City of North Vancouver CityViews: Sustainability Website , Waterfront Pier Development, National Maritime Centre, City Library, LEC, Spirit Trail

Sustainability in the City of North Vancouver

The North Vancouver City has long had a clear vision of the kind of sustainable community it wishes to be: vibrant, diverse and highly liveable. This North Vancouver vision has roots that reach as far back as the city of North Van's incorporation more than a century ago. Since its beginnings as a small milling and shipbuilding based community along Burrad Inlet, the City of North Vancouver has remained committed to protecting the natural environment; creating a robust, sustainable economy; and enhancing the quality of life for all those living and working in the community. Today, the City of Vancouver's award winning municipality is home to more than 48,000 residents and the commitment to build a sustainable community has not changed. The environmental, economic and social health of our City of North Vancouver community is vitally important, which is why our sustainability goals influence every aspect of our growing, developing City. Our City of North Vancouver sustainability goals can be represented as thre circles with one for each of the environment, economy and community/society. Where the circles overlop are the areas of sustainability. Here, all the things tha mek up our quality of life come together. The city of North Vancouver recognizes these circles not as separate, unrelated entities but as a single, vital, complete community much like the one we are working to achieve. Founded on these principles of sustainability, the City of North Vancouver's Official Community Plan established the long term goals, plans and actions that will successfully balance the environment, economic and social needs of the community. More than a statement for the City of North Vancouver's future, the Official Community Plan establishes over 200 goals and objectives that can be monitored and measured for success. The City of North Vancouver recognizes that the support of its citizens and larger community is vital to achieving its sustainability goals today and beyond. As such, the City of North Vancouver supports community driven environmental initiatives and is presently working with the UBC Design Centre for Sustainability to prepare an innovative 100 Year Sustainability Vision for the city of North Vancouver. This long-range plan will look at the effect of climate change on the City's resources and examine how planning work and energy conservation actions are supporting sustainability goals. While the City of North Vancouver Official Community Plan charts course of action for the City, these collaborations will help advance long-term viable solutions to environmental changes.

City of North Vancouver Sustainability Website

The North Vancouver City has dedicated a large section of its web site to serve as both a comprehensive online resource and opportunity to the community to connect with the City on sustainability issues. The City of North Vancouver Sustainability in the City website enables you to find information about the City's vision, plans and progress in the three major areas of sustainability: environmental, economic and social. This City of North Vancouver Sustainability web site portal also contains links to sustainable programs and initiatives at the regional, provincial and national levels. The City of North Vancouver Sustainability Website will continue to be a work in progress as the City's many sustainability intiiatives grow and expand. Visit www.cnv.org/Sustainability regularly to see our progress and offer your views of living sustainably in the City of North Vancouver. Economic sustainability: The city supports growth and real estate development that are well integrated with environmental and social considerations. This approach has helped to shape several important City of North Vancouver initiatives, including the City's Economic Development Strategy, which in turn supports other policy documents such as the Official community Plan and Transportation Plan. The City of North Vancouver recognizes that a strong economy can be a vehicle to change, a catalyst for a greener way of thinking and living. As such, its economic sustainability goals aim to meet the diverse needs of a community, while taking into consideration how resources are used. Visit www.cnv.org/Sustainability for more information about the City of North Vancouver Economic Sustainbility in the City.

City of North Vancouver Waterfront Real Estate Development

The North Vancouver waterfront real estate district has long been a focal point of the municipalitiy's identity and development. More than a century ago, the area was a vital, bustling transportation centre for shipbuilding and marine-related industries. Today, the City of North Vancouver's waterfront real estate community is recognized as both a heritage landmark and signature attraction. The City of North Vancouver's Waterfront Project aims to create a sense of place and pride in the local community and bring economic opportunities to neighbouring areas. Considerations include establishing a National Maritime Centre for the Pacific and the Arctic and providing new residential real estate and commercial property opportunities for the growing Lower Lonsdale neighbourhood through The Pier Development real esate project. Construction Update: Site preparation, excavacation and construction are presently underway on the real estate development sites north and south of Esplanade in Lower Lonsdale in the City of North Vancouver waterfront Project. Work includes the dismantling of a large heritage structure, which will be stored and erected again later as part of the City of North Vancouver National Maritime Centre real estate development. There will also be some dynamic soil compaction to ensure that foundations for the new real estate buildings can be built to current seismic standards. Traffic and pedestrian access along Esplanade may be impacted as this work continues through thet summer until spring 2009. Visit www.cnv.org/WaterfrontProject for more information about the National Heritage Museum of North Vancouver and The North Vancouver Pier Development real estate project. For construction updates, visit www.cnv.org/ConstructionUpdates.

North Vancouver National Maritime Centre for the Pacific and Arctic

The City of North Vancouver would like to thank the BC provincial government for their generous support of the national Maritime Centre real estate project. On May 2, 2008 Premier Gordon Campbell announced that a grant of $9 million will be provided to the City of North Vancouver to advance its plans to build a world class maritime facility on the city's historic real estate waterfront district. With this significant financial support, the City of North Vancouver National Maritime Centre is yet another step closer to being established and now awaits a similar commitment from the federal government. Envisioned as a world class facility, national landmark and major tourist attraction, the City of North Vancouver National Maritime Centre will be a dynamic year round destination for City residents and tourists. Once built, the facility will offer historic and interactive exhibits, martime education and training, community events, business forums and boat festivals as well as amenities such as restaurants and retail shops. The North Vancouver real estate project is an impressive example of public private partnership. During its North Van real estate development, the proposed National Maritime Centre attracted the support of more than 45 potential partners, including all levels of government, First Nations, maritime and tourism industries, and educational partners. Once completed, the National Maritime Centre of North Vancouver will be self sustaining through commercial revenues generated on the site. Visit www.cnv.org/NationalMaritimeCentre or call 604.982.3911 for more information.

Party at the Lower Lonsdale Pier of North Vancouver
Sunday, August 31, 2008, come celebrate the Maritime Community in Lower Lonsdale from 11am to 3pm at the Burrard Dry Dock Pier and St. Roch Dock Foot of Lonsdale. The Lower Lonsdale Business Association invites the entire community of North Vancouver to the 2008 Party at the Pier! This unique marine themed celebration includes entertainment and activities for the whole family. Enjoy a wide variety of musical guests, roving performers, an amazing stilt walker, fantastic face painters, the Seaspan tugobat ballet and tours of the harbour. A variety of food and refreshments will be available to satisfy a range of palates. Visit www.cnv.org fo rmore information about the real estate transformation of Lower Lonsdale community.

North Vancouver City Library Construction Update and Grand Opening "You're Invited!"

The new City of North Vancouver Library will be completed in September 2008 and the community is invited to attend the special grand opening celebration on Saturday, September 20. Did you know? That it takes a community to raise a library? Your contribution to the City Library's Donation Program can help create services that will have a long legacy for the community. Visit www.nvcl.ca for more information. Construction is nearly complete on what is considered one of the North Vancouver City's most important public facilities. Since early 2007, the City Library of North Vancouver has achieved several significant milestones, including the creation of the first sustainable district energy mini-plant in Central Lonsdale, and the installation of rooftop solar panels which will collect energy for the mini-plant. The new City Library of North Vancouver is also constructed to a minimum LEED Silver Certification Standard, utilizing a combination of natural ventilation, geo-exchange cooling and solar energy to meet the heating and cooling needs of the building. Located in the heart of Central Lonsdale, the new city of North Vancouver Library will be a landmark structure with spectacular mountain and water views. In addition to its beautiful design and public art, the Library of North Vancouver will feature state of the art technology, public computers, wireless access, an expanded collection of 150,000 items, a study hall, community meeting rooms, a children's reading garden, an area for teens, underground parking, and an extension to the existing public plaza that fronts City Hall. A café located on the plaza level will enhance the experience. Join the City of Vancouver Library Grand Opening Ceremony Celebration in Civic Plaza on Saturday, September 20, from 11am to 3pm. Visit www.cnv.org/LibraryCivicCentre for more information about the City of North Vancouver new City Library.

Grand Opening of the LEED Silver Built New City Library of North Vancouver
You're Invited to the North Vancouver City Library Grand Opening Launch! Saturday, September 20, 2008 from 11am to 3pm at the North Vancouver City Library Civic Plaza at Lonsdale and 14th Street. The City of North Vancouver is celebrating the completion of a landmark real estate building in the heart of central Lonsdale, marking the official opening of the North Vancouver City Library and Spirit Square Civic Plaza. Join us for this outdoor, literary-themed, community celebration, beginning with an official ceremony and the unveiling of commemorative plaques. Activities and attractions at the grand opening of the new City Library of North Vancouver includes: musical guests Mimosa and the Fugitives, author readings and book signins, children's activities, fire juggler Mike Battie, strolling entertainment, featuring popular storybook characters, educational displays and celebration cupcakes and much more. Visit www.cnv.org for more information about the celebrations at the North Vancouver city Library Civic Plaza.

Lonsdale Energy Corporation (LEC)

The North Vancouver City's Lonsdale Energy Corporation is one of the city's environmentally friendly ways of enabling a green community for the future. Since 2004, this award winning district energy system has been providing Lower Lonsdale with dependable clean energy, while significantly reducing the demand for electricity. Through a network of underground pipes and boiler mini-plants, Lonsdale Energy Corporation or the LEC circulates hot water to heat the buildings that are connected to its system. LEC systems are designed to capture up t o95% of the heat energy derived from burning natural gas to heat water. Depending on the temperature of returning water, LEC boilers have a nominal efficiency between 87% and 98%, a rate that exceeds stand alone boilers typically installed in multi-unit residential buildings. LEC or the Lonsdale Energy Corporation presently uses highly efficient natural gas to power its mini-plants. While relatively clean and competitively priced, LEC recognizes that natural gas remains a fossil fuel. As such, LEC is continually exploring ways to switch to alternative/renewable fuels such as hydrogen, geothermal or solar energy options. Because the LEC boilers are designed to use any of a variety of fuels, Lonsdale Energy Corporation will transition to using zerio emissions sources as soon as it becomes economical to do so. This move is already underway in Central Lonsdale North Vancouver where the new City Library's mini-plant will have solar panels as one of its heating sources. LEC presently provides heating for more than 1,000 residential units. By 2010, LEC anticipates serving 20 Lower Lonsdale buildings, totaling three million square feet of building area. Lonsdale Energy Corporation is considering the big picture when it comes to energy use. The growing energy gap and global energy crisis demand innovative solutions like distinct energy systems. As an early pioneer of this service, LEC has great potential to become a sustainable source of energy for the future and has captured the attention of other municipalities, as well as cities in foreign countries. Visit www.LonsdaleEnergy.ca for more information about Lonsdale energy Corporation LEC and the advantages of district energy.

North Shore Spirit Trail

The North Vancouver City is working with the BC provincial government, North Shore municipalities, First Nations and other organizations to create the North Shore Spirit Trail. Conceived as a 35 km waterfront oriented, multi-use greenway, the North Shore Spirit Trail represents an exciting opportunity for the City of North Vancouver's sustainability goals. Through the creation of the North Shore Spirit Trail, the City of North Vancouver can provide safe, accessible, alternative transportation options for pedestrians, cyclists, inline skaters and people with wheeled mobility aids. Visit www.cnv.org/SpiritTrail for the latest information and progress updates on the North Shore Spirit Trail.

North Shore Real Estate Trends, North Vancouver Housing Market, Continued Redevelopment and Re-Zoning Plans for Central Lonsdale, Extra Foods Project

Taking Stock of North Vancouver Real Estate As Our Hot Propety Market Cools Off

Straight from the desk of ‘Architecturally Speaking’ by Kevin V and written for the North Shore News, this article dissects what is meant by the recent slowdown and decrease in North Vancouver property values. The crazy ride appears to be over. It only takes a quick glimpse at the North Vancouver real estate listings to see that the market is settling. The tanking housing property market in the U.S. mixed with rapidly increasing fuel costs and a general economic unease seems to be sobering our North Shore housing sales. It’s time to take stock of what we have and recognize the inevitable ebb and flow of the North Vancouver housing marketplace. From an architectural point of view, this slow down can be a good thing. A few years back I remember getting a frantic call from a contractor asking if I was absolutely sure that I wanted ¾ inch plywood on a given section of the roof. The prices of plywood were going up 25 per cent the following day and he needed to put in his order immediately. It was a crazy time. In the height of it all a cost consultant of mine suggested building costs were increasing at one per cent each month. We were struggling to give clients accurate estimates and to keep real estate North Shore projects on budget. It was hard to run a successful race when the finish line kept moving. Regardless of what North Vancouver housing prices do over the next little while, it’s important to realize what we have here on the North Shore real estate market. The three point adage for a successful business “location, location, location” holds true for us as well. The North Shore real estate is one of the most beautifu locales on earth with a mild climate, an astounding picturesque backdrop and a perfect position next to a world-class metropolis. If one compares our North Shore housing prices to equally striking cities like San Francisco or Sydney, one realizes that our real estate property market is a bargain. For the international buyer, we’re still a deal. The topography has limited our real estate development projects to the extents it has with a steep mountainside to our north and ocean on all other sides. It’s densification or no growth at all. “We live in a place where people want to live.” It’s my mantra when discussing the merits of a renovation or new construction. There’s tremendous value in the land we have on the North Shore market. As the real estate market settles, so too wil the construction industry. Material costs have already dropped in the wake of the slumping U.S. housing market and labour rates will surely follow. It wasn’t long ago that I struggled to find a good builder to bid on my projcts but now I’m the one getting the inquiring calls. I’m content with the direction of the North Vancouver housing market is going. I feel strongly that we’ve never been in the proverbial “bubble.” Our North Shore housing prices reflect the value of the place we live. The slowing trend will bring with it cheaper material costs and more competitive labour costs. The real estate industry will take a well-earned deep breath as everyone associated with it takes a little more time for the work at hand. The near future might not be a bad time to consider a construction project after all.

Slowdown in North Shore Real Estate Housing Sales Not a Concern, Say Realtors

According to the North Shore News, drop in North Shore property housing sales a minor correction only by Melanie K. Although Greater Vancouver’s housing market is showing distinct signs of cooling off, North Shore real estate home owners have no reason to worry – at least not yet – according to North Vancouver real estate agents. That the market is slowing down is evident in the figures from the region’s real estate board. In 2007, 73 per cent of houses listed in North Vancouver real estate and 63 per cent in West Vancouver sold, while this year it has dropped considerably: only 47 per cent of North Vancouver houses listed sold in North Van and 35 per cent of listings sold in West Vancouver real estate market. That stagnation has had an effect on prices – particularly in the last month. The median price of a detached house in West Vancouver has dropped nine per cent since June, from $1,538,000 to around $1,400,000. North Vancouver real estate has experienced a similar thing on a smaller scale, with the median house price slipping two per cent from $880,000 to $865,000. But to those in the real estate North Shore industry, this shift comes at no surprise. “We’re going through a correction process like we did in 1990. It’ll correct 15 to 20 per cent,” said realtor Brent Eilers. “I think this process will take a further six to 18 months, depending on how quickly the prices drop.” The correction in North Vancouver and West Vancouver real estate is inevitable after the meteororic price gains of recent years, said North Shore real estate agent Ray Proc. “Ever since Expo, the real estate market has been continuously going up, and after September 11, the market really took off,” said Proc. “Just about everything in West Vancouver has doubled in the past five years. It just can’t sustain itself.” The correction in the North Shore real estate market housing prices should be kept in perspective, however, said the real estate agents. Overall, North Shore prices are still higher than last year. West Vancouver’s rose 13 per cent between June of 2007 and June 2008 and North Vancouver real estate’s rose ten per cent over the same period. The slip is only “a temporary breather,” said Proc.

More about the Future of North Shore Housing Prices

And the North Shore real estate market is protected in contrast to other Lower Mainland municipalities because space here is so limited, he said. “What we have here is what we have. You can’t open up 350 acres like you can in Surrey real estate to keep the prices down,” said Proc. Realtor Alan Skinner agreed with that assessment. “The demand is still extremely healthy for the North Shore property market,” said Skinner. “We’re not into a tragic situation where people shouldn’t have bought last year. The North Shore real estate is kind of a microcosm in Greater Vancouver that is extremely special.” Skinner emphasized that this kind of real estate property market is good for North Shore buyers who can now take time to rationally reflect on making a good purchase decision. As long as the North Shore real estate is desireable place to live, the market will stay strong, he said. “We’re really bulletproof for our lifetimes and beyond.” For the time being, the best thing North Shore homeowners can do to protect themselves is to list their homes at prices that reflect the demands of the North Shore property market, said Proc. Doing so might help cut down the backlog of unsold North Vancouver and West Vancouver property currently on the market. “If people would be more realistic on their asking price, we wouldn’t have 550 homes for sale,” he said. To make sure they hit the mark, said Proc., North Shore home owners should “look at what sold, not what’s for sale.” In the end, the hardest hit are the realtors themselves, said Skinner. A drop in sales means a drop in revenue. After so many years of white-hot sales on the North Shore, many are not used to dealing with a slump. “the majority of the real estate agents on the North Shore haven’t experienced a correction,” said Eilers. Agents who are used to making sales easily are kicking up the most fuss, he said.

North Vancouver City Backs Off 10 Storey Condo Plan North of 17th Street

According to the North Shore News Heidi C writer, the City of North Vancouver had a 5-2 majority favouring further consultation regarding plans to build condo/mixed-retail/commercial high-rises north of 17th Street along Lonsdale Avenue. City of North Vancouver council has put the brakes on a density bonsuing scheme that would see residential apartment building height along Lonsdale Avenue top out at 10 stories north of 17th Street. The plan, coming out of Central Lonsdale Planning Study stakeholder group discussions that included key city staff as well as community members, sees a trade-off of one market-priced residential North Vancouver Lonsdale Avenue unit for every one rental unit built. In the case of non-profit housing the ratio would be three market units for each one non-market North Vancouver resience. The goal is to build up the City of North Vancouver’s diminishing rental housing stock, hard hit by aging buildings and high priced real estate. Instead, in a 5 to 2 vote July 21, North Van Council voted against changing the city’s official community plan for real estate development to advance the plan. First it wants further public consultation. “this decision does not need to be taken tonight,” said Coun. Barbara Perrault. “What’s the rush?” Condo Towers in North Vancouver’s Central Lonsdale district were never envisioned for the area north of 17th Street. Such a drastic OCP change needs more consideration, she said. “We need broader consultation beyond the stakeholder group with property owners, rentants and the real estate development community.” The stakeholder group was not unanimous in its proposal, with one dissenting voice strongly opposed to blocking views of the North Shore mountains from Lonsdale Avenue, said Perrault. “I believe what’s porposed here is quite radical a change,” said coun. Pam Bookham. “It is so complex and it is very controversial. I think people need to fully understand the impoications of these proposals.” For the redevelopment of the Central Lonsdale real estate district. She said she sould like to see a scale mock-up of the North Vancouver Central Lonsdale new building heights proposed in roder to properly envision what Central Lonsdale real estate district will look like.

More about the Redevelopment of Central Lonsdale Real Estate Corridor

This is an election issue, said Bookham, who hopes North Vancouver city council members take a stand and residents speak up through ballot decisions. Two significant issues, the future of Central Lonsdale real estate corridor and rental housing in North Vancouver city are mixed in this proposal, said Coun. Bob Heywood. “Looking at the rental housing stock situation, I’m really troubled with us trying to find the absolute solution to this in the City of North Vancouver, which has one per cent of the Metro Vancouver housing stock,” he said. “If you take every four level walk up in the city and go to three times the density, we’d come up with a very, very uninteresting city. And would we sovle anybody’s problems?” asked Heywood. “We already, in this North Vancouver City, have 53 or 54 per cent of our people in rental accommodation.” The argument between rental and strata ownership is moot, said Heywood. The cost to the individual is the same, he said. “It may be cheaper to own,” he said. Few City of North Vancouver home owner pay 30 per ent of their income for housing as do some renters, he said (referring to upscale rental residences not subsidized rental stock.) Heywood said he would support trying the scheme out on a single building first. City of North Vancouver council needs to be concerned about the loss of rental housing to market condominium North Vancouver real estate development, said Counc. Craig Keating. The real estate development on the southeast corner of 13th Street and Chesterfield Avenue is an example, he said. “that is the future, unless this council or the next council takes action,” said Keating. “And the only action I can say that we can do with the measly powers that municipalities have, is make the construction of rental and renewed rental units affordable and possible in this market place.” This one-for-one plan and three-for-one for non profits does that, he said. Both Keating and Major Darrell Mussatto voted in support of the OCP amendment. “the reality is the buildings are getting old,” said Mussatto. “We have very few tools to provide affordable housing rental housing.” Senior levels of government are not in the game, he said. “We need to use all the tools we can that the stakeholder group recommended and go forward with this. That’s being realistic,” he said. “If we’re going to look at some OCP changes let’s go forward with that. Let’s talk about how we are going to keep rental housing in our community.” The staff report noted that the limitation to 10 stories may be economically restrictive and insufficient to cover building costs along the redevelopment of the Central Lonsdale real estate corridor. It’s on the point that Counc. Sam Schechter said he wanted further public discussion that a policy committee meeting would provide. The height limitation ay be too conservative for Central Lonsdale he said. Forty two per cent of North Vancouver’s rental housing stock is in Central Lonsdale. Most of the rental apartments are between 20 and 60 years old. The North Vancouver City rental housing stock is shrinking as it losses rental housing to redevelopment.

North Vancouver City Sends Extra Foods Real Estate Redevelopment Proposal to Hearing

By Heidi for the North Shore News. The redevelopment of the Extra Foods site at 17th Street and Lonsdale Avenue passed another stepping stone July 28th when City of North Vancouver council sent the real estate redevelopment of this North Vancouver site to a public hearing. The Extra Foods real estate site plan calls for replacing the existing 25,000 square foot store with one approximately twice the size almost 200,000 sq ft of residential apartment development. In December 2007, City of North Vancouver council approved a height variance of up to 40 feet above what is allowed in the official North Van community plan and some density bonusing for the current Lonsdale North Vancouver Extra Foods site. The real estate proposal sent to hearing is 240 feet in height – 60 feet above the OCP limit. Staff point out that is no higher than the proposals on the table from the Central Lonsdale Planning Study of North Vancouver real estate rezoning and redevelopment. Council hopes the real estate development will contain community amenity space, a publicly accessible open space and the potential for up to 10,000 or 12,000 square feet of affordable housing for North Vancouver City. The new real estate building at Extra Foods will be connected to Lonsdale Energy Corporation’s heating system. A large underground parking lot will also be created at the Extra Foods proposal for redevelopment. The entrance and exit to the parking and the potential for pedestrian/vehicle conflict, is so far the only point in Loblaw’s real estate development proposal to catch some council criticism. Extra Foods retailer proposal for their North Vancouver Lonsdale property site calls for right in, right out vehicle access across the east side of Lonsdale Avenue sidewalk into the underground parking. Site access is critical to the store’s reopning, Dallas Wingerak, director of real estate development of Loblaw Properties, told council on July 28th.

More about the Redevelopment of Central Lonsdale Real Estate

During the anticipated 18 month closure Loblaws expects to lsoe some customers, she said. “What we need to do when we reopen the store is ensure that the store is designed in such a way that everyone we lost is welcome back into the store,” she said. In addition to the traffice for the proposed rezoning and re-develompent of the Extra Foods North Vancouver real estate site, impact study done by Bunt and Associates Engineering, which supports the Lonsdale acess option, Loblaw’s commissioned a third party independent traffic impact study through Opus Hamilton, a transportation planning and engineering firm. That study also showed improved overall traffic safety with the right in, right out alignment. It relieves pressure off of 17th Street. Moreover, there’s several examples of successful similar access situations throughout Metro Vancouver said Wingerak. “Our commitment to the City of North Vancouver in developing this Extra Foods site is that the brand new 40,000 square foot modern food store will continue on a very attractive price offering, as a price leader on the North Shore. We believe this real estate development is well aligned with the city’s goals for Central Lonsdale in becoming a great pedestrian environment and that it will be a highly successful anchor in the Central Lonsdale area,” she said. According to the City of North Vancouver engineering report, staff don’t fully support the Lonsdale Avenue option for a number of reasons. These include a city policy to eliminate driveways across Lonsdale – currently vehicular access off Lonsdale Avenue is prohibited except for service station use. Also the City of north Vancouver real estate transportation plan identifies Londsale as a pedestrian precinct and vehicle access across the sidewalk would detract from the city’s goal for a pedestrian friendly streetscape. The public hearing for the redevelopment and rezoning of Extra Foods int eh real estate corridor of Central Lonsdale in North Vancouver property is scheduled for September 8th.

North Shore Real Estate Update August 2008 – Property Value Correction Does Not Mean Disaster

Reading some commentators one might believe that “Chicken Little” was too great an optimist. No, an adjusting real estate market on the North Shore is not a disaster – like strenuous exercise, some discomfort does lead to a healthier, sickness-resistant organism. Indeed, an anxious seller on the North Shore property market may well be “giving back” a little to a canny home buyer or do we as a society favour existing property owners over those wanting to buy? I do know thought hat it is cold comfort for the August 2008 seller to hear that the March 2008 seller did well with 10% of the stress in the North Shore real estate market. This is according to the Allan Skinner editorial in the North Shore property newspaper, the most trusted news source for trends in the North Vancouver and West Vancouver real estate market. You can visit www.OnTopOfTheMarket.ca for more information or you can get an email version of these updates by requesting them from alanskinner@shaw.ca or calling 604.988.7368. These are highly recommended to North Shore home buyers and sellers. How to deal with today? Fact, lots of North Shore property on the market. The figures below show West Vancouver real estate inventory up over last year by 50 to 80% and North Vancouver property up over double in all North Shore real estate segments. If one has to sell, accept (i) that the North Shore property will sell for less than it would have 4 to 6 months ago and (ii) that nay real urgency to effect a sale may dictate a further reduction. Appropriate asking price and North Shore property condition are the key to achieving the speediest an dhighest sale result. Consider the following- if one North Shore property were selling on average every 5 days and there are 110 on the real estate market (ignoring new listings) that would mean that the North Shore inventory for property sales will be fully sold in about 1.5 years! If one has truly the average home, in average condition , in a middling location, it could take approx 9 months – hardly an exciting prospect! One has little control over one’s existing location but condition and price are “adjustable”. The buzz word for “sale condition” is now “staging” – a concpt which may connote something distatesful for some as in creating an illusion for increased sales price of North Shore real estate property. True condition is fortunately hard to fake. We are no longer in a phase (seller’s market) where anyone could say “I have a property to sell… it’s a bit rundown, but since the demand is so high (and supply low)… you’ll have to take it as is.” Remember, the well maintained and well presented North Shore property real estate will be easier to sell than the West Van and North Van properties where work has to be deferred. For the North Shore home buyer, the time is now to start looking seriously – no pressure to complete, time to consider rationally and a significant breadth of supply. Work with an experienced Realtor who has encountered this sort of real estate market on the North Shore and remember that Calgary’s 7100 detached home investory end of May ’08 became June ‘08’s 6500. Now si the time home buyers on the North Shore real estate market! The commend has been made – “why would it be called a buyers’ market if so few of them are making the decision to buy!” Predictions – continued leveling off of values this year and (I agree with CMHC) some increase in values once 2009 rolls around. Now the sevent months 2008 figures versus 2007 – North Vancouver real estate detached homes sold down 20% from last year, attached townhomes down 19% and apartments down by 21% from 2007. Detached average North Vancouver home prices +15% and inventory now up by 105%. Average prices up 8% townhouses and up by 12% for apartments. Inventory for North Vancouver townhomes is up 110% and apartments are up 107% - both of these continue to affected by slower absorption of new construction properties. While there still is demand, continuing high investory will maintain a tempering of sales prices – continuing of the plateauing. West Vancouver real estate market – detached number of sales has dropped by 25% from 1007. Average price of West Vancouver homes is up 7% and inventory is now up 85% over 2007. On the condo side, attached townhouses sold are marginally up over 2007 by 5% and average price down 10% YTD. Active listings are now 57% over last year and apartments reflect 96 sold versus 128 by July 2007. Overall North Shore real estate demand still evident with inventory remaining higher.

The North Shore Real Estate Market – The Land at the North End of the Lions Gate Bridge

A great article in the Home Renters Guide is all about apartment rentals and condos for rent on the North Shore that consists of North Vancouver (District and City) as well as West Vancouver and the outlying municipalities. Visitors to Vancouver are often told, “if you want to head north, just look for the North Shore Mountains,” unless of course the rain is obscuring the horizon, but that is another story. Huddled againt these inspring mountains, the three municipalities of the North Shore real estate market sprawl along the Burrard Inlet shoreline from Indian Arm ont eh east to Howe Sound on the west, and travelling through this diverse region reveals subtle and also major differences. The mountain wilderness which is the North Shore real estate’s forested backyard defines its character and speaks eloquently of its pioneer past, and of the First Nations who have called his land home for millennia. If you are looking for North Shore rental apartments or condos for rent in North Vancouver or West Vancouver, now is the time as vacancies are so low and not many new rental housing units are coming to the market anytime soon. Occupancy is usually near or at 100% especially in the City of North Vancouver complete with its excellent transportation system and idyllic location. Our trip starts at the historic birthplace of the City of North Vancouver in Lower Lonsdale rental condo market. Here the lumber industry was established on the North Shore of Vancouver in the 1860’s and soon families were settling around this bustling centre of industry and creating fledgling Lower Lonsdale North Vancouver rental communities that ultimately would become the municipalities of the North Shore real estate district. Small clusters of dwellings soon were scattered along the North Shore shoreline towards Horseshoe Bay in the west. Named Ambleside, Dundarave, and Hollyburn, these formed the nucleus of present day West Vancouver North Shore real estate rental market. To the east, the future of District of North Vancouver streteched towards Indian Arm.

The North Shore is a land of superlatives according to this Homebase Media article. The soaring snow-capped peaks of Grouse Mountain, Seymour Mountain and Hollyburn Mountains, here skiers and back-country enthusiasts explore the wonder of winter sports and summer hiking, are literally at Vancouver’s back door and the Coastal Mountain Ranges fo the North Shore real estate market. Grouse Mountain’s cable car chairlift operates all year, and this major tourist attraction is visible from the most palces in Vancouver. At the peak, you can tka eyour pick from skiing, hiking, helicopter trips, paragliding, lumber sporting events, and fine dining. West Vancouver real estate’s Cypress Bowl on Hollyburn Mountain also offers skiing with cross country trails forming a network through the mountains. Further east, Mount Seymour has its share of outdoor enthusiasts who enjoy exploring the mountains that overlook Indian Arm real estate in the North Shore. Whether you enter the North Shore real estate market over Lions Gate Bridge or the Iron Workers Memorial Bridge, or from the Seabus which darts across the harbour from Vanocuver, you can expect to find recreation, entertainment, and shopping: in fact, you may wish to stay. Lonsdale Quay in Lower Lonsdale North Shore real estate is similar to Granville Island, with its maritime ambience and endless array of shops and tantalizing foods to choose from. The Lower Lonsdale North Shore area around the Quay is steadily growing and undergoing revitalizing, with beautiful new rental condominium complexes and restaurants which have transformed the streetscapes of this energetic area. The adjacent Versatile Shipyards is currently being rezoned into a major waterfront North Shore real estate development with 1.6 million sq ft of residential/commercial and institutional use. The City of North Vancouver real estate, the smallest of the three North Shore municipalities is staunchly proud of its heritage and its independence.

More about the North Shore District of North Van Real Estate Rental District
The District of North Vancouver real estate on the North Shore of Vancouver with its wealth of natural wonders like the 250 hectares of Lynn Canyon Park with its suspension bridge, roaring toreents, and tranquil forest trails, offers neighbourhoods with woodland splendour. Deep Cove rental apartments and condos on its eastern boundary is a peaceful seaside village with a Mediteranean feel. Restaurants, boutiques, and funky stores makes this popular destination, and Panorama Park in Deep Cove and Beach is a favourite hangout for sunlovers, and kayaking and canoeing enthusiasts on the North Shore rental real estate market. A truly amazing way to explore the length of the North Shore real estate district from Deep Cove to Horseshoe Bay is along the rugged wilderness Baden Powell Trail which winds through wild terrain for 41 km. For an awe-inspiring experience, the Capilano Suspension Bridge which soars 230 feet above the Capilano River takes visitors across a numbing 450 foot span. While you are in this North Shore real estate district, visit the Cleveland Dam which is also on Capilano Road, nad thrill to the spilling waters from Cleveland Lake which course over the dam. This is a fine place to admire the peaks of The Lions in the distance, which provided Lions Gate Bridge with its name.

About the rental West Vancouver property market and what to expect
The waters of the Capilano River which flow into the sea beside famous Ambleside Park form West Vancouver’s eastern boundary in real estate North Shore. This recreational mecca offers white beaches, the start of the seawall which extends along the waterfront to Dundarave, playing fields, wonderful French fires at the conseccion, and views across to Stanley Park, the Lions Gate Bridge and as far as Spanish Banks and the Endowment Lands of UBC. The rental apartment market for West Vancouver North Shore real estate has no industrial lands and has developed into a mainly residential community sparkling with seaside parks, fine shopping and some of the most expensive real estate in Canada. High on the mountainside overlooking this North Shore real estate enclave of wealth and natural beauty, the millionaire mansions of the British Properties creep up the hillside, reminding us that the Guiness family, who built the Lions Gate Bridge, also developed this incredibly expensive tract of North Shore real estate. Cocooned between mountains and the ocean, the North Shore real estate rental market has roged its own distinct identity and provides a scenic backdrop for visitors to the City of Vancouver to enjoy. This is a fine place to admire in the distance, the peaks of The Lions, which provided Lions Gate Bridge its name.

Vancouver Retirement Communities & Active Seniors Living: Amica of West Vancouver, Lifestyles, Reminisce Sunrise Living Alzheimers, SAFER Program

Amica of West Vancouver Retirement Homes

Some things you retire from. Others you retire to. Life’s greatest pleasures are both simple and timeess; with fine food and good company ranked high among them. Both are in abundance at every Amica retirement home residence in West Vancouver rental market, where our chefs are professionally trained in making healthy meals culinary masterpieces. Imagine: one of the finest restaurants you’ll ever experience just a short stroll from your luxury Amica West Vancouver suite. Something to think about over dessert. Join us for dessert and music on Thursday, August 7th from 7-8pm at the West Vancouver Amica retirement homes. Amica at West Vancouver is located at 659 clyde Avenue in West Van, BC. 604.921.9181. Luxury independent rental retirement living at Amica is all inclusive with full service fine dining and welness and vitality programs. Amica West Vancouver Vitalis Assisted Living Suites and Services. For more information, please visit www.amica.ca. You can shed the loneliness of living alone and still keep your independent spirit at Amica Retirement Homes! At Amica Mature Lifestyles, our private studios and suites are the ideal situatin for someone who cherishes their independence and privacy, yet still loves to get out and about with friends. A round of bridge, a walk in the park, an outing to a stage play …. There is always something social to do at Amica Mature Lifestyles Retirement Homes without the need to organize yourself. So stay independent, while enjoying an all –inclusive retirement lifestyle with just the right amount of services all right outside your door. This is living. This is Amica Retirement Homes. Visit an Amica Community near you! Call to arrange for a personal tour. Mainland Commnities: Amica at Artbutus Manor – 2125 Eddington Drive in Vancouver BC V6L 3A9 – 604.736.8936, Amica at Mayfair – 2267 Kelly Avenue, Port Coquitlam, BC V3C 6N4 – 604.552.5552; Amica Retirement Home at Rideau Manor – 1850 Rosser Avenue, Burnaby, BC V5C 5E1 – 604.291.1792; Amica at West Vancouver – 659 Clyde Avenue, West Vancouver, BC V7T 1C8 – 604.921.9181. Vancouver Island Amica Communities: Amica at Beachwood Village – 2315 Mills Road, Sidney, BC V8L 5W6 – 250.655.0849; Amica at Douglas House, 50 Douglas Street, Victoria, BC V8V 2N8, 250.383.6528; Amica at Somerset House, 540 Dallas Road, Victoria, BC V8V 4X9, 250.380.9121.

Come Fly With Me at Lifestyle Retirement Communities

A year ago, none of us knew each other. We weren’t looking for new friends when we came to Lifestyle Retirement Homes. One day at lunch, we started talking about 5 cent ice cream cones, the Eaton’s catalogue, our favourite hockey players when there were only six teams and Frank Sinatra. The next thing we knew, we were singing “Come Fly With Me” at the piano. We drew quite a crowd at the Lifestyles Vancouver Retirement Home. Now, we can’t imagine noe knowing each other. For more information about the Vancouver Lifestyles Retirement Homes for seniors, please visit www.lrc.ca for details. Here are the Lifestyles Retirement Communities in the Lower Mainland: Parkwood Manor Lifestyles Homes, 1142 Dufferin St, Coquitlam, BC, 604.941.7651; Whitecliff Lifestyles Retirement, 15501-16th Ave, Surrey, BC 604.538.7227; Crofton Manor for Seniors Living, 2803 West 41st Street, Vancouver, BC, 604.263.0921 and Hollyburn House Retirement Lifestyles Community, 2095 Marine Drive, West Vancouver, 604.922.7616.

Sunrise Senior Living in Vancouver, North Van and Victoria

I am a mother, wife, career woman and a daughter caring for my aging mother. Balancing life’s roles can be both a joy and a challenge, but “doing it all” isn’t always the best answer. Sunrise Seniors Living understands. Did you know Sunrise Senior Living… provides a non-institutional alternative to long-term care, offers a warm home-like environment for seniors living, provides exceptional licensed residential seniors care, has provided care to seniors living for 25 years and focuses on residents’ changing personal needs? Also, did you know that the Vancouver Sunrise Seniors Living communities delivers care 24 hours a day based upon individualized service plans, offers a variety of resident oriented activities every day and has registered nurses and provides medication care management? Also, did you know that the retirement home communities by Sunrise Senior Living encourages independence and freedom of choice, employs a dedicated team members who ensure dignity of and respect fo residents and also offers a safe, secure area for residents with Alzheimer’s disease or other dementia! Sunrise Senior Living provides licensed residential care for seniors and provides a great retirement community for all. Sunrise of Vancouver at 999 West 57th Avenue, Vancouver, BC V6P 6Y9 or 604.261.5799, Sunrise at Lynn Valley, 980 Lynn Valley Road, North Vancouver, BC V7J 1Z7 or 604.904.1226; Sunrise Senior Living of Victoria at 920 Humboldt Street in Victoria, BC V8V 4W7 or 250.383.1366.

All Alzheimer Care Begins with What’s Been Forgotten

Suites now available at the Reminiscence Sunrise Seniors Living Neighbourhood for people living with Alzheimers. Each Alzheimer seniors has a history that makes them a unique individual. At Sunrise at Lynn Valley, our approach to Alzheimer care begins with understanding the stories and details of a senior’s life. Knowing the Alzheimers residents at Sunrise Living in Lynn Valley North Vancouver seniors community better means we can help them attain what they call “pleasant days” by finding activities they can enjoy and be successful at. We do this in specially designed surroundings that are both safe and maturing, where who they are is never forgotten at the Lynn valley Alzheimers care community at Sunrise Lynn Valley. Visit or call Sunrise at Lynn Valley alzheimers care facility for more information about how they care for seniors with memory impairement. Call 604.904.1226 or visit them at 980 Lynn Valley Road in North Vancouver BC. A licensed residential care community, Sunrise of Lynn Valley seniors living and alzheimers patients care is also online at www.sunriseseniorliving.ca.

Affordable Rent for B.C. Seniors

Are you 60 years of age or older? Do you struggle to make your monthly rent payments? Low-income seniors, who have lived in B.C. for the past 12 months, may be eligible to receive cash assistance towards their monthly rent payment through the Shelter Aid Elderly Renters (SAFER) Program. The Government of British Columbia helps make rent more affordable through the Shelter Aid Elderly Program for more than 15,000 low-income seniors across the province through the SAFER program. To apply or learn more about SAFER, Contact BC Housing at 604.433.2218 in the Lower Mainland or 1.800.257.7756 in B.C. To learn more about other seniors’ programs and services, call 1.800.465.4911.

Tips on Home Buying, Rebate Tax on Green Homes, First Canadian Title, Mortgage Options, And Other Vancouver Real Estate News

First Canadian Title

They have title insurance. They know their home is secure. Title fraud can happen. With title insurance from First Canadian Title, the risk and cost related to resolving title fraud or other home ownership problems become ours, not yours. Join thousands of homeowners who have peace of mind from Canada’s leading provider of title insurance. Visit www.ProtectYourtitle.com or call 1.877.888.1153 to order your policy now. Insurance by FCT Insurance Company Ltd. With the exception of commercial policies by First American Title Insurance Company. Services by First Canadian Title Company Limited. This material is intended to provide general information only. For specific coverage and exclusions, refer to the policy. Copies are available upon request. Some products/services may vary by province. Prices and products offered are subject to change without notice.

Take Advantage of Prepayment Mortgage Options

Seventy five per cent of recent Vancouver home buyers say they intend to pay off their home mortgage as soon as possible, but only 33 per cent even make a lump sum prepayment against their mortgage, according to a recent survey by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. Mortgage brokers offer some strategies fro mortgage holders who are thinking about making mortgage prepayments. Here’s what you could do with a $200,000 five year mortgage at a now competitive fixed rate of 5.45 per cent and a 25 year amortization: Add a bit to your monthly payment: Adding an extra $50 onto the monthly payment of $1,215 will save $14,987 in interest over the life of the mortgage, and allow the borrower to pay off the loan just under two years sooner. Make a yearly pre-payment: Paying an extra $2,000 on this same mortgage once per year on the anniversary date of the mortgage will yield a saving of $39,015 in interest over the life of the mortgage, and allow the borrower to repay the loan about five years sooner. Make a larger prepayment early in the mortgage: Making a single $5,000 lump sum prepayment three years into that mortgage on the anniversary date will save $10,882 over the life of the mortgage. However, waiting 15 years before you make the same payment will result in savings of only $3,446 over the life of the loan.

“Rebate Tax on Green Homes”

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver has joined in a call for the provincial government to cut the property purchase tax (PPT) on the purchase of homes that are built or renovated to high environmental standards. In nothing that PPT revenues are forecast to reach $1 billion in 2008, Brian Naphtali, president of the Real Estate Board of Vancouver, noted tha the government is in a position to tackle climate change by providing the tax incentive. Five recommendations that were delivered to the provincial government will see both PTT and Provincial Sales Tax (PST) revenues used to fund a provincial Green Building Tax Incentive and Rebate Program. The recommendations include offering a PPT rebate on new Built Green homes and PST rebate to homeowners renovating to energy efficient standards.

Home Buyers Weigh Real Estate Needs

Commute may be a factor when looking to purchase a home or condo in Vancouver according to Metro Magazine’s Andrea. First time homebuyers looking to save money should carefully weight their needs and lifestyles against what’s being offered in various municipalities, according to local realtors. Gary Born of Prudential Sussex Realty said that the further away from downtown Vancouver a house is, the cheaper it is likely to be, but other factors such as a lengthy commute can make it impractical. “That’s why they’re less expensive – because the commute is going to be long, expensive and frustrating,” he said. Smon Myara of Sutton Group West Coast Realty said Vancouver real estate home buyers can usually get more for their money the further east they go, in areas such as Burnaby, New Westminster and Langley, for example. “You’ll see that in Vancouver’s west side, for instance, for around $300,000 you would find a dmall, one bedroom apartment,” he said. “as you go further out, you start goint to two bedrooms for $300,000, $320,000. It happens almost right away when you go past a certain boundary,” he added. Born said Abbotsford, Chilliwack and Maple Ridge are three fairly inexpensive areas, as are Pitt Meadows and Northern Langley, which are growing in population due to affordable real estate and developing transit lines. Sebastien Albrecht of Royal LePage Westside recommended areas such as Fairview, an affordable pocket close to both downtown and Granville Island, and East Vancouver real estate, which is close to the Trans Canada Highway and rapidly developing.

Looking to purchase a new home? Congratulations – you’re part of a sophisticated, savvy group. According to a recent report by Canadian Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals (CAAMP), Canadians mortgage consumers are educated, informed, attuned to local real estate market conditions, and remain confident in our housing and mortgage markets. We’re also increasingly taking advantage of alternative mortgage products like longer amortization periods, no down-payment mortgages, and interest only mortgages. In fact, CAAMP found 37 per cent of recent home purchases in 2007 had been funded with extended amortization periods. Younger Canadians looking to become first time homebuyers are most interested in alternative mortgage products, and while cautious and conservative, they remain optimistic about the overall future of these options. And within that group, renters loking to buy remain most positive about the value of extended amortization mortgages as part of their home buying strategy. And if you’re one of the people with a new home in your future, here are a few that are making their first appearance in New Home Buyer’s Guide.

Tips on Buying a Vancouver Condo Assignment

The B.C. office of the Superintendent of Real Estate has issued an updated information bulletin for those buying assignment condominiums in Greater Vancouver for a new condo or other residential property. The alert is provided to consumers for information purposes only. It is important for purchasers to obtain appropriate real estate and legal advice prior to entering into an assignment condo Vancouver agreement. Things to consider before buying an assignment condo: Consider whether an assignment is permitted under the purchase contract. Some real estate developers in Vancouver do not permit condo assignments. Others may require the developer’s consent and a substantial assignment fee. Review the Developer’s Disclosure statement and thoroughly review all documents related to the sale. Obatin advice from a lawyer and/or real estate professional prior to entering into an assignment condo Vancouver contract. Consider all your options, such as whether the deposit and “lift” will be paid to the assignor upon signing the Vancouver condo assignment or held in trust until some later date. Generally, it is preferable from the assignee’s perspective if money is released to the assignor only after the unit is built and title is being transferred and Confirm in the Vancouver condo assignment agreement how the assignor will meet all of their agreements for a valid assignment of condominium, and set out what will happen if there is any breach of the assignment agreement or the presale contract. For further information on Vancouver real estate transactions and contact information for government offices and industry associations, visit www.fic.gov.bc.ca or the Homeowner Protection Office official website at www.hpo.bc.ca.

Real Estate Council Censures Nixon

Management infraction nets District of North Vancouver real estate councilor 28 day suspension as published in the North Shore News and written by Bethany L on July 23, 2008. District of North Vancouver councilor Alan Nixon was handed a 28 day suspension from real estate practise last month, after he was censured for professional malpractice by the Real Estate Council of B.C He and three other real estate agents were also ordered to pay a fine of $1,500 between them. “This is a little bump in the orad. It’s something that I’ve put well behind me,” Nixon said about the real estate suspension, which ended on Tuesday. Alan Nixon was disciplined for allowing two real estate agents to act as property managers without the proper licenses and for not actively managing the brockerage that employed him. At the time, Alan Nixon was the managing broker for Re/Max Crest Realty, but he left the brokerage in March and is currently unlicensed. The suspect activities began in October 2005, when Nixon said he discovered that two Realtors under his supervision were managing several condos in Vancouver without the proper accreditation. Douglas Soo and Marjan Mazaheri, with help from their assistant Coral Ashe, were managing about 60 units when Alan Nixon said he told them they must hire someone with a license. “Ironically, this is probably one fo the best documented property management relationships that exist out there in the industry,” Nixon said. “Everything was done in strict accordance with the rules of the Real Estate Services Act, except they didn’t have the necessary accreditation to do it.” Soo and Mazaheri did hire a licensed property manager soon after Nixon spoke to them, but they fired him after six onths and resumed managing the units themselves until July 2007. Mazaheri and Ashe are still listed as Crest employees, but Soo is serving a 21 day suspension that will end on July 29. As part of the disciplinary action, Alan Nixon and Soo were also orderd to attend classes entitled Professionalism – It Pays! Be Safe or Be Sued! And Legal Update. He said he plans to enroll in September. The councilor said he plans to return to the real estate industry in the very near future. He has applied for a license for a new brockerage in North Vancouver, and expects to be approved within the next two weeks. Alan Nixon said that he left Crest because of a conflict between himself and the owner over different “operating philosophies”: the owner wanted to expand the brockerage, but Nixon wanted to maintain its current number of agents. A representative for Re/Max Crest Realty confirmed that Nixon left the company for reasons unrelated to the disciplinary action against him. Nixon comfirmed that he would be running for re-election as a district councilor this fall, when he will seek his third term in office.

State of the Greater Vancouver Rental Housing Market, Rental Assistance Program for BC, Vancouver Condo Rents &Vacancy Update, Residential Tenancy Act

The Art of Seniors Living at Tapestry Retirement Homes

Tapestry Retirement Communities offer the very best in seniors living. Enjoy sumptuous choices in dining, housekeeping, health and wellness, transportation, assisted living services and more. It’s five star retirement at Tapestry retirement seniors living tailored to your idea of fun. Tapestry seniors living communities are developed by Concert and operated by Leisure Care by Concert. www.DiscoverTapestry.com.

Rental Assistance Program for BC

Making a difference for fa milies in BC real estate. If your household income is $35,000 or less, you may be eligible to receive cash assistance with your monthly rent payments in the province of BC. Effective April 2008, the Province has increased the maximum household income level for the BC Rental Assistance Program for low-income working families. To qualify for the Rental Assistance Program of BC, families must have at least one dependent child have lived in B.C. for the past 12 months and have spend part of the last year working. For more information about the BC Rental Assistance Program, call 604.433.2218 in the Lower Mainland or 1.800.257.7756 elsewhere in B.C. You can also visit www.bchousing.org as Housing Matters.

Vancouver Rental Market Tightens

Apartment vacancies across Canada’s major cities fell to 2.6 per cent in April form 2.8 per cent in the same month a year ago, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. “The Canadian economy remains very supportive of strong demand for both ownership and rental housing thnaks to solid job creation and healthy income gains,” CMHC chief economist Bob Dugan said. “High levels of immigration and the increasing gap between the cost of home ownership and renting continue to drive rental demand in 2008. These factors have put downward pressure on vacancy rates over the past year.” The vacancy rate in Metro Vancouver is in the 1 per cent range in most municipalities.

B.C. Real Estate Has Lowest Rental Vacancy Rates

Apartment vacancies in Canada’s major cities fell in April as solid employment numbers and increasing incomes pushed demand higher. About half of BC’s cities record either a decline in the vacancy rate or no change compared to one year ago. The average Vancouver rental apartments vacancy rate in 35 major centres fell to 2.6 per cent in April from 2.8 per cent in the same month a year ago, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. “The Canadian economy remains very supportive of strong demand for both Vancovuer ownership and rental housing thanks to both solid job creation and healthy income gains,” CMHC chief economist Bob Dugan said Thursday in a statement. “High levels of immigration and the increasing gap between the cost of home ownserhip and renting continue to drive the rental demand in 2008.” The lowest vacancy rates were to be found in Victoria (0.3 per cent), Kelowna, B.C. (0.3 per cnt), Sudbury, Ont., (0.7 per cnt), Vancouver (0.9 per cent) and Saskatoon (0.9 per cent). Rising migration and the high cost of Vancouver home ownership in British Columbia has pushed apartment vacancies there below one per cent in all major centres save Abbotsford. The province’s overall rate stood at 1.1 per cent in April. The Western provinces typically saw the lowest vacancy rates in the country, with Manitoba at one per cent, Saskatchewan at 1.2 per cent. Alberta real estate logged an increase in vacancies to 2.9 per cent from 0.9 per cent in the April a year earlier “mainly due to reduced migration into the province and increased supply of rented condominiums and basement apartments. Vacancies in Calgary increased to 2 per cent from 0.5 per cent and in Edmonton to 3.4 per cent from 1.1 per cent. The highest apartment vacancy rates were seen in Windsor, Ont (13.2 per cent), Moncton (5.5 per cent) and Hamilton (4.7 per cent).

Oh, and by the way, Rent Rules Vital

An important column published in the 24 Hrs newspaper in Vancouver by Siobhan R. though our society pays homeage to the God of home ownership, it’s interesting to note how many people still rent their homes – 57 per cent of households in Vancouver have landlords. Even if, as predicted, Vancouver house prices do level off, asking prices have reached altitudes that prohibit many people from buying a home in Vancouver – a situation that isn’t likely to change for some time in the Lower Mainland. Given all this, and the fact that one third of householders in B.C. rent, it’s infuriating that we have a provincial government that has actually made Vancouver renters more vulnerable to eviction and rent increases. When, in 2004, the B.C. government weakened the Residential Tenancy Act (RTA), it did this knowingly and deliberately. Changes to the B.C. Residential Tenancy Act (RTA) allowed annual rent increases that tenants no longer had the right to dispute, even if repairs hadn’t been done. Don’t take my word though. Just last week, on the City of Vancouver website, I found a letter from Mayor Sam Sullivan to Premier Gordon Campbell (written May 14) urging the Premier to better protect Vancouver tenants and renters in the Lower Mainland area by amending the landlord tenant law of BC. According to the letter, some landlords in B.C. use provisions in the B.C. RTA to increase rents far in excess of what is allowed. They accomplish this by evicting Vancouver tenants on the pretext that major renovations need to be done. This allows them to create a new tenancy at a significantly higher rent. The major’s letter refers to cases of “mass” eviction reported in the Vancouver media but also admits the city has no idea how many tenants of individual or smaller rental units suffer the same fate.

The mayor urges the premier to tighten up the rules around these so-called “renovations.” He also suggests that Vancouver tenants who do have to move are given 90 days notice instead of 60 days, too short a time under the current scarcity of rental Vancouver accommodations to find somewhere new. Sullivan’s letter explains that some landlords coerce tenants, who often feel like they don’t have much choice, into signing tenancy agreements that end at a specific date rather than ongoing tenancies with no definite end. The former type allows landlords in B.C. to raise rents as uch as they wish once the end date comes – even if the tenant in Vancouver remains the same. As if all this isn’t bad enough, in 2004, the B.C. government closed the Vancouver branch of the Residential Tenancy Branch, a service that assists with landlord tenant disputes in Greater Vancouver. Now there is only one such office to serve the entire Lower Mainland. Though the City of Vancouver itself has much to do in terms of housing – its letter to the Premier spells out quite clearly that the B.C. government must amend the B.C. Residential Tenancy Act in order to protect B.C.’s increasingly vulnerable renters, with one third of British Columbians renting their homes. I couldn’t agree more.

Downtown Vancouver Supportive Housing at Doug Story Apartments and Social Housing in the Downtown East Side (DTES) | Also Gentrification of Strathcona

Downtown Vancouver Housing Gets Boost at Doug Story Apartments

According to Kristen T. for the Metro Newspaper, forty four low income people whoa re homeless, at risk of homelessness or living in single room occupancy hotels have a clean, safe and affordable place to call home with the opening of the downtown Vancouver Doug Story Apartments. Yesterday was the official opening of the 45 unit social housing building at Richards and Robson Street, one of 12 city owned apartment sites being developed into social housing. Phyllis Alfredson, a resident of the Doug Story Apartment residences who spent two years on the street, said she feels she’s been given a chance to start over. “It’s like a whole new beginning,” she said. “You actually have a place of your own that you’re not embarrassed about, that you can bring people to.” You can believe in yourself for the first time, believe that things can change, that life can get better.” She said she’s physically and psychologically healthier, in part because the neighbourhood of the downtown Vancouver Doug Story apartment homes is safe and quiet. Pat Zanon, with Coast Mental Health said housing is fundamental to recovery from mental illness and addiction. “Without a home, such as the Doug Story apartments, it is absolutely impossible for people to move forward with their lives,” she said. The Building’s Namesake: The Vancouver Doug Story Apartments is named after a SRO resident who was a member of the Coast Resource Centre from 2001 until his death in 2006. Mayor Sam Sullivan attends the grand opening of the downtown Vancouver Doug Story apartments social housing project on Richards Street.

Gentrification of Strathcona Vancouver Attracts Many Home Buyers

As one of Vancouver’s oldest neighbourhoods, Strathcona struggled to survive a proposed new renewal/demolition in the 1950s and is now, half a century later, emerging as an affordable sought after community. Published in 24 Hrs by S. Boyce. Here is where you’ll find the city’s largest concentration of character homes, some of its oldest stores and a vibrant gentrification that’s beginning to attract global attention. Strathcona’s exact boundaries tend to be somewhat flexible, according to who is defining them – some include Chinatown, others not; some say it’s the CNR rail yards that create the southern border, others insist it’s Great Northern Way. However, all agree Clark Drive and Hastings Street are the eastern and northern extremeties of Strathcona real estate. Few single family detached houses come on the market here. When they do, you can expect to pay a minimum of $600,000 for an older home with a typical tall, narrow profile of an early 1900s building. A surprising percentage of existing homes in Strathcona Vancouver have either undergone or are in the process of heritage renovation, and walking much of this area is akin to taking a step back in time. But change is in the air as Vancouver real estate developers eye properties offering affordability and proximity to downtown Vancouver. “As it becomes more and more difficult to find affordable opportunities downtown, people continue to look east,” says Chris Evans, executive vice president of Onni Group of Companies. “First Crosstown had a few projects, then came 33 Living, Woodwards, East, Ginger and Smart Gastown.” Onni, too, is catching the wave with V6A, a nine storey collection of condominiums located at Union Street between Main and Gore. Priced from the low $300,000s, Evans says he believes “V6A provides a unique opportunity for people to buy into a great neighbourhood at significantly less money per square foot than its neighbours to the west.” Earlier this year and around the corner at 718 Main Street (just north of Union) Ginger made a splashy entry into Strathcona with condos priced well under $400,000 and boasting an avante guard, international flair that included individual suite doors decorated with custom black and white photos of the surrounding streetscape. “So many other developments just go for safe, predictable designs,” says Mike Lefeaux, who purchased one of the first Ginger suites with his wife, Amanda Cafearo. “This really stands out – its’ different, very cool, just what we’ve been looking for. We lived in London for a while and Ginger has the same modular, Euro feel to it – it’s about time this style hit Vancouver.”

Supportive Housing Vancouver – In Your Backyard?

A significant majority of British Columbians would welcome housing for people with mental illnesses and addictions in their neighbourhoods, a new poll done for 24 Hrs suggests. More than 83 per cent of people surveyed by 24 hours pollster would say yes to supportive housing in their community. Just over 11 per cent of respondents to social housing in their community said they would be opposed. The results would appear to suggest that the very vocal opposition that inevitably emerges when new proposals for Vancouver supportive housing are pitched could be in the minority. Mark Smith, executive director of RainCity Housing, says the experience of trying to convince local residents of the need for social housing in Vancouver, for a 30 unit facility on Vancouver’s Fraser Street was “awful.” “At the public information session they were lined up and down the two aisles to yess at us,” Smith said in an interview. “I was threatened. It was wild. In my 30 years in this field, I’d never experienced anything like that.” But Smith said he was pleased to see the apparently positive results of the poll on Vancouver social housing in your backyard by 24 hours. Would you be happy to see a supportive housing Vancouver project open up next door to you?

“There’s always such a vocal minority of people that speak up that it feels like the entire community Is just overwhelming against it,” he said. “But I know that there were a lot of people that did support our social supportive housing project on Vancouver’s Fraser Street.” Turning Point Recovery Society Vancouver, another housing project provider, wasn’t so lucky. The group withdrew its application to open a 32 unit recovery house in Richmond BC after facing intense criticism of the project from residents. “We’re up against a very strong opposition,” said executive director fo Turning Point Recovery Society Vancouver, Brenda Plant, who decides what she calls some residents’ NIMBYism – Not in my backyard. “They think property values will decline, children won’t be safe, there will be increased drug activity and drug dealers. These things just simply aren’t true,” Plant said.

In Vancouver, supportive housing projects for mental illness and addictions are overwhelmingly skewed to the east. Excluding the downtown Vancouver social supportive housing projects, there are only three small facilities west of Main Street. Ultimately, supportive housing projects in Vancouver have become concentrated in the Downtown Eastside, even if residents come from all parts of the city. “Richmond is by no means exempt from addictions and mental health challenges,” said Turning Point’s Plant, noing that there are no similar facilities in Richmond for addicted women. Either way, RainCity’s Smith said he was still cautious about the poll results. “It’s easy to respond to a poll when it’s not actually happening,” he said. “How many of them are thinking I’d welcome [Vancouver supportive housing] in my neighbourhood- but not next door?” The poll surveyed 609 British Columbians and is considered representative of the general population within +/- four per cent, 19 times out of 20.

Vancouver Supportive Housing Poll by 24 Hrs

Poll asked… a significant number of homeless people also suffer from a mental illness and/or addition. It is generally acknowledged that there is not sufficient supportive housing in Vancouver for such people. Which statement is closest to your view: 83.7% - I would support a supportive housing project for people with mental illness or addition issues in my community. 11.4% - I would be opposed to a supportive housing project for people with mental illness or addition issues in my community. 4.9% - Don’t Know. Strategic Communications poll for 24 hours on if people support social Vancouver supportive housing in their communities.

Social Housing Facts in a Nutshell

1,720 – Vancouver Coastal Health has 1,72 supportive housing units in the communities across its regions catering to tenants with mental health and addiction issues
?? – Most are found in non-descript apartment buildings
900 – Fraser Health Authority has at least 900 units of Vancouver supportive housing in its communities
137G – Adults in B.C. meet the criteria for having severe addictions and/or mental illness
39G – Adults with addiction and/or mental illness in B.C. are ‘inadequately housed.”
$$ - The average street homeless adult with mental health and addiction issues costs the public at least $55,000 a year
2 Years – Vancouver Coastal Health says many tenants are ready to move on after stays of 18 to 24 months in alcohol and drug-free social housing.
$$ - Providing adequate Vancouver supportive housing reduces the cost by $37,000 a year.
7.741 – A government initiated review of SFU’s Centre for Applied Research in Medical Health and Addiction found there were 7,741 beds with adequate support available to adults with mental health and/or addiction issues in B.C.
Sources: Vancouver Coastal Health, Fraser Health, Centre for Applied Research in Mental Health, City of Vancouver

Vancouver Downtown Eastside Seeks New Lease on Life

So, what does the Downtown Vancouver East Side district have in its future plans? This article published in the Georgia Straight and written by Matthew Burrows analyzes what is to become of the forgotten community in downtown Vancouver. From our standpoint, the Vancouver Downtown East Side (also known as the DTES) will provide great opportunities for business growth, affordable housing and rental suites and an ecletic and boutique retail district. Fresh from lunch on a balmy Saturday afternoon, Councillor Peter Ladner strolls westward from the Carnegie Centre at Main and Hastings and confronts Vancouver’s socioeconomic underbelly. Already on this short walkabout, the NPA’s mayoral hopeful and two term councilor has talked with VPD Sgt. Tim Henschel in an alley, where the officer had recovered a stolen city engineering truck. Flustered Chinatown Vancouver Downtown East Side (DTES) security guard Harold Johnson pulled Ladner aside a minute later to tell him drug users should “start rehab or serve time.” Back on East Hastings in DTES Vancouver, Ladner told the Georgia Straight the open drug use, dealing and general street activity evokes “extreme frustration.” “It shouldn’t happen here. We shouldn’t be putting up with it… I’ve seen the Herzog photos of this place back in the ‘50s and ‘60s. The Smilin’ Buddha, wherever it was – I think right over here – was a great nightclub. It was a normal neighbourhood, and it has been destabilized by focusing all of the region’s problems in this one neighbourhood [Downtown East Side Vancouver]” On Thursday, July 24, Ladner and the rest of Vancouver city council will devote more time to the issue when the city planning and environment committee address two staff reports dealing with “economic revitalization and “commercial revitalization” of the Vancouver Downtown Eastside community.

The first report, for information purposes only, is a 14 page update on the Vancouver Agreement Economic Revitalization Plan and its “Downtown Eastside implementation”. According tot eh report, it builds on principles of a council revitalization strategy established in June 2000; to involve those already in the Vancouver Downtown East side in the renewal; to “reserve and enhance the sense of community” felt by residents there; to listen to those most affected; to improve the “liveability and safety” of the Downtown Eastside; and to develop and implement a well-understood plan that delivers results. The second document will ask council to report back to staff within a year on the effectiveness of current city policy, passed in May 2007, which created the Building Opportunities With Business Inner City Society (BOB). According to the report, BOB is an expansion of a $150,000 lease subsidy program established in March 2000 to help bring viable commercial storefront activity to Hastings Street, between Gore and Cambie Streets in the Downtown Vancouver East Side district. If council sees BOB as effective, the city will kick in $1 million over three years toward the revitalization.

Lawyer David Eby told the Georgia Straight he lives just off East Hastings in what he describes as a “unique neighbourhood”. Eby, who is seeking a council nomination with Vision Vancouver, said the first order of business must be improving housing conditions in the DTES or Downtown East Side of Vancouver “so that people don’t need to spend all their time on the streets because their rooms are infested with bedbugs or they’re scorching hot or freezing cold.” With people’s “personal space” established, Eby said, he would then address mental health and addiction issues, along with the homelessness that he said “plagues” the area. “Without dealing with that, no business is going to want to located in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver,” Eby said, after noting: “Welfare rates are so low. People just don’t have the money to spend on traditional stores, so they buy three processed cheese slices at a time or one piece of fried chicken, or they use food depots…. There are a limited number of people that come from outside to the Downtown Eastside to do their shopping, with the exception of the annual Army & Navy shoe sale.”

City staff have used the phrase “revitalization without [population] displacement,” something Eby describes as “not only important, but absolutely essential” to the Vancouver Downtown East side community. Ladner said he too believed zero displacement was achievable. “All we have to do is ensure that we don’t lose downtown eastside social housing here, and we are not,” he said. “We are losing some, but we are replacing it too, and if you look at the numbers, generally speaking, it is being replaced.”

The Vancouver Downtown Eastside By The Numbers

Number of geographic areas the Vancouver City includes in the Downtown Eastside: 7 (Oppenheimer district, Industrial, Victory Square, Gastown, Chinatown, Thornton Park, and Strathcona). DTES residents interviewed as part of Carnegie Community Action Project visioning sessions: 300. DTES residents who filled out a CCAP questionnaire in March and April 2008: 655. Percentage of questionnaire respondents who would stay in DTES “if they had safe and secure housing”: 95. Units of DTES market housing to be built between 2005 and 2010: 1,597. Total number of units of DTES social housing for singles for same period: 557. Source: Nothing About Us Without Us, an upcoming CCAP housing report (release date: July 28): City of Vancouver housing centre.

What are the chances of the economy in the Downtown Eastside taking off?

Wendy Pederson, Organizer of the Carnegie Community Action Plan: “I think it very well could take off because of Woodward’s and if there is more condo developent that comes into the neighbourhood. I think we could see Gap stores and bigger places in the neighbourhood easily, unless there are some tools to manage change. We don’t see what those are. What is going to protect small business owners and the low income renter in the neighbourhood?” Jorge Mar, Chinatown Shop Owner: “Not in the near future. Because of the price of gas and the U.S. economy, especially in Chinatown here, we are dependent on tourists and that doesn’t help. The past three years have been going down [in terms of revenue]. Last year, really, we felt the effects of the U.S. economy. This year is the worst. I don’t think the city can do much, maybe some cosmetic stuff.” Bernie Magnan, Chief Economist, Vancouver Board of Trade: “There are businesses that are already there in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver and doing ery well, thank you very much… What we need to do is help the people – and I’m not just talking about those who have a drug and/or a mental health addiction problem – but also the residents of the downtown Eastside and their children in making sure they get a proper education so they can succeed in life.” David Eby, seeking Vision Vancouver council nomination and DTES-Strathcona resident: “I guess that depends on what you mean by the Downtown Eastside economy. I mean, the Downtown Eastside economy is doing really well. But until we deal with the underlying issues of homelessness, drug addiction and mental health in the Downtown Eastside community, the Downtown Eastside mainstream economy will never take off.”

Port Moody Rental Homes at Woodland Park: Home Renters Guide for Rental Residential Buildings for Lease Right Now

Woodland Park Rental Homes in Private Park Setting – Port Moody Rental Homes

Port Moody rental houses at Woodland Park article written by Bill for the Home Renters Guide of Vancouver. Rental homes come in all shapes and sizes, but this 29 acre park with mountain views and shady mature trees was a sight to behold. Located at 1190 Cecile Drive in Port Moody, the Woodland Park cluster of 19 separate rental residential buildings is just minutes fro the delights of this City of The Arts in Port Moody BC. Restaurants abound close by and this Port Moody community is serviced by the C24 Community bus with service to Lougheed Town Centre and the SkyTrain station. Convenient to all you require but nestled in the peace and quiet of its private park-like setting at Woodland Park Port Moody rental homes.

Rita Kiss, the Site Manager at Woodland Park, indicated that the offerings include two and three bedroom townhomes with unique floor plans over five levels. The three bedroom home she showed me had recently been painted and was bright and spacious with delightful views over a tranquil clump of evergreens. “We assess all homes between tenants and paint them if necessary.” Caralee, Assistant Manager at the Port Moody rental townhomes at Woodland Park, added that “in addition we have recently upgraded homes to include dishwashers.”

At sizes ranging from 1,175 sq ft for the two bedroom homes and 1,275 for the three bedroom residences, these Woodland Park homes are rental suites with room to breathe in. All rental homes also include unfinished basements. So no storage worries here! Interested in renting? The process is painless. First, arrange an appointment by calling 604.939.0221. You will receive all relevant information about the Woodland Park Port Moody rental townhomes. Then if you are interested, an application for rental is submitted. A background check is performed an dif successful, an appointment is made to sign the lease (a minimum of one year lease is required).

“Families love this location, with Seaview Elementary School next door and acres of landscaped lawns for the children to play on. One toddler was kicking a soccer ball with the mum as we strolled past as though to prove the point. Nearby you will also find Moody Middle School and Moody Senior Secondary School. Recreational enthusiasts will love Ricky Point Park and Westhill Pool and Playground.” Rita added, “That some Woodland Park rental tenants have resideded here since Woodland Park opened over 40 years ago, with some of their children now residing here.” Continuity seems to be a theme here!

All rental homes at Woodland Park Port Moody have walk-out basements, large balconies, and excellent storage facilities.

With a resident painter on site and two full time maintenance personnal, Woodland Park Port Moody rental townhouses is well serviced. And as Rita added, “we have cleaners on staff who ensure that all rental homes are in perfect shape for new tenants.” For additional information about Woodland Park, 1190 Cecile Drive, Port Moody or call 604.939.0221 or visit www.rentmidwest.com.

Woodland Park – Situated on 28 Beautiful Acres – Port Moody Apartments for Rent

Located at 1190 Cecile Drive in the Port Moody rental apartment market, there are two and three bedroom homes for rent lease at the Woodland Park community where you can enjoy true family living in this beautiful neighbourhood. Call Midwest at 604.939.0221 for more information about these fabulous suites for lease. Updated two and three bedroom split level rental townhomes in Port Moody are now available with five appliances, walk out basement for your convenience and in suite laundry! Also, the Port Moody rental apartments for lease at Woodland Park community will have double glazed windows and screens for energy efficiency in addition to a convenient location near schools, SFU, transit, shopping, and the Port Moody community centre. The rental apartments at Woodland Park townhomes Port Moody are located within a park like setting and is cat friendly. The web site is located at rentmidwest.com or you can email the manager of the Port Moody Rental Apartments at Woodland Park at woodland@rentmidwest.com. They are open Monday through Thursday from 8:30am to 8pm, Friday from 8:30am to 5pm and Saturday from 12pm – 4pm.

Fire Forces 150 People to Evacuate at Woodlands New Westminster

Woodlands – about 150 people had to leave their New Westminster homes yesterday afternoon after a three alarm fire at the next door Woodlands building – the second fire at the site this week. The centre section of the main three storey building was engulfed in flames roughly 10 metres high at the height of the blaze at Woodlands New Westminster apartment homes. Sgt. Ivan Chu of the New West police said firefighters had to let the building burn down and worked to direct the fire away from nearby residences. “There’s no way the firefighters could get into the building, so they’re spraying water from the outside,” Chu said. He added the cause of the fire has not yet been determined and that it’ll be treated as suspicious. Last Thursday, a smaller fire at Woodlands New Westminster was thought to be started by homeless people squatting in the empty building. The Woodlands New West Institute was opened in 1878 for the mentally and physically handicapped. Several former residents and their families sued, alleging sexual and physical abuse. It closed in 1996. Joyce Yip for the Metro Vancouver newspaper.

North Shore Real Estate Trends and Housing Value Predictions - Metro Vancouver Real Estate Prices Should Moderate through to 2009

House Sales Slow Across North Shore Real Estate

High supply makes for home buyers’ market according to Deneka of the North Shore News. After years of favourable conditions for home sellers, the North Shore real estate market appears to be giving buyers the upper hand, according to a new report issued by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver. Multiple Listing Service figures released by the board last week show that sales for both North Vancouver and West Vancouver real estate housing in June were down from the same time last year, while listings were up. The percentage of sales-to-listings for detached homes in North Vancouver last month was 28 per cent, while in June 2007 that figure stood at 93 per cent. In West Vancouver housing market, the percentage was 29 per cent last month and 64 per cent for the same time last year. For several months now there have been signs of moderation in the British Columbia home market as demand has eased off from the highs of last year, explained Cameron Muir, chief economist with the B.C. Real Estate Association. The North and West Vancouver housing real estate market has been rebalancing itself from the high demand state, and now there is actually higher supply than demand, meaning the property market is now favourable towards homebuyers.

“More balance between demand and supply means less upward pressure on home prices. It also reduces the chance of multiple bids on the same house in North or West Vancouver property, giving homebuyers more time to investigate properties thoroughly before purchasing,” said Muir in a recent press release. “This is probably a long-anticipated, realignment of the market,” he added in an interview. The B.C. Real Estate Association forecasts that residential sales for the Greater Vancouver area will fall by eight per cent his year, from 38,978 unit sales last year to 25,900 for 2008. They anticipate that in 2009 sales will again drop by three per cent for the area to 34,800 sales. Yet despite the fact that salese are dropping, home prices are not, explained David Watt, president of the Greater Vancouver Real Estate Board. According to the Board’s recent report, overall prices in the Greater Vancouver area were up 7.3 per cent in June compared to the same time last year, bringing the average residential property selling price to $564,982 last month.

In North Vancouver real estate housing market, since June 2007, the benchmark price of a detached home increased by 4.7 pe cent to $893,639, the average attached home price increased by 8.1 per cent to $608,225 and the average condo price rose by 4.4 per cent to $386,212. In West Vancouver housing real estate market, over the past year, detached home prices have risen by 0.9 per cent to an average of $1,428,139 while the average attached home price increased by 4.9 per cent to $719,783 and the average condo selling price was up by 6.9 per cent to $711,268. BCREA expects the rpcie increase will continue, but at a slower pace than the double digit increases seen over the past several years. According to their spring 2008 housing forecast, the association predicts that overall MLS selling prices for the Greater Vancouver area will rise by nine per cent this year to an average of $621,000 and will increase by an additional five per cent next year to $651,000. Lower year-over-year increases are a result of the rebalancing of the real estate market, said Muir. With more homes on the market in North and West Vancouver housing market, sellers need to be more educated and need to price their homes at reasonable prices so that their houses will sell. Homes that have been on the market for some time and that have been listed in anticipation of continued rising prices may have to re-evaluate their pricing, he said. “Although housing prices, on a year-over-year comparison, continue to show single-digit percentage increases, we are beginning to see more price reductions in properties listed on the market today,” Watt said in the press release. However, lower listing prices do not mean that home prices are decreasing, he explained in the interview. “It’s not even that prices have gone down, it’s just that they aren’t marked up,” he said.

With the North Vancouver housing market and West Vancouver real estate taking a downturn south of the border, many Canadians have grown wary that Canada will suffer the same fate as the United States, but comparing the two industries is a far stretch, said Gregory Klump, chief economist with the Canadian Real Estate Association. The U.S. housing market experienced extremely rapid price increases and poor lending practises which has now resulted in price