Is Vancouver’s Real Estate Market Really In Free Fall?

Who wouldn’t want to invest in Vancouver? It’s beautiful and there are many beautiful homes to snap up; however, there has been a lot of talk about falling house prices. That’s always a concern when you own property, especially if it’s a rental or investment property. Even when it’s your family home, you can owe more than you originally bought it for. It’s a nightmare and something which many Vancouver homeowners are concerned about. So, is the real estate market in free fall?

Understanding the Average House Prices

A lot of newspapers have been talking about how the bottom is falling out of the Vancouver real estate market and if you look at the figures it does seem that way. However, while there has been a slight drop in the average house price, it isn’t as shocking as you might think. Yes, there has been a downturn in the market of late but if you actually look at the homes behind the headlines, it’s the ones worth millions of dollars. Estimations for standard family homes are pretty steady at the moment so it’s not time to panic, as yet anyway.

Traditional three or four-family homes worth a few hundred thousand dollars aren’t suddenly losing their value. Of course, if your home was worth $5 million then you have some cause for alarm. Generally, you can invest in Vancouver real estate and make a tidy profit – if you buy wisely.

Changing of the Vancouver Real Estate Market

There’s no denying that real estate can fluctuate as much as any stock or investment piece. It’s a gamble to buy a home, even when the market is pretty steady. You never know when the economy is going to nose-dive and leave you with a home that’s worth half of what you paid for it. It’s a major risk of life and one that’s often unexpected. Fortunately, if you do your homework before you buy, you can invest in Vancouver and see a nice return. Of course, nothing is guaranteed but it does help to know the market. Sometimes, buying in an up-and-coming area helps, especially if you’re buying a family or forever home. More details!

Taking the Gamble Is More about the Property You Buy

Investing in property can be a smart idea but you do have to be extremely careful. You need to understand the current state of the market and whether the home you buy is worth what you pay. For instance, a $1 million mansion in an upscale part of Vancouver might seem nice but will you be able to see a profit the way the market stands? Or, would you be more likely to see a safe return on a smaller family home in another nice area of Vancouver? The Vancouver real estate market is buoyant, somewhat, but prices on the higher-value properties are decreasing.

Watch the Markets Closely

Unless you own a $5 million home, it’s unlikely the slight decrease in house prices will affect you. Of course, that doesn’t mean a dip in the market won’t impact you at some stage. As said, the real estate market can change in an instance and you need to stay alert to that possibility. The market isn’t in free fall yet but anything can change. If you want to invest in Vancouver real estate you have to approach any property with caution. To find out more, check out https://www.prudentialgrandvalley.com/who-is-buying-vancouver-real-estate/

Continue Reading

Who is buying Vancouver Real estate?

When looking at the current Vancouver real estate, you may be left with the question with who these days have the money to buy housing in the city. In this article we will cover just who is able to purchase real estate in Vancouver.

Foreign home owners

In recent reports conducted in the Vancouver area it has been discovered that the majority of home-owners in Vancouver are not actually residents there. The type of property often owned by non-residents tends to be condos, with the percentage of condos owned by non-residents being 30.4% higher than that of residents. However, the condos owned by non-residents often come at a higher price, 25.6% to be exact. There has also been a rise in Hong Kong buyers due to uncertain political stability in their country. More details!

New ways to buy

Due to high property prices in the Vancouver area people have been adapting and figuring out new ways to get onto the real estate property ladder. One of the ways that they have done this is by co-ownership of the property. This is when two or more people pool together their resources and purchase the property together. This can become difficult later on when they are trying to figure out who is entitled to what depending on how much each has paid, but in the meantime it get them onto the property ladder. This is normally done by either: each person gets a private suite or each one gets a bedroom and the common areas such as the kitchen, bathroom and living room are shared between all of them. This situation can get even more complicated if there are renovations needed to the property which could lead to conflict as to how to split the renovation costs. It is for this reason that it is advised that in this situation that both parties have a lawyer to help them through this process to avoid any unresolveable problems in the future.

Big earners

A study was concluded to determine just how much a person would need to make in order to be able to afford a house in different neighborhoods, and the results were shocking. In at least five of the neighborhoods in Vancouver the amount needed to purchase a property was over 100,000 USD more than the average household was making. This leaves a big gap for high earners to come in and purchase all of the property that the average household cannot afford. This leads to big earners owning more than the average family, such as a West end condo or a downtown one.

In conclusion, the majority of property in Vancouver is being purchased by either big earners or by non-residents buyers. However, this is down to the fact that Vancouver real estate is a very attractive investment for all. For more details, visit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vancouver

Continue Reading