Vancouver's Real Estate Market

[Hehe]

Prenup, as any other contracts, cannot go above law... and it has to be "fair" to both parties. This is contract law 101. Lawsuits usually arise upon discussing what is considered fair.

Child support are there because the kids are supposed to be a joint responsibility regardless of what adults decide to do.

The best prenups I have seen are those that have clearly defined obligations and conditions to both parties should they break up.

A prenup does NOT let you to get away with responsibilities that the law dictates, but rather set a clear line on what's at stake.

IMHO prenup is a disturbingly stupid idea... but if you have to do it, just remember the statement above.

Usual disclaimer: not a lawyer, no power to give a proper legal advise... don't take as one. I've seen my shares of prenups from many fucking rich people to share how they do it.

[Great68]

Originally Posted by Hondaracer

No kids no probs

I think kids are only a problem if the real desire to have them is only one-sided, and/or the level of effort and dedication is not well considered and prepared for.

If someone isn't ready to or is incapable of making the necessary sacrifices it's going to be a problem.

[Traum]

Originally Posted by Great68

I think kids are only a problem if the real desire to have them is only one-sided, and/or the level of effort and dedication is not well considered and prepared for.

If someone isn't ready to or is incapable of making the necessary sacrifices it's going to be a problem.

Until it actually happens and the parents are dealing with the kid(s) on a day-to-day basis, I don't think it is actually possible to be well enough prepared for them at all.

The same thing also applies to the amount of dedication and sacrifices a parent is capable of providing. You won't know the limits of what your dedication and sacrifices are until your child tests you on it.

I can sympathize with how some parents have the best intentions prior to having a kid, only to realize that he/she/they are not cut out to raise a child.

[yray]

kids nowadays are expensive

math tutor, english tutor, taking a shit tutor

I remember growing up and it was just a bike and playgrounds. Maybe the occasional instrument for band. I don't blame people nowadays for not wanting to have kids, kids grow up so fast nowadays it's like we're going back to the industrial revolution.

[Great68]

I don't buy it, or maybe I just can't relate to it. There has to be an understanding that your life will fundamentally change in ways you can't prepare for. If people are finding their "limits" then I'd say they never prepared themselves for that fundamental change in the first place.

[Hondaracer]

What do losers with a bunch of financial issues and a few kids do to solve their problems? have more kids

[yray]

Originally Posted by Hondaracer

What do losers with a bunch of financial issues and a few kids do to solve their problems? have more kids

$1000 /month for each kid

I can lease a porsche now.

[GS8]

According to MoneySense.ca, the average cost of raising a child to age 18 is a whopping $243,660. Break down that number, and that’s $12,825 per child, per year -- or $1,070 per month. And that's before you send them off to university.

How much does it cost to raise kids in Canada? | Canadian Living

Keep in mind this article is from 2012 so chances are, the figures are higher in 2018.

Probably best for parents not to crunch their own numbers till after the kids move out. Don't wand the kids to hear what expensive ungrateful shits they are

[hud 91gt]

Originally Posted by hud 91gt

I bought earlier in the year for low 600’s. A larger 3 bedroom unit in the same complex is available for $699. Same $/sq/f. Then some nut bar just listed their unit, exactly the same as mine for $689 lol. I don’t foresee that selling. It’s slower out here, the good units still sell. I think everyone is just use to seeing everything selling no matter what it is.

Just found out the 2 bedroom prices rediculously sold for $680, and the 3 bed for 699 which was basically the same with a bedroom in the attic is still for sale at 699. Wtf! Makes me feel good about my purchase though. Lol

[twitchyzero]

that actually seems quite reasonable
im sure a few here throw that much at car payments/mods per month
day care is probably the biggest chunk of that pie

[Hondaracer]

Originally Posted by yray

$1000 /month for each kid

I can lease a porsche now.

Buddy of mine has a 3 year old and a 1 year old, it’s like $2200 a month for PART TIME care.. what in the fuck

[rymack]

For those that have the space in your house , a live in nanny is the way to go for child care.
We pay the same for a live in nanny that we would for a 1 and 3 yr old in day care. She also cleans , does laundry , cooks if you want etc.

[Hondaracer]

If one of the parents doesn’t have a well paying career it’s almost always a better choice to be the stay at home parent as opposed to making 40k a year and then paying 2000+ a month in day care services. You also raise your own children this way (the social aspects however may be a downside)

Of course that’s assuming you want to stay at home lol

[68style]

Originally Posted by rymack

For those that have the space in your house , a live in nanny is the way to go for child care.
We pay the same for a live in nanny that we would for a 1 and 3 yr old in day care. She also cleans , does laundry , cooks if you want etc.

I agree completely, live in nanny is the way to go

[yray]

where y'all get live in nannies?

Only ones I've seen were Filipino where rich hongers basically brought them over from hk.

[Gerbs]

Anyone have pricing on Linea in surrey?

[rymack]

There are nannie agencies in Canada that can help you out. I am a bit biased as my wife's family started the first nanny agency in Canada so its something she knew how to navigate etc.

[Mr.Money]

Originally Posted by 68style

I agree completely, live in nanny is the way to go

Maid,Git over Here....You forgot to polish something

[Harvey Specter]

Metro Vancouver homebuyers face unintended consequences of mortgage stress testing rules

In Metro Vancouver, where the gap between incomes and home values makes the region an unaffordable outlier in North America, buyers are especially prone to get hit with unintended consequences of so-called mortgage stress testing.

The test was introduced earlier this year by Canada’s banking regulator to keep homebuyers from taking on risky levels of debt. But the result is reduced buying power that changes what first-time homebuyers can purchase.

It is also affecting people hoping to use an existing mortgage when moving from one property to another.

“If you are selling a place for $750,000 and you have a mortgage of $500,000 and want to buy another place for $1.1 million, you can’t just (necessarily) ‘port’ that mortgage. It doesn’t automatically move,” says Gary Serra, a real estate agent who specializes in downtown and east Vancouver.

If “you have to re-qualify based on the stress test, you may not qualify to borrow (to that level now).”

Maybe, that person’s borrowing limit is $400,000 now. Even carrying over gains in equity, it may not be enough to get a mortgage on the higher-priced property, he says.

On the ground, there are anecdotes about deals not being completed as buyers are caught off-guard when last-minute number-crunching reveals what the new rules mean for them.

Serra says he knows of one recent deal that didn’t complete. “I didn’t represent the buyer, but the buyer was approved and backed out at the last minute because of the stress test.”

He understands there was a firm sale that was subject-free, that is, it would have to go ahead even if financing from a bank fell through. In the end, the bank didn’t approve the buyer’s loan at the amount needed. The buyer “now stands to lose the $36,000 deposit” and it could go to court.

There is about a 20 per cent drop in the amount of money buyers are qualifying to borrow with the stress test, says Justin da Rosa, managing editor at Ratehub.ca, which allows users to compare mortgages and credit cards.

To get a sense of what the change means for buyers in Metro Vancouver, da Rosa punched these numbers into Ratehub’s mortgage affordability calculator: Household income of $110,000 (based on average individual income of $55,000), a 20 per cent down payment, an amortization period of 30 years, the best available mortgage rate of 3.04 per cent, and the stress test qualifying rate of 5.34 per cent (“the greater of the Bank of Canada’s five-year benchmark rate or the contract mortgage rate plus two percentage points.”)

Before Jan. 1, when the stress test came into effect, a borrower with this profile was deemed able to afford a home worth $964,704. After the stress test, ordered by the federal Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions, the same borrower could afford a home worth a $735,857.

“It’s not completely dire,” says da Rosa, who spoke to Postmedia from Toronto. “If you go to Zoocasa.com, and you look at the listings in Vancouver, there are 459 listings available (at that $735,000 level) of different home types.”

He adds, however, if you look at the $964,000 range, “there are 815. … There is nearly double the amount of listings at the pre-stress test level.”

“There are ways to work around this,” says Da Rosa. Buyers can defer or buy when they have saved up more money or they can consider a smaller home. Some will rely on gifts from parents and much has been said about the passing of generational wealth from longtime homeowners to would-be ones.

The intention of the stress test was to ensure homebuyers could withstand an increase in interest rates without becoming overextended. Indeed, since it was implemented, there’s been a “triple whammy,” says da Rosa, in that interest rates have increased, but also the Bank of Canada’s five-year benchmark rate on which the stress test is based.

Agents say buyers can “get creative” with options such as combining mortgages and turning to other lenders.

But the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions says in its fine print that the major banks cannot be involved in combining mortgage and other lending products with the intention of getting around set loan-to-value limits, even though brokers are allowed to put together packages of mortgages so long as borrowers qualify for them individually.

There are also other lenders who are partly regulated, but fall outside of OSFI’s reach with the new rules. These include credit unions, but also a descending chain of “A-lenders (major banks) to B-lenders (such as Equitable Bank and Home Capital) to private lending,” says Serra, adding that “B-lending is booming.”

jlee-young@postmedia.com

[obento_supreme]

Originally Posted by Gerbs

Anyone have pricing on Linea in surrey?

From what I've been hearing, the prices are decent on the market, around $750/sq feet but most of the units including the townhomes are sold.

I believe there are a couple of townhomes and 2 or 3 condo units remaining.

[Tapioca]

Originally Posted by twitchyzero

i wonder if duplex and laneway homes will just merge (being able to sell your laneway detached)

The city of Vancouver has floated the idea of stratifying laneway houses. In my view, this policy change will come eventually as people will continue see "detached living" as the ideal.

Originally Posted by yray

kids nowadays are expensive

math tutor, english tutor, taking a shit tutor

I remember growing up and it was just a bike and playgrounds. Maybe the occasional instrument for band. I don't blame people nowadays for not wanting to have kids, kids grow up so fast nowadays it's like we're going back to the industrial revolution.

One reason why kids are expensive these days because the majority of parents are trying to keep up with each other. Plus, kids aren't really allowed to play outside in an unstructured manner anymore, so in order to get kids to do stuff, everything has to be structured which costs money. I say this as a parent of two kids myself.

Back on topic...

I see that George in Port Moody has sold out its first phase. There was also a townhouse in our complex that had multiple offers. So, the under 750K market is still moving.

[Traum]

Originally Posted by twitchyzero

i wonder if duplex and laneway homes will just merge (being able to sell your laneway detached)

I think this is already allowed?

I recently found out that an acquaintance bought a one unit in a duplex on Main Street (in Vancouver, obviously). In the back, there is a laneway house that is sold to the person living in it. So on that piece of land, there are 3 separate families living in 3 separate dwellings.

Not something I would ever get myself into -- I might as well buy a townhouse or apartment unit instead, but apparently it is already happening?

[Ch28]

Originally Posted by Gerbs

Anyone have pricing on Linea in surrey?

[JDMStyo]

Originally Posted by Gerbs

Anyone have pricing on Linea in surrey?

PM me but it's 90% sold out. No 1BR below $500k since last Sunday...

[Hehe]

is it just me or the 49ct/ft maintenance seems really high?

For a 2bdr unit, that's almost 400 bucks a month. For the TH, it's 700?!?!