Vancouver's Real Estate Market

[Gerbs]

I'll be fifty and y'all 60-70 when it's done, nothing worth complaining about

[PeanutButter]

I was wondering how these developers can even afford to develop land like that and my developer friend said because they bought the land for so cheap (compared to today's standards) they can stomach the construction costs. He said it would be impossible to build a development like that today if they had to buy the land at current market price.

So he said people should be thankful there are developers like concord and the other major developers that are here because if they didn't have the land from back in the day, there wouldn't be these big projects that we have.

I think that's a pretty strong endorsement for these big developers, people always make it seem like they're the big bad wolf, but they're actually quite productive for our city.

[Badhobz]

They suck ! They all suck. Quality is shit. On par with buddy guy builders nowadays.

If you can afford it, it’s still better to get a white guy custom home team who has a long history of development. Only problem with that is cost and time. Most of these guys are based out of Langley or some shit and they take forever. Like that one in my neighbourhood being built, it’s been going since the start of the pandemic. Still not finished.

Pretty sure it’s over 500 bucks per sqft

[GS8]

Originally Posted by Hondaracer

Back to R/E I had a colleague go check out a brand new building at Cambie and King Ed today, new wood frame low rise rental building

2 bedroom unit with 1 parking spot renting for… 4300/month without utilities

This reminds me of the Lougheed towers were nearing completion, they had banners around one of them advertising 'rental units available'. These were dedicated rental-only units.

Not even a week later, I happened to see a news story on these towers with that same banner in a close up shot followed by the reporter saying how much they cost...

"$4500 / month for 2 bed / 2 bath" for what's probably a trash build that won't wear very well.

Also a short time after they opened, the main complaints generated were people throwing their trash, cigs and even alcohol bottles over their balconies.

The times I've gone to that BMO way after hours left me feeling with 'this is paradise?' as the guy on his Trek Checkpoint SL 7 and JBL party box cycles around the premises while John Scofield plays on the tower's built-in PA System.

Like, FUCK, just call in Red Falcon at this point...

Spoiler!

YouTube (Short URL)

[Hondaracer]

Originally Posted by Badhobz

They suck ! They all suck. Quality is shit. On par with buddy guy builders nowadays.

If you can afford it, it’s still better to get a white guy custom home team who has a long history of development. Only problem with that is cost and time. Most of these guys are based out of Langley or some shit and they take forever. Like that one in my neighbourhood being built, it’s been going since the start of the pandemic. Still not finished.

Pretty sure it’s over 500 bucks per sqft

I’ve been dealing with builders in Vancouver now for a couple years, no joke 90% of them are Indian.

The only white guys build or Reno ultra high end, 10+ million on the west side. Literally everything else east of oak is Indian with a handful of Chinese builders.

[Badhobz]

Stupid builders…. Honestly if I can get a full Chinese crew nowadays that’s already a win. I’ll take that over these dinguses that built my house. It’s been a year and I’ve been constantly cleaning up after their shoddy workmanship

[supafamous]

Originally Posted by JDMDreams

^ they probably won't do it, in before someone cries about hobos having nowhere to stay if we tear down the bridge, + cost overruns, cov going broke

I can't recall the specifics but I believe the deal for tearing down the viaducts includes the developers having to contribute to a good chunk of the costs in exchange for approval to build the proposed development.

It's still generally the city's fault for not having started that work though - COVID is not an excuse.

[Mikoyan]

supposedly, COV is saying they can't start the demo till Concord gets started on their build. and they can't do the demo and street alignments prior to Concord start?

[EvoFire]

I still think tearing down the viaducts are a bad idea.

[CivicBlues]

At this rate the viaducts will collapse on it's own due to old age and neglect.

[Hondaracer]

Originally Posted by EvoFire

I still think tearing down the viaducts are a bad idea.

Traffic will be fucked.

Anyone coming from Surrey etc. who works downtown their removal would likely add 15-20 minutes a day to your commute

[Gerbs]

Brentwood towers 6-10 are est. completed 2028 - 2031

By then I pray I'm not in a condo. The viaduct buildings wouldn't affect us, unless y'all moving out of your bougie places into DT?

[supafamous]

Originally Posted by Hondaracer

Traffic will be fucked.

Anyone coming from Surrey etc. who works downtown their removal would likely add 15-20 minutes a day to your commute

Lies as usual.

The viaducts carry all of 6 percent of traffic into the downtown core and it's barely half utilised. It'll also be replaced with a direct connection to Georgia - hardly a catastrophe. The analysis reports there'll be a slight increase in travel time but the viaduct is a tiny part of the total commute. Worst case, during rush hour, the new routing might add a few mins.

Traffic counts show that both viaducts are under-utilized. At rush hour, the viaducts typically are used at less than half of their designed capacity. This is partially due to the fact that they were designed as part of a larger freeway network that was never built. They are limited by the ability of the City’s street network and signals to feed traffic to/from them. Staff have also heard from emergency service providers that they do not use the viaducts due to concerns that they can easily become stranded on the elevated roadways if there is an incident.

Source:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/briti...move-1.3291781
https://council.vancouver.ca/20151020/documents/rr1.pdf

[mikemhg]

Originally Posted by PeanutButter

I was wondering how these developers can even afford to develop land like that and my developer friend said because they bought the land for so cheap (compared to today's standards) they can stomach the construction costs. He said it would be impossible to build a development like that today if they had to buy the land at current market price.

So he said people should be thankful there are developers like concord and the other major developers that are here because if they didn't have the land from back in the day, there wouldn't be these big projects that we have.

I think that's a pretty strong endorsement for these big developers, people always make it seem like they're the big bad wolf, but they're actually quite productive for our city.

We're supposed to be thankful that shitty developers like Concord "gracefully" purchased cheap land back in the day to build 400-SQFT investment condos for international purchasers?

Thank you Concord, who would've done it without ya'll!

[pastarocket]

Originally Posted by Hondaracer

IÂ’ve been dealing with builders in Vancouver now for a couple years, no joke 90% of them are Indian.

The only white guys build or Reno ultra high end, 10+ million on the west side. Literally everything else east of oak is Indian with a handful of Chinese builders.

Honda, I can think of only one exception to house builders being white, and building houses "east of Oak street".

This exception is a bit more high profile in the news every year.

The PNE Prize Home grand prize of the lottery every year. Miracon Development is the builder of last year's prize home.

The prize home for last year, and for many previous years is located in Langley, south Surrey etc.

I am thinking that the PNE management would need to get a house builder who is white to build the prize home in order to ensure high quality construction.

How would the PNE would be able to get any fundraising done if they were selling prize home lottery tickets for a house that buddy guys, Indian builders are building?

Where would the high quality be in that prize home?

Imagine someone having the winning ticket in the PNE Prize Home lottery to win a house with very questionable build quality from some buddy guys developer.

[supafamous]

2nd prize for the PNE Prize home can be the buddy guy build. Half a duplex in East Van.

[Hondaracer]

I’m saying in Vancouver. Lots of white builders in the valley etc. because they can actually turn a profit there

[EvoFire]

Originally Posted by supafamous

Lies as usual.

The viaducts carry all of 6 percent of traffic into the downtown core and it's barely half utilised. It'll also be replaced with a direct connection to Georgia - hardly a catastrophe. The analysis reports there'll be a slight increase in travel time but the viaduct is a tiny part of the total commute. Worst case, during rush hour, the new routing might add a few mins.



Source:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/briti...move-1.3291781
https://council.vancouver.ca/20151020/documents/rr1.pdf

I don't know how the numbers are arrived at, but the viaducts are more often than not backed up to the merge point of where Main Street ramp comes on.

The Viaduct itself is rarely ever the problem, but instead it's the feeders and exit that causes the issue.

Venables cannot flow that many cars, with it being single lane, set to 30km/h (not that anyone observes this), the extremely broken pavement, and the multitudes of lights flowing on and off.

Dunsmuir is regularly backed up because of the lights and the lack of a dedicated right turn lane which many times ends up limiting it to a 1 lane road as well, and also the taxis/ubers that insist on boarding and unboarding where they aren't supposed to.

Georgia and out is the only route which it can sustain the rate that the viaduct can flow, and that side also has 3 lanes unlike the constricted 2 lanes on the entry side. The bike lane is cool, I've used it a few times, but I don't know if it actually flows that many commuters.

You are probably right that it may only add 5-10 mins to the commute. But my commute to DT is only 15-20mins if I drive, 5-10min is a lot of time. Call it NIMBYism, but due to pick up and drop off, I would tend to drive if I commute into DT.

The whole pickup and dropoff issue is also very many societal and city planning problems all rolled and compounded into one where it makes more sense for me to just drive.

EDIT: just briefly skimmed that PDF, it was penned a decade ago, and the data gathering is older than that. The viaduct now is definitely busier than back in 2013.

[Harvey Specter]

Totally OT, but the LA wildfires should be a wake up call for us locally. We're literally playing with fire every summer, excuse the pun.. Kelowna and the Okanagan are literal tinderboxes, but closer to home, a out control fire in the North Shore mountains would be devastating. Imagine the number of homes that would be consumed.

I also read that insurance companies started cancelling policies a month ago because of the risk. I'm sure the same will happen locally, which is why I personally wouldn't buy a home in the Okanagan. The risk is just too high to buy a property and not have fire insurance.

[pastarocket]

Originally Posted by Harvey Specter

Totally OT, but the LA wildfires should be a wake up call for us locally. We're literally playing with fire every summer, excuse the pun.. Kelowna and the Okanagan are literal tinderboxes, but closer to home, a out control fire in the North Shore mountains would be devastating. Imagine the number of homes that would be consumed.

I also read that insurance companies started cancelling policies a month ago because of the risk. I'm sure the same will happen locally, which is why I personally wouldn't buy a home in the Okanagan. The risk is just too high to buy a property and not have fire insurance.

This article is about the lack of building codes in Canada, for wildfires.

Canada doesn't have a standardized building code for wildfires now.

-from the article:

Felix Weisner is an assistant professor in the Faculty of Forestry at UBC. He says, unfortunately, what’s happening in the Pacific Palisades shouldn’t surprise anyone, given the area is at high risk of fire.

“In B.C., and this is Canada-wide, we don’t really have a standardized building code for wildfires. We have a pretty robust method to build for fires that start on the interior, but for wildfires, it’s more guidelines and it’s really up to local bylaws to deal with that.”

Weisner says it is changing, but not fast enough.

In the meantime, he adds there are ways to protect your home, but there are downsides.

“If you have an awful lot of money, you can always build a bunker-like structure that will withstand a very severe wildfire. The problem is finding a balance. There are costs, there are environmental concerns — building a massive concrete structure has a lot of embedded carbon, so that’s not really the direction we want to go,” he stated.

“Of course, if you really want to build to a standard where your housing can withstand a wildfire, you have to limit combustible materials. You can’t have a nice, big porch or deck. You would have to go for smaller windows, maybe more expensive materials.”

It's up to government to get to work on standardized building codes for wildfires.

It also comes to money to fire-proof homes. More expensive materials to build homes up to code for protection from wildfires.
Costs for construction would go up.

In the end, people are gonna pay more money for homes that are built to code for wildfires.

I assume that it's also amendments to local bylaws to have building codes for wildfires.

[Traum]

Locally in Vancouver (where most of us are), I'd say flood risks should be the main factor of concern as far as insurance coverage goes. The amount of water that we see from heavy rain nowadays just seem to be so much more serious compared to the past. Pockets of localized flooding all over the city is almost a given now when we get hit with a weather system that lasts multiple days.

[Hondaracer]

Originally Posted by supafamous

Lies as usual.

The viaducts carry all of 6 percent of traffic into the downtown core and it's barely half utilised. It'll also be replaced with a direct connection to Georgia - hardly a catastrophe. The analysis reports there'll be a slight increase in travel time but the viaduct is a tiny part of the total commute. Worst case, during rush hour, the new routing might add a few mins.



Source:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/briti...move-1.3291781
https://council.vancouver.ca/20151020/documents/rr1.pdf

I’m sure reports are always incredibly accurate given the interests involved. The the people facilitating those reports..

My dad who’s worked downtown for 30 years commuting from Surrey has taken the viaduct for 90% that time. I’d say the vast majority of people who work east of Granville and north of Yale town likely utilize the viaducts fairly frequently.

[Manic!]

Does anyone actually take the PNE prize home over the cash option?

[Hondaracer]

Originally Posted by Traum

Locally in Vancouver (where most of us are), I'd say flood risks should be the main factor of concern as far as insurance coverage goes. The amount of water that we see from heavy rain nowadays just seem to be so much more serious compared to the past. Pockets of localized flooding all over the city is almost a given now when we get hit with a weather system that lasts multiple days.

Something people with detached homes should be on the lookout for are neighbours and also city civil works which push ground water onto your property. As far as I know when we were building new homes, you must contain ground water whether it be rain etc. and deal with it on YOUR property.

If someone is doing ground works or sloping shit toward your property, this could have a huge effect on your foundation drainage and ultimately flood your basement or backup your plumbing.

I have a lane behind my house that is just a mud pit when it rains but it seems like it retains the water OK and isn’t rushing into my suite however, I’m very hesitant to contact the city about it because it would take substantial work to fix it and if all they did was fill it in with gravel etc. all that water is going to come into my property

[Alpine]

Originally Posted by pastarocket

“If you have an awful lot of money, you can always build a bunker-like structure that will withstand a very severe wildfire. The problem is finding a balance. There are costs, there are environmental concerns — building a massive concrete structure has a lot of embedded carbon, so that’s not really the direction we want to go,” he stated.

“Of course, if you really want to build to a standard where your housing can withstand a wildfire, you have to limit combustible materials. You can’t have a nice, big porch or deck. You would have to go for smaller windows, maybe more expensive materials.”

It's up to government to get to work on standardized building codes for wildfires.

It also comes to money to fire-proof homes. More expensive materials to build homes up to code for protection from wildfires.
Costs for construction would go up.

In the end, people are gonna pay more money for homes that are built to code for wildfires.

I assume that it's also amendments to local bylaws to have building codes for wildfires.

I think this concept that we can build a "fire-proof" home is preposterous. Is any home going to be livable with all that fire + smoke damage?