Tuesday May 4th, 2010 - Housing Mindset For Greater Vancouver Changes With The Times

The people of China love Vancouver. The wealthiest of those people are scooping up real estate in a big way keeping real estate agents and their listed clients very happy. Home prices are up, sales are being closed. What’s not to love?

Homes built just after World War II were fetching an average of $300,000 in 2000. In today’s market, those same homes go for over a million dollars. The real estate they sit on is so valuable, that even at those prices many of these bungalows will face the wrecker’s ball to make way for high density housing. Rather than seeking the house with the backyard and the white picket fence, many of today’s single professionals and small families prefer to live in the city. Less commute, no yard work. No fuss.

That is the exact opposite of what was happening in the 1950s when there was almost a mass exodus out of the cities with people looking for semi-wide open spaces. Places like Richmond saw their populations grown. Today’s housing prices also have a lot to do with this change in mind set. A half million dollars or so just does not buy what it used to.

Richmond, no longer the rural outpost of the mid 20th century, is planning a new development near the Vancouver International Airport and the Olympic Oval. The need for housing is there, but those wanting to invest in that area will have to put up with a very noisy neighbour that keeps late hours and has a habit of launching noisy low flying objects whenever it wants.

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