Vancouver's Real Estate Market

[EvoFire]

Originally Posted by PeanutButter

Oh cool, didn't know stuff like that existed. Not sure if I like the studio concept of it though. I was like, where's the bed?

Legit, where does the guy sleep? That doesn't look like a sofa bed either.

[Hakkaboy]

Originally Posted by EvoFire

Legit, where does the guy sleep? That doesn't look like a sofa bed either.

The guy/gal probably moved out and this is staged by the realtor. It doesn't even have a TV in there.

[Ch28]

I always thought it was interesting that a bunch of staged homes had the TVs removed. A lot of the furniture layouts just didn't make sense.

[Manic!]

Originally Posted by Hondaracer

Chalk that up to ignorance more than anything it’s not really a “cultural” thing to not understand the stock market or investments lol

I know people who were exactly the same and think the stock market is a “fools game” or some how is manipulated to the point of your average person can’t make money on it

These same people then proceeded to buy a couple condos in Calgary as their “safe” investment in RE and then proceeded to lose 100k+ on each of them because shitty market, not desirable location etc. Lol

The average person is severely outgunned when it comes to stock trading. From what I hear the Calgary real estate market is on fire right now.

[Hondaracer]

Originally Posted by Ch28

I always thought it was interesting that a bunch of staged homes had the TVs removed. A lot of the furniture layouts just didn't make sense.

I was in one of those new Brentwood towers a few months ago and there was legit nowhere in the common space to mount a TV, the woman I was working with was going to be mounting it on a wall that was essentially a hallway wall, people would he having to skirt by it in order to get to the kitchen etc. Terrible layout overall

But how many people see some beautifuly staged homes in these weird micro/“efficient” designs and realize all the furniture is custom made/sized for it and there is no TV, no AV unit etc. Lol

[sonick]

Speaking of TV's, I hate how so many floorplans have a spot for TVs placed above a fireplace. Seems like such an uncomfortable and awkward position.

[EvoFire]

Originally Posted by sonick

Speaking of TV's, I hate how so many floorplans have a spot for TVs placed above a fireplace. Seems like such an uncomfortable and awkward position.

Depends on how high the TV is and how far you are. There are floorplans I've seen where the TV is 6ft off the ground and it makes no sense.

Our TV is a more reasonable 4ft off the ground and we have a long 16ft living room so it actually is ok.

[PeanutButter]

Originally Posted by sonick

Speaking of TV's, I hate how so many floorplans have a spot for TVs placed above a fireplace. Seems like such an uncomfortable and awkward position.

This is quite common. I've seen this so much. The TV mounts are way too high off the ground.

Though, it's fine when it's staged because people walk around the unit when they're looking at the TV is eye level so it's fine, but no one sites down at the couch for five minutes to look at the TV. If they did, it would be so uncomfortable.

[Hondaracer]

The Center of your TV should be pretty much eye level when sitting or however you watch mostly. There’s actually a lot of science behind it when I was looking at mounting heights in terms of eye strain and even retention of some things due to poor heights

[westopher]

People only have TVs for background noise while they browse their phones anyways. Could put it on the floor and most wouldn’t notice.

[JDMDreams]

I honestly think you won't break even on a $600k property unless you go to like Calgary or nanaimo. You can't get more than a decent one bedroom in Van BBY. Strata will be $300+ a month plus you need to see if you can even buy insurance. That's like $500 gone a month already. And you will get like $2000 a month tops on a one bed in Brentwood? Unless you get something cheap in Surrey for like $400k it's hard to recoup the cost.

[sonick]

Originally Posted by PeanutButter

This is quite common. I've seen this so much. The TV mounts are way too high off the ground.

Though, it's fine when it's staged because people walk around the unit when they're looking at the TV is eye level so it's fine, but no one sites down at the couch for five minutes to look at the TV. If they did, it would be so uncomfortable.

Originally Posted by Hondaracer

The Center of your TV should be pretty much eye level when sitting or however you watch mostly. There’s actually a lot of science behind it when I was looking at mounting heights in terms of eye strain and even retention of some things due to poor heights

Yeah it was a dealbreaker for me if a place had a fixed fireplace and no other place to put a TV in the living space that would make sense with a couch. At some point I was looking for any sort of mounts that would extend outwards and down designed specifically for above-fireplace mounts, but none of the options were very attractive or effective.

Not that I am a huge TV watcher, but I do watch movies regularly on weekends and have a pretty decent home theater setup, so it was important that the layout be conducive for that.

Fortunately the place we ended up buying had an electric fireplace, which we were able to rip out and get rid of.

[68style]

Originally Posted by sonick

Speaking of TV's, I hate how so many floorplans have a spot for TVs placed above a fireplace. Seems like such an uncomfortable and awkward position.

Been dealing with this for like 10 years, my living room is only like 12' wide too... electric fireplace built into a big wall thing... what prevents me from tearing the entire thing out is that 1) I got voted down on it, the other half INSISTS the place is worth less without a fireplace (which, btw, doesn't work and never has) and 2) Have to re-do the hardwood floors as they stop where the wall comes out and there'd be nothing there if I ripped the whole thing out.

I've gotten used to it but I fuckin hate it.

[Great68]

I have a real wood fireplace and I'm thinking of getting rid of it to reclaim the space. Not just upstairs, but it would really open up the basement. I only use the thing probably a dozen times over the winter.
That being said when I do use it's pretty nice, and I have a nearly endless supplier of firewood.

[Alpine]

Originally Posted by quasi

We just bought a new dishwasher, went with a European brand I've never heard of but the sales guy at Coast sold it pretty well, lol. Asko, so far no complaints looks good and it's quiet.

https://www.askona.com/

Right now my Dryer is doing it's death roll so now I can decide if I want to just replace the dryer or replace both even though washing machine is working fine.

No one's heard about asko but my wife told me it's a really good dishwasher brand. Higher end Bosch/Miele level.

[snowball]

Originally Posted by 68style

Been dealing with this for like 10 years, my living room is only like 12' wide too... electric fireplace built into a big wall thing... what prevents me from tearing the entire thing out is that 1) I got voted down on it, the other half INSISTS the place is worth less without a fireplace (which, btw, doesn't work and never has) and 2) Have to re-do the hardwood floors as they stop where the wall comes out and there'd be nothing there if I ripped the whole thing out.

I've gotten used to it but I fuckin hate it.

They have these brackets that you can use to lower the TV when you're watching it, but 12' is pretty tight as it comes out a little.

[Great68]

Originally Posted by Alpine

No one's heard about asko but my wife told me it's a really good dishwasher brand. Higher end Bosch/Miele level.

Asko: Manufactured in Slovenia by Gorenje group, which is 95% owned by Chinese firm HiSense

[Qmx323]

bit off topic here but has anyone ever had a treadmill in their concrete condo? any noise complaints from downstairs? or ever heard your upstairs neighbor use it?

[roastpuff]

Originally Posted by EvoFire

I think if they asked about the washer and dryer, or even the dishwasher, sure.

It's a god damn gas stove. It's got no moving parts inside and no computer and electronics to run. There's a valve and a spark.


We did the same thing when we did our renos 5 years ago. *knock on wood* nothing has broken, but the delivery. Holy shit the delivery.
The first time they delivered the washer dryer, the washer had a huge scratch on it and they said they'll take it back and deliver a new one.
The second time they delivered they dropped the washer and destroyed it so they had to take it back.
Now they are back ordered across the country and had to wait 3 weeks for a washer to be delivered.
Finally they delivered and everything was setup. The dryer broke on the second use. The motor was defective.
Then the moisture sensor borked and it needed a new control panel.

It's been good since no problems, probably the BEST dryer we've ever used. But damn the washer dryer ordeal was a massive pain.

The stoves' ignition system and oven control are electronic nowadays so that's just more stuff to break. I'm getting a dual fuel one as well so now you've got me worried with the horror stories!

I ended up going with a full Bosch set (dual fuel industrial-style 36 inch range, 500-series dishwasher, 800-series French door fridge) and it's backordered until the end of June. Good thing is that it gives us time to get the rest of the renovations done.

The washer/dryer from the previous owner looks to be quite new as opposed to the fridge/stove (he didn't have a dishwasher) so we won't replace them just yet, as we are not doing a renovation on the laundry room. But for future reference, which brand did you go with for your washer/dryer?

Originally Posted by Alpine

Honestly, don't overly complicate the decision. I went through the same decision last year, researching virtually every single product @ Trail appliances, only to realize that it was all a waste of time.

If you want to maximize value, go for a North American label (ie. whirlpool, Maytag, Frigidaire, GE, etc) without the bells & whistles. If you want something that looks a bit nicer, go for Kitchenaid.
If you want the vanilla Euro brand, go Bosch.
If you want the "look", go Fisher & Paykel.
If you want high-end, go Miele / wolf / subzero.

After spending days going back and forth on appliances and feature sheets, we just said Fuck it, and went with Fisher & Paykel because they offer the "look" that we wanted, but for the lowest price lol. Integrated F&P fridge + F&P dishwasher, F&P cooktop, F&P wall oven, Panasonic microwave.

There's just so much conflicting information out there it's hard to make a decision, haha.

As I said above, we ended up going with full Bosch. But I wanted a Thermador so bad... couldn't justify spending $13k after tax on a dual-fuel 36" Thermador (with free dishwasher) when the whole Bosch kit cost $9.5k after tax.

[Hakkaboy]

Originally Posted by roastpuff

The stoves' ignition system and oven control are electronic nowadays so that's just more stuff to break. I'm getting a dual fuel one as well so now you've got me worried with the horror stories!

I ended up going with a full Bosch set (dual fuel industrial-style 36 inch range, 500-series dishwasher, 800-series French door fridge) and it's backordered until the end of June. Good thing is that it gives us time to get the rest of the renovations done.

The washer/dryer from the previous owner looks to be quite new as opposed to the fridge/stove (he didn't have a dishwasher) so we won't replace them just yet, as we are not doing a renovation on the laundry room. But for future reference, which brand did you go with for your washer/dryer?

There's just so much conflicting information out there it's hard to make a decision, haha.

As I said above, we ended up going with full Bosch. But I wanted a Thermador so bad... couldn't justify spending $13k after tax on a dual-fuel 36" Thermador (with free dishwasher) when the whole Bosch kit cost $9.5k after tax.

Did you order your Bosch thru Perkopolis? If not, then I would get it there asap

[roastpuff]

Originally Posted by Hakkaboy

Did you order your Bosch thru Perkopolis? If not, then I would get it there asap

Yep! I got it through Perkopolis, which had pretty great prices compared to local appliance stores. The only thing I wished Bosch corporate would do is to be able to add extended warranty for peace of mind.

[PeanutButter]

Originally Posted by JDMDreams

I honestly think you won't break even on a $600k property unless you go to like Calgary or nanaimo. You can't get more than a decent one bedroom in Van BBY. Strata will be $300+ a month plus you need to see if you can even buy insurance. That's like $500 gone a month already. And you will get like $2000 a month tops on a one bed in Brentwood? Unless you get something cheap in Surrey for like $400k it's hard to recoup the cost.

I know for sure I won't break even on the condo. I'll probably still have to budget around $500 extra a month just to break even with the mortgage, property, utilities, etc.

I just want to get into the market with a condo for my kids, so I can give them something when they're older. Spoiled? I know.


+++

Also, I have the Bosch 500 series dishwasher, it's pretty awesome. The top pull out tray is amazing for the cutlery, it really saves room. We completely removed the cutlery caddy below to give us more space and it's been great.

Interestingly, if we were to design the kitchen again, I would put in TWO dish washers...

Also, my moms ikea dishwasher has an auto door open to let the moisture out so the dishes will dry. My Bosch is almost twice the price of hers and it doesn't have that feature? I have to manually open my dishwasher and then wedge something in between to keep it ajar for the moisture to escape. Kind of peeved about that.

[Hondaracer]

That ikea feature just sounds like another thing to break on a model price point that shouldn’t offer a feature like that lol

Reminds me of this peice of shit HP printer I took from my grandma in my reluctance to buy a new one. This printer tilts the screen, spins the tray outward, and then brings the touch screen fully up when it prints..like really? Was that necessary? Lol

Also for me I don’t love opening the dish when it’s full of steam anyways because I can watch it run up snd under my counter top, not great for the tops of the cabinets or doors imo

[EvoFire]

Originally Posted by roastpuff

The stoves' ignition system and oven control are electronic nowadays so that's just more stuff to break. I'm getting a dual fuel one as well so now you've got me worried with the horror stories!

I ended up going with a full Bosch set (dual fuel industrial-style 36 inch range, 500-series dishwasher, 800-series French door fridge) and it's backordered until the end of June. Good thing is that it gives us time to get the rest of the renovations done.

The washer/dryer from the previous owner looks to be quite new as opposed to the fridge/stove (he didn't have a dishwasher) so we won't replace them just yet, as we are not doing a renovation on the laundry room. But for future reference, which brand did you go with for your washer/dryer?


There's just so much conflicting information out there it's hard to make a decision, haha.

As I said above, we ended up going with full Bosch. But I wanted a Thermador so bad... couldn't justify spending $13k after tax on a dual-fuel 36" Thermador (with free dishwasher) when the whole Bosch kit cost $9.5k after tax.

We got Whirlpool for the washer dryer. It was between Whirlpool and LG at that time as we needed a ventless heatpump dryer as we were space limited. Wanted to push the machines as close to the wall as we could.

LG as a whole didn't get good reviews and Whirlpool seemed to be the better choice.

The stove is a Kitchenaid dual fuel and the dishwasher is also Kitchenaid. The dishwasher has been awesome as it cleans well and is super quiet. The stove is average. Nothing has broken on it, but there are better burner designs out there. The big burner that's a giant ring and leaving a deadspot in the center makes it not a very good stove for cooking in general.

We got a LG fridge as it was the biggest we could get that would fit. We considered a Kitchenaid to match the stove and dishwasher, however Kitchenaid's fridges that are not their top model looks and feels super cheap inside. You pay for the fancy exterior, but the guts are the same as a Maytag that's hundreds cheaper.

[roastpuff]

Originally Posted by PeanutButter

+++

Also, I have the Bosch 500 series dishwasher, it's pretty awesome. The top pull out tray is amazing for the cutlery, it really saves room. We completely removed the cutlery caddy below to give us more space and it's been great.

Interestingly, if we were to design the kitchen again, I would put in TWO dish washers...

Also, my moms ikea dishwasher has an auto door open to let the moisture out so the dishes will dry. My Bosch is almost twice the price of hers and it doesn't have that feature? I have to manually open my dishwasher and then wedge something in between to keep it ajar for the moisture to escape. Kind of peeved about that.

Yeah, apparently only certain Bosch 500-series dishwashers got that auto-open feature - and I didn't order the one that had it. Whoops! Oh well, whatever, I don't want to swap my order now as that would lead to more delays. I can live with opening my dishwasher door lol.

Originally Posted by EvoFire

We got Whirlpool for the washer dryer. It was between Whirlpool and LG at that time as we needed a ventless heatpump dryer as we were space limited. Wanted to push the machines as close to the wall as we could.

LG as a whole didn't get good reviews and Whirlpool seemed to be the better choice.

The stove is a Kitchenaid dual fuel and the dishwasher is also Kitchenaid. The dishwasher has been awesome as it cleans well and is super quiet. The stove is average. Nothing has broken on it, but there are better burner designs out there. The big burner that's a giant ring and leaving a deadspot in the center makes it not a very good stove for cooking in general.

We got a LG fridge as it was the biggest we could get that would fit. We considered a Kitchenaid to match the stove and dishwasher, however Kitchenaid's fridges that are not their top model looks and feels super cheap inside. You pay for the fancy exterior, but the guts are the same as a Maytag that's hundreds cheaper.

Thanks for the feedback! Yeah, the cold spot in the middle of some burners is what leaves me cold (lol) - the Bosch power burner has a dual ring so that helps even it out. I would love the Thermador star burner even more...