK OF WEALTH all around you? Would you like to be able to walk through the mall without any pants and be so EXCESSIVELY WEALTHY that no one can utter a word about your pantless state, lest you unleash your personal squadron of vicious attack lawyers destroying their lives and reputations?

Well NOW you CAN!

Yes! Thanks to the MIRACLE of BOUNDLESS increases in PROPERTY VALUE you can now become a MULTI-MILLIONAIRE by investing in real-estate. And the best thing about it? This process requires NO EXPENSIVE COURSES OR SPECIAL EQUIPMENT. You don’t need any special skills or knowledge – In fact, you don’t even need a brain! THAT JUST HOW EASY IT IS!

Here’s how its done:

1) buy real-estate
2) sell real-estate (for more than you bought it for)
3) repeat and profit!

This SIMPLE MONEY-MAKING PLAN will see you swimming in your own personal GOLDEN BATHTUB filled with 50 dollar bills within a week. Within a month you will have SO MUCH MONEY coming in that you can hire people to MAKE MONEY FOR YOU. Within a year you will be so RICH, so INCREDIBLY WEALTHY that you will be able to buy yourself a SOLID GOLD SPHERE THREE HUNDRED MILES IN DIAMETER!

You will have the power to BUY AND SELL other people for your own amusement. Earth will be your playground and all that hear your name will COWER IN FEAR. So what are you waiting for? GET RICH NOW!

Why am I sharing my MONEY MAKING SECRETS with you? Because I care. I know that you personally have the RIGHT STUFF to dominate the globe and I want you to SUCCEED. And just to show you my generosity, my utter lack of personal greed or selfish motivation, I have just the thing to get you started. It’s a small leaky condo on the east side and it can be your stepping stone to UNLIMITED MIND-BOGGLING RICHES.

 

Remember, it’s never too late to take this advice! It’s entirely free and worth every penny paid! Stop slumping and start Trumping!

BC, Canada, economy, hype, Open Topic, opinion, prices, supply, USA

US claims stolen Chinese money washed in Van RE.

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Anyone who’s read this site for a while has probably noticed a couple of things:

1. A number of regular reader and commenters here blame wealthy Chinese ‘investor immigrants’ for the high cost of real estate in Vancouver.

2. The administration of this site disagrees and thinks that over-stretched house-horny locals and government insured lending on real estate are primarily to blame for high prices.

Yet we must admit this story has us thinking perhaps the truth is a blend of those two viewpoints:

U.S. alleges Metro Vancouver homes were part of scheme to launder money embezzled in China

Authorities allege that in the summer of 2011, shortly after they qualified for U.S. green cards, Qiao and Zhao began surreptitiously using accomplices to transfer millions of dollars into bank accounts in Wenzhou city, Hong Kong and Canada. At least two Canadian banks were used, HSBC Canada and the Royal Bank of Canada.

Zhao recently put the White Rock property up for sale for $689,000. Paulo Leung, a real estate agent with Regent Park Realty, said he had also sold the property to her in 2012 as an investment. He declined to say more. Both properties are being managed by Vancouver-based Chartell Properties. A receptionist there said they knew Zhao.

A search of property and title records conducted by The Vancouver Sun show that Zhao’s numbered company bought the properties outright. However, a few months later, it took out mortgages on both, totalling $1.1 million, that represented almost their entire market value. According to the U.S. indictment, a few weeks later Zhao and Qiao took money from their Canadian RBC account to pay for a Bellevue home.

Officials for the RCMP and Citizenship and Immigration Canada said they did not know if their departments assisted U.S. and Chinese investigators, and could not comment if they did.

Read the full article over in the Vancouver Sun.

advice, humor, hype

The best way to make money in Real Estate

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Looks like somebody has figured out the easiest and best way to make tons of money in Real Estate.

It’s not buying and flipping condos, it’s not renting out rooms and sheds, it’s not even as a developer building towers or a realtor taking a commission on each sale.

No, all those things would take way too much work.

The best way we’ve ever seen to get rich off of real estate is simple: sell your name to developers.

This way you take no risk in the market and make money no matter what happens.

So what are you waiting for? Get selling!

advice, BC, debt, hype, opinion, renting

Evangelists for buying

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Many Franks pointed out this article in the Globe and Mail and then pulled out a whole bunch of gems.

“Here’s a hilarious litany of Vancouver real estate orthodoxy straight from the punch bowl:”

…the city renowned in popular mythology as a place with such astronomical house prices that its young will be forced to live in basement suites forever…“

That’s right, buy or basement suites forever, your choice.

…There’s definitely sacrifices. I budgeted. I didn’t eat out. Some could say I missed some life experiences. But if you have that [home ownership] as your goal, anything is possible…”

It’s amazing whats possible if you just skip life experiences.

…the proliferation of condos and townhouses here gives them a lower-priced product to choose from compared with other cities that are dominated by houses…

Not only a magical city, but also one of the only ones around that has condos and townhouses!

…siblings or friends will buy an apartment together until they’ve built up enough equity to sell and take their proceeds…

Because what could go wrong with that?

…they’ve decided they’re going to buy in, no matter what…

NO MATTER WHAT!!

…buying became an emotional decision about moving to a new life phase. “This was the first step of being an adult,” said Mr. Richard…

Emotional decisions are an important first step of being an adult.

…some young homeowners have become slightly evangelical about the need for others to realize it’s possible if they stop being so clueless about money…

All it takes is a little knowledge.

“They don’t know anyone who owns, they don’t understand money, they just don’t think it’s possible. I keep telling them: “It’s a conspiracy to keep you as renters. Then you can pay someone else’s mortgage.’”

As Many Franks says “Amazing how much paydirt you can pack into a single article.”