The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, which serves as the country’s national housing agency, is predicting an 8% increase in home prices for the metro Vancouver area. That’s in comparison to an 11% increase for all of 2007, and will still leave the city with the highest prices in the country. “What we’re expecting is a bit of moderation,” said Robyn Adamache, senior market analyst with the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. “Prices are going to continue to increase, but at a slower pace than we’ve seen over the past couple of years.” Adamche was quoted in a recent International Herald Tribune article on Vancouver.
As United States and some Canadian real estate markets have been hit by the slowdown in housing sales, Vancouver continues to shine. While things might look to slow a little, prices will still increase and the city in western Canada expects to be doing a brisk business throughout this year and into the foreseeable future.
Vancouver is an attractive city to many people across the globe, not just in Canada. Its moderate climate and location on the water make it a nice place to live year round, and many of the new home buyers are coming from overseas. The current low US dollar has led to an increase in buyers from Europe and Asia, where the currencies are stronger. Additionally, western Canada is experiencing a boom in its economy. High oil and commodities prices are good for this part of the country, and unemployment is very low.
Many of the buyers in Vancouver are going after high-end condominiums in or near downtown. There are many new condo towers that are under construction, but four in particular are doing much better than anticipated. These four luxury hotel-condominium towers now under construction are the Ritz-Carlton, Shangri-La, Fairmont Pacific Rim and Hotel Georgia. They are getting prices of more than $3,000 per square foot,compared with an average for downtown condos of $725 per square foot.
With an attractive location, strong economy and many other advantages, Vancouver looks to continue to be a hot market for some time to come.
Canadian Property
