Vancouver's Real Estate Market

[Hondaracer]

Said he spends 1.5 hours each way for 75% of the year. (On his bike)

Summer is an hour or less. So yea maybe by car it’s less. But I drive to UBC fairly often and you’re 1000% spending more than an hour and a half each day in a car from Hastings sunrise to UBC if you’re commuting during regular times.

His argument is that his prospects for employment over the next decade are essentially UBC or nothing. And when you add up that time over a decade, it’s literally months of not years of your life commuting

[supafamous]

Originally Posted by Badhobz

thats stupid. then you should tell all the nips in japan to move the fuck out cuz that entire country is a huge disaster zone.

Japan's different than Richmond in that they plan for earthquakes and sit on solid ground. I wasn't going to have my house and the entire city sink into the Georgia Strait when the big one hits. It's not as bad as living in New Orleans (which should be moved entirely away) but it's not a risk I'd want to take when buying a house.

Besides, my survival skills are so shit that I'd have enough problems dealing with an earthquake on solid ground compared to a flood zone. I'd never make it into a rubber dinghy to avoid drowning - I'm going to spend my time trying to figure out how to start a fire using the dry 2x4s my house is made of when the earthquake hits.

[westopher]

I think if he’s riding his bike it is getting two birds stoned at once though. That’s excellent for his health and takes the need for going to the gym nearly out of the equation.
The fact it’s basically mandatory could be pretty frustrating sometimes though.
Doesn’t the skytrain extension solve his problem though? Quick bike ride to commercial station.

[Hondaracer]

I would assume it would, but maybe he just wants to get away from me

It’s kind of funny though like getting to the skytrain in itself is kind of a pain in the ass from the hood. Even though it’s just the number 7 up nanaimo, that adds 25+ minutes from Hastings and nanaimo to nanaimo skytrain. It’s the easiest stretch you could hope for and it only covers a small distance but daily that bus portion adds almost an hour just getting to the train.

[JDMDreams]

But the thing is even crossing Vancouver to do anything is 30 min+.

And back to that duplex, let's say you rent out your basement to afford it for like what $1500? You're still on the hook for $6500. And realistically you have no more space than a town house at 1300sq if not less. Keep in mind the duplex has that square layout so you're losing a lot of space on just stairs, most likely have some triangle ceiling that cuts into your bedroom. So it's a very inefficient use of space.

If you're lucky you can easily get 3-4 parking spaces with the townhouse, 2 garage 2 driveway vs one shitty small one of duplex. You don't even have to walk outside to get the car. Literally a 3 bed apartment will have much more space at 1300sq than a 1600sq duplex where you rent out the basement + all the stairs to fall down. Then you gotta do all the shitty yardwork and deal with a random neighbor on insurance.

[whitev70r]

Originally Posted by Badhobz

Easier way is to get a cushy ass quasi government job and make your own hours. Screw this 9-5 shit. I arrive at the office at 6am and typically leave by 2pm, therefore bypassing all the heavy traffic.

why don't you tell them why you really work the 6:00-2:00 pm shift ... you want to be on RS at 2:00:01 pm ... when bcrduke gets off work in TO.

[bcrdukes]

Originally Posted by whitev70r

why don't you tell them why you really work the 6:00-2:00 pm shift ... you want to be on RS at 2:00:01 pm ... when bcrduke gets off work in TO.

Not bad, whitev70r.

He only messages me during business hours. He fucks right off after that.

[whitev70r]

So RS is just a time waster for him at work, I see.

[Harvey Specter]

If this becomes reality, single family home values in Vancouver will skyrocket. Boomers keep on winning.

Vancouver city council to look at subdividing laneway homes

If you can’t afford to buy a house in Vancouver, relief might be on the horizon.

Vancouver city council will vote on a motion Wednesday to look at allowing the subdivision of single-family lots so people can buy just a laneway home, rather than the house that comes with it.

The motion, from Couns. Sarah Kirby-Yung and Mike Klassen, says it would provide opportunities for multi-generational living, as well as for young families and first-time home buyers.

Andy Yan, director of the City Program at Simon Fraser University and urban planning expert, says he sees the appeal because laneway homes have something condos don’t:

“Dirt,” said Yan, meaning access to a yard.

“There is a deeper desire, particularly for families, to live on more ground-oriented layouts for their living arrangements.”

The motion details that 42 per cent of single-family homes in Vancouver are owned “mortgage-free by individuals aged 65 or older,” adding that many are interested in downsizing or creating housing for family members.

It says jurisdictions like Seattle and California have implemented policies allowing similar homes to be stratified and subdivided, “resulting in a surge of new housing production and flexible ownership model.”

Yan says the city needs to write strong protections to ensure available subdivisions don’t get snapped up by speculators.

“Given the very specific real estate markets that exist in the city of Vancouver, you would hope that this motion would also include the kind of firewalls behind the behaviours that have made condominium living also quite expensive,” said Yan.

If passed, the motion will direct staff to explore the idea and report back with an analysis.

City Council is expected to meet at 9:30 a.m.

[EvoFire]

Originally Posted by supafamous

LOL. True consideration - I'd hate it if I was too far away from BBQ Master or LA Chicken.

Is Happy Day your preferred source of baked pork chop? Van Tea on Main/41st is pretty good but my favourite is M Cafe in Coquitlam - tonnes of fatty meat done just right.

Neither. Happy Days is pretty bad imo and not worth the price. Van Tea is a bit out of the way with nothing nearby, and pricy.

My very most fav baked pork chop on rice was Silver Tower, but I haven't been in years because they are so damn expensive. I used to go almost every week. I don't even know if they are still in business.

I usually get it from Crystal food court or Aberdeen food court. Aberdeen food court is better, but Crystal is usually bundled with a grocery trip to the vegetable market downstairs.

Kent's kitchen does a baked pork chop on rice as well. It's closer for me than for you and @$10 a pop, it serves the itch.

[pastarocket]

Originally Posted by Harvey Specter

If this becomes reality, single family home values in Vancouver will skyrocket. Boomers keep on winning.

There goes property taxes in Vancouver. It's in the interest of the municipal government to keep property values high. Higher home prices means that properties are assessed at higher values. More property tax for boomers to pay to the government.

[JDMDreams]

Why would that push up price? Wouldn't the remaining land be worth less since you sold a chunk and it's smaller no garage. And didn't they allow that already with those coach houses?

[JDMDreams]

It's no different than the multiplex or 1 into duplex they are doing now.

I've seen some pretty big builds coming up in Burnaby, new West on 1 lot, like 5/6 units.

[Gumby]

Originally Posted by EvoFire

My very most fav baked pork chop on rice was Silver Tower, but I haven't been in years because they are so damn expensive. I used to go almost every week. I don't even know if they are still in business.

Yes, Silver Tower is still there, and I do enjoy their baked pork chop on rice. But if you get there after 6pm, parking is a gongshow on Alexandra Rd...

[Harvey Specter]

Originally Posted by JDMDreams

Why would that push up price? Wouldn't the remaining land be worth less since you sold a chunk and it's smaller no garage. And didn't they allow that already with those coach houses?

Laneway homes can be sold separately, so you can end up with two homes on what used to be a single family lot. That’s a big change in how the land can be used. Some west side properties already allow this because they were historically zoned for carriage houses, which is why you sometimes see older lots with laneway homes or secondary buildings

So yes, this kind of policy will drive up land value, because it unlocks more development and resale potential. You’re not just selling a house anymore, you’re selling multiple homes on one lot.

[Harvey Specter]

Originally Posted by pastarocket

There goes property taxes in Vancouver. It's in the interest of the municipal government to keep property values high. Higher home prices means that properties are assessed at higher values. More property tax for boomers to pay to the government.

Sure, property taxes might go up, but that’s a drop in the bucket compared to the equity gains. Most of these homes are already mortgage free, and many owners have seen 7 figure appreciation over the years. If anything, this policy just gives them another chance to cash in either by selling part of their land or building/selling a second home.

[bcrdukes]

Originally Posted by whitev70r

So RS is just a time waster for him at work, I see.

I think it's a matter of perspective.

One could argue he's wasting time on RS.
Another way to look at it is he is productive on RS.

As of this post, he hasn't responded to my messages, so I think he's "busy." What a jerk.

[supafamous]

Originally Posted by bcrdukes

I think it's a matter of perspective.

One could argue he's wasting time on RS.
Another way to look at it is he is productive on RS.

As of this post, he hasn't responded to my messages, so I think he's "busy." What a jerk.

Jerk or jerking?

[supafamous]

Originally Posted by JDMDreams

And back to that duplex, let's say you rent out your basement to afford it for like what $1500? You're still on the hook for $6500. And realistically you have no more space than a town house at 1300sq if not less. Keep in mind the duplex has that square layout so you're losing a lot of space on just stairs, most likely have some triangle ceiling that cuts into your bedroom. So it's a very inefficient use of space.

Yah, those 1450-1600sf duplexes are not great homes but for the folks who want a piece of land in Vancouver it's the cheapest way to get in on things. If prices were to keep going up (they won't) they would have possibly been able to parlay that into a SFH 10 years later.

Owning land has mostly been better than not owning land - this played out for me for my last house. About 9 years ago I had two different duplexes I was considering and one was on a 33x122 lot (so half of that - 2000sf) while the other was actually a triplex (coach house) and my part of the lot was about 2500sf. Same price but the house on the larger lot was built to a lower standard - it was a super low budget East Indian build vs decent East Indian build.

We took the low budget one and 5 years later when we sold it was assessed at $150k more entirely due to the larger lot and sold for that much more than other one would have gotten. That $150k extra got parlayed into our current (detached) home.

FWIW, that duplex zoning policy was both a great thing and a really dumb thing - making every lot duplex eligible resulted in more homes being built but they actually downzoned the size of those homes. You were only allowed to build to a .7FSR (~2850sf on a standard lot) vs .86FSR (~3400sf) if you built a SFH + laneway. Imagine these duplexes all being 1750sf each side instead of 1450sf - that's a pretty nice space even if you rent out the basement.

[badgerx3]

While on paper it seems like a win. Realistically, I fail to see how any current detached home owner would opt for selling a parcel of their land. Not only do you lose space, you most likely will have to pay capital gains on the sale of the laneway which would most likely negate any monetary incentive to do so.

[JDMDreams]

I don't think the city will let you sell raw land. And you lose garage.

[Harvey Specter]

Originally Posted by badgerx3

While on paper it seems like a win. Realistically, I fail to see how any current detached home owner would opt for selling a parcel of their land. Not only do you lose space, you most likely will have to pay capital gains on the sale of the laneway which would most likely negate any monetary incentive to do so.

Not everyone values extra yard space the same way especially in a city where land is at a premium. For some, unlocking hundreds of thousands (or even over a million) in equity by selling off a laneway house could be worth more than the lawn they rarely use.

As for capital gains, if the laneway house is part of the principal residence and hasn’t been rented out, capital gains might not even apply. Even if it does, you'd still likely walk away with a significant net gain especially considering how valuable infill housing is in places like Vancouver.

[Badhobz]

Originally Posted by bcrdukes

I think it's a matter of perspective.

One could argue he's wasting time on RS.
Another way to look at it is he is productive on RS.

As of this post, he hasn't responded to my messages, so I think he's "busy." What a jerk.

if i dont respond im either asleep at my desk, at costco on company time, or yelling at the old bat that refuses to die

maybe 1 out of 100 time ill be actually working.

[bcrdukes]

Productive it is!

[JDMDreams]

This is the Canadian dream

Originally Posted by Badhobz

if i dont respond im either asleep at my desk, at costco on company time, or yelling at the old bat that refuses to die

maybe 1 out of 100 time ill be actually working.

And why our productivity is shit