Vancouver's Real Estate Market

[SumAznGuy]

Originally Posted by rb

If you wanted lets say 650k. They underslist to get attention at 600k. If you get offers at 600 or lets say 605, and you dont want to sell, some contracts stipulate that they are owed commission or expenses even if you dont aceept because you signed off for the list price at 600.

I'll give you a real life example.
In my TH complex, there was unit that was for sale for many months.
2 bedroom 3 baths, private garage. Asking $969K, then $949K then $899K and then raised back to $939K.
Ugly potato cam pics. 5 pics of the same corner for some odd reason.
Finally sells for $915K.
Corner unit, everything is exactly the same in terms of layout and garage.
Went on the market and in less than a week sells for $969K. There was a higher bid but subject to inspection.

My advice, find a good realtor and talk to them. Find out what their professional opinion is on what the market is doing.
Do your own homework, check Zealty.com and see how much similar units are selling for before deciding on how much to list.

Listing low is a common practice. You don't want to list too low but you don't want to list too high to scare away potential buyers.
In this case, the unit that sold in under a week listed $899K.

As for paying commissions, well the agent does spend time and energy to list your unit. But I think the agent should be doing more to sell the unit then the bare minimum and then send you a bill when it doesn't sell.

[RiceIntegraRS]

Originally Posted by SumAznGuy

The market is decently hot.
I would not recommend looking for an agent that is willing to kick back some commission.
You are better off finding a good agent who is willing to work with you and try to sell your unit for as much as the market is willing to pay.

If the market is decently hot, wouldnt that mean properties are an easy sell which means less work for the realtor.

[SumAznGuy]

Originally Posted by Hakkaboy

no way, realtors being dishonest?

I know it is tongue in cheek but I like my current realtor.
Him and his team did a really good job selling my last place and current place.

He was upfront with what his plan was to help sell our TH.

Open discussions is key.

[SumAznGuy]

Originally Posted by RiceIntegraRS

If the market is decently hot, wouldnt that mean properties are an easy sell which means less work for the realtor.

Selling and getting top $ are 2 different things.
Like the 2 similar units in the TH complex. $915 vs $969K

[rb]

I get agents have costs and expenses etc but its still a mighty fine payday. I'd even consider 1% realty but I know full commission agents steer their buyers away from those listings because its not worth their time when its time for their cut.

An agent getting a list is far more important in building their reputation and getting their name out there. However, I'm not okay with paying full rate in a decently hot market because that's just how it is. Like any services, the price for services rendered is also a factor but that's just me...

I worked with lots of agents when I worked for a developer. Our Friday afternoon drinks in Yaletown consisted of stories of how they fucked people over on deals and it made me sick. I expect to get lied to when working with an agent but to the degree and how much i'm gonna pay for this is what it comes down to lol

[RiceIntegraRS]

i think we are all kinda debating about 2 different things here. I think most of us can agree that realtors are overpaid. And we can both agree you have to do ur homework on realtor u choose to use. Even if a realtor wont give u a kick back doesnt mean hes the best at what they do, and vice versa. I loved the realtor i used to buy my TH a few years ago, but after the guy barely returns my texts or takes my phone calls when i was interested in buying a rental property or when i tried to get him a couple clients looking to buy........ I have many friends who have sold or bought properties over the years yet no one ever says that there realtor is the best and that they recommend them.

[hud 91gt]

Having been raised in a Real Estate Agent single parent home. They may be overpaid at this moment, but there are many years of my life where there were no new clothes for school and not a whole lot of extra cash laying around. Considering the price of houses these days, commission rates should probably be revised.

[westopher]

Totally. Real estate my be the only occupation where the wage increase matched the inflation of house prices lol.

[jing]

Originally Posted by SumAznGuy

I'll give you a real life example.
In my TH complex, there was unit that was for sale for many months.
2 bedroom 3 baths, private garage. Asking $969K, then $949K then $899K and then raised back to $939K.
Ugly potato cam pics. 5 pics of the same corner for some odd reason.
Finally sells for $915K.
Corner unit, everything is exactly the same in terms of layout and garage.
Went on the market and in less than a week sells for $969K. There was a higher bid but subject to inspection.

My advice, find a good realtor and talk to them. Find out what their professional opinion is on what the market is doing.
Do your own homework, check Zealty.com and see how much similar units are selling for before deciding on how much to list.

Listing low is a common practice. You don't want to list too low but you don't want to list too high to scare away potential buyers.
In this case, the unit that sold in under a week listed $899K.

As for paying commissions, well the agent does spend time and energy to list your unit. But I think the agent should be doing more to sell the unit then the bare minimum and then send you a bill when it doesn't sell.

Corner unit is worth a premium IMO especially if it has additional windows. $50k extra is a stretch for sure however.

[quasi]

I liked my realtors when I first met them, twin brothers.

When it came down to the brass tax they were more interested in opening their restaurant then servicing me especially after I sold and was looking. There were multiple homes I requested to look at that they never got me in that I was able to setup viewings on my own which is fucked up IMO. This is pre-covid before the market took off so people were eager to sell.

Then when I called them on shit and threatened to fire them if they didn't do better they tried to flip it and got upset at me.

I never really like realtors before my last sale, had a bad experience last time I sold and bought before the recent move. No redemption on the last sale. Maybe I just don't know how to pick them.

[hotjoint]

We bought a presale in June 2020 for 605, finally moved in march 2021. A few weeks ago our developer sent an email out to everyone saying that our TH complex had 1 last unit for sale which is identical to ours. 4 bed, 4 bath, side by side garage for 820 which is insane. I went to realtor.ca to check out places for around 600 that we were previously looking at and saw nothing, put the price up to 800 and the same properties appeared. Prices jumped that much within a 6-8 month time frame?

[donk.]

Correct

[JDMDreams]

^^ how else do we buy Tesla's and type R's

[Special K]

Prices jumped but you still need a place to live if you decide to sell. Only winning is if your parents downsize, or if you move out of Vancouver.

Sell for $800k and rent? We have heard/seen how that storyline plays out.

[supafamous]

Originally Posted by Hondaracer

Advising the city of a lipstick renovation just added 30-50% of your total costs lol..

If you’re doing a reno to sell etc. You’re crazy to try and get permits for it. You’d be better off not doing the reno and keeping the investment costs for the reno than paying an architect etc to submit drawings and plans.

In this current climate, and the climate of say, the last 10 years I really doubt a buyer is going to get hung up on how the renovation was done.

What qualifies as a "lipstick reno"? At my new house (Burnaby) the zoning only allows a 4 foot long deck on the 2nd floor and I want to expand that deck - I got a 90' deep backyard and a great view. Other than potentially having my neighbours complain I'm wondering how big my downside is for doing it without a permit.

FWIW, I had an exterior door relocated by 3' five years ago on my current house (Vancouver) with no permits. My extra nosey, kinda racist neighbour didn't seem to be bothered by it and I don't figure it's something that needs to be disclosed (or should it?)

[SSM_DC5]

Originally Posted by hotjoint

We bought a presale in June 2020 for 605, finally moved in march 2021. A few weeks ago our developer sent an email out to everyone saying that our TH complex had 1 last unit for sale which is identical to ours. 4 bed, 4 bath, side by side garage for 820 which is insane. I went to realtor.ca to check out places for around 600 that we were previously looking at and saw nothing, put the price up to 800 and the same properties appeared. Prices jumped that much within a 6-8 month time frame?

What's the area? I got a coworker looking for townhouse with 4 parking spots, side by side might fit their criteria if it's got a driveway.

Originally Posted by supafamous

What qualifies as a "lipstick reno"? At my new house (Burnaby) the zoning only allows a 4 foot long deck on the 2nd floor and I want to expand that deck - I got a 90' deep backyard and a great view. Other than potentially having my neighbours complain I'm wondering how big my downside is for doing it without a permit.

FWIW, I had an exterior door relocated by 3' five years ago on my current house (Vancouver) with no permits. My extra nosey, kinda racist neighbour didn't seem to be bothered by it and I don't figure it's something that needs to be disclosed (or should it?)

I think if the deck is only 2 feet off the ground, you can do whatever you want without the need for a permit.

Downside doing work without a permit is that you may need to undo it all and put it back to whatever the original drawings say... Or submit all the paperwork to keep it.

[supafamous]

Originally Posted by SSM_DC5

I think if the deck is only 2 feet off the ground, you can do whatever you want without the need for a permit.

Downside doing work without a permit is that you may need to undo it all and put it back to whatever the original drawings say... Or submit all the paperwork to keep it.

In my case, it's on the 2nd floor so about 10 feet above ground and the builder of the house said the city only allows 4 feet of deck on the 2nd floor - that barely fits my BBQ. The main floor has a concrete patio that extends 18 feet out - ideally I'd like to build right over it but it may not be realistic considering zoning doesn't allow more than 4. Hoping I could add at least a few feet so we can sit outside on the deck and enjoy the view.

[hotjoint]

Originally Posted by SSM_DC5

What's the area? I got a coworker looking for townhouse with 4 parking spots, side by side might fit their criteria if it's got a driveway

Whalley. King George/81 at kings landing 2, brand new townhouse. We moved from Guildford to Whalley because the same place in Guildford was mid 900's vs 605 for over here. I'll save myself 300K and move 12 mins away. We have a small driveway for a 3rd car plus you get 2 visitor parking spots but you can't park in visitor parking over night, they're very on the ball about that and have gave tickets/towed residents.

Here's what our place looks like...

Kings Landing II, 8168 136A Street, Surrey, Bear Creek Green Timbers,Surrey Real Estate

[winson604]

Originally Posted by RiceIntegraRS

If the market is decently hot, wouldnt that mean properties are an easy sell which means less work for the realtor.

This is exactly the mentality you shouldn't have. I'm convinced that's what my sisters realtor did when they were selling their house during the height of action in this pandemic. Granted it was also a over $4million dollar house so when you have that kind of cash as a buyer you're going to be pickier because you can. Anyway the realtor practically did nothing to try and push the sale of the house, months went by and they were on the verge of ending the relationship when it finally sold. Fun fact Holtby almost bought it when he was traded here.

[RiceIntegraRS]

Originally Posted by hotjoint

We bought a presale in June 2020 for 605, finally moved in march 2021. A few weeks ago our developer sent an email out to everyone saying that our TH complex had 1 last unit for sale which is identical to ours. 4 bed, 4 bath, side by side garage for 820 which is insane. I went to realtor.ca to check out places for around 600 that we were previously looking at and saw nothing, put the price up to 800 and the same properties appeared. Prices jumped that much within a 6-8 month time frame?

I think the combination of covid (people needing to work from home) and Surrey itself being relatively cheap to begin with in comparison is the reason why your seeing that big jump. My TH in surrey jumped higher in value in 2021 than it did in all of Late 2017-2020 combined.

Originally Posted by winson604

This is exactly the mentality you shouldn't have. I'm convinced that's what my sisters realtor did when they were selling their house during the height of action in this pandemic. Granted it was also a over $4million dollar house so when you have that kind of cash as a buyer you're going to be pickier because you can. Anyway the realtor practically did nothing to try and push the sale of the house, months went by and they were on the verge of ending the relationship when it finally sold. Fun fact Holtby almost bought it when he was traded here.

I do think Houses vs Condos are a different ball game when it comes to ease of sale. Houses do require abit more work imo. But for condos if it doesnt need to be staged, just declutter, take some good pictures, put it up. a couple of open houses and watch the offers come flying in. Thats when the market was hot.

[JDMDreams]

I looked into kings landing, but I didn't want to deal with the drive into Surrey as you are stuck in city traffic for a bit until you get on the bridge or highway.

[PeanutButter]

Originally Posted by hotjoint

Whalley. King George/81 at kings landing 2, brand new townhouse. We moved from Guildford to Whalley because the same place in Guildford was mid 900's vs 605 for over here. I'll save myself 300K and move 12 mins away. We have a small driveway for a 3rd car plus you get 2 visitor parking spots but you can't park in visitor parking over night, they're very on the ball about that and have gave tickets/towed residents.

Here's what our place looks like...

Kings Landing II, 8168 136A Street, Surrey, Bear Creek Green Timbers,Surrey Real Estate

You know, I never knew why they made a sunken living room, but my buddies town house is like that and it makes a nice seating step for when people are over.

He has a kid now and doesn't know what to do with it. He can't really put two baby gates up?

[RiceIntegraRS]

Originally Posted by JDMDreams

I looked into kings landing, but I didn't want to deal with the drive into Surrey as you are stuck in city traffic for a bit until you get on the bridge or highway.

i live on the edge of surrey which is about less than 5 mins away from alex fraser and patullo. Getting to Vancouver is soo quick and easy and usualy make it to events as quick as my friends who actually live in Vancouver. I really hate driving thru traffic especially so i made sure i was right by those 2 bridges so i can jump on the hwy easier.

[Hondaracer]

Originally Posted by PeanutButter

You know, I never knew why they made a sunken living room, but my buddies town house is like that and it makes a nice seating step for when people are over.

He has a kid now and doesn't know what to do with it. He can't really put two baby gates up?

It’s to do with the design of neighbouring units. Also in almost all of those Dawson Sawyer layouts the neighbouring units master bedroom is over top of your living room.

The company I used to work for built over 300 units for Dawson Sawyer, almost all in that same style, I know them like the back of my hand. They’ve never really strayed away from that design because it maximizes space and it’s a relatively simple design that’s easy to build.

My former company no longer builds for them as far as I know, but I’d say they are pretty solid in that entry-level, mid range townhome game. They are cheap and expect higher quality than what they pay for so it can go both ways

[quasi]

Originally Posted by hotjoint

We bought a presale in June 2020 for 605, finally moved in march 2021. A few weeks ago our developer sent an email out to everyone saying that our TH complex had 1 last unit for sale which is identical to ours. 4 bed, 4 bath, side by side garage for 820 which is insane. I went to realtor.ca to check out places for around 600 that we were previously looking at and saw nothing, put the price up to 800 and the same properties appeared. Prices jumped that much within a 6-8 month time frame?

I bought my place January, 2 months before Covid kicked off, my house totally renovated high end finishes.

A year later my neighbour across the street sells his house that's on a lot 35% smaller than mine, hasn't been touched basically a tear down. He sold it for 40% more than I paid for my house precovid in two days, it's insane. My wife and I have been stupid lucky with real estate over the last 20 years, we've doubled our money on each of the last two properties we owned and made an imaginary unrealized 40%+ on this one 20 months. We've spun a $7,500 down payment on our first townhouse in 2001 into over a million dollars in equity in 20 years. As a blue collar working stiff this is pretty great for us, might actually get to downsize and retire someday.