It’s equity. And a roof over your head. This is going back to the basics of this thread but it’s a tangible asset. I still know of people who think the stock market is a fools game etc. Investments aren’t secure.
I think if you owned prior to 2017 or so you will be fine going forward. It’s likely your asset will never be worth less than it was when you purchased. Just looking at basic supply and demand and how sparcley populated the greater Vancouver area is compared to most cities I think it’s a pretty safe bet to think values will only go up and people will always want to live here not withstanding “the big one” and even then maybe when Richmond is gone Vancouver will be worth even more?
Everything in hindsight