Yet another housing report has been released. This one from the Urban Development Institute (UDI) pointing the finger at Vancouver City Hall. Saying they are simply not doing enough to address the housing supply shortage in the city. It recommends the city start green lighting more development and remove many of the barriers that are currently limiting the supply of new homes. I would agree with UDI however there are other factors to blame as well including the NIMBY (Not in my back yard) as well as the Provincial and Federal Government. The bottom line is that all levels of Government have tried limiting demand through taxes and restrictions and it has had little to no effect. It may be time to try increasing supply instead.

This is your Inside Vancouver Real Estate tip that I just recently experienced as I was touring a relatively new condo development in Mount Pleasant last weekend. It was a 600 sq ft unit asking $620,000 (which will sell well over asking price). To my surprise I discovered that the unit has an inferior laundry set up.  Rather than have a stackable washer & dryer with the dryer running 220 volts and properly vented to the outside - the setup in this unit was a single Euro style one piece unit running off 110 volt, and the dryer had no venting! I can understand this type of setup in an older condo selling at $400 a sq ft but not in a new concrete building in the downtown vicinity selling at over $1000 a sq ft. It’s another reason why b ...

In this video I talk about the pros and cons of buying an older condo vs buying something that’s newer.  What to buy depends on many factors such as budget, location and the amenities that the buyer is looking for. However one thing that people should always consider is location. ..It’s the Golden Rule of Real Estate and will have a big impact on how much your unit appreciates over time.

Thousands of new books are published each year on helping people relieve stress, how to work less and spend more time with family, and how to create a balanced healthy lifestyle. In my opinion the only permanent way to solve this problem is by investing and getting your money working for you passively. The two best vehicles to do this are through real estate and dividend paying stocks. It’s really the entire premise behind my new book “ Along for the Ride”.  The book is a step by step guide on how I reached my crossover point at a young age. The crossover point is when the income you are earning passively from your real estate and stock portfolio is enough to cover all your annual living expenses…thus allowing you to stop working if ...

In this blog I talk about how the Foreign Buyers Tax has had zero effect on the Vancouver Condo & Townhouse Market As a matter of fact, prices are now hitting new all time highs every day. Inventory remains at record low levels and there are 3 or 4 buyers for every unit. Now that Spring is here I also want to do my annual “Spring Selling Tips” and how critical it is to hire a listing and marketing expert to list and sell your home.

We have yet another top caller in the Vancouver Real Estate market. The US based ratings agency Fitch, just came out with a report saying that Vancouver Real Estate Market has been driven by strong local and foreign demand as well as low interest rates. No Kidding! tell me something else I don’t know. They are calling for the Vancouver market to eventually correct saying this kind of price appreciation is unsustainable in the long term. And people pay these guys for this kind of insight! Calling for Vancouver prices to eventually fall is like predicting we're going to have rain this Spring. It also reminds me of the old Wall St saying about top callers.  Top callers are never wrong... they're just early!  Also in this blog ...I talk ...

  My much anticipated new book “Along for the Ride. Getting your money working for you through real estate and stock" is now available on Amazon.ca (http://bit.ly/Owen_Bigland) and Amazon.com (http://bit.ly/OwenBigland_us) in both paperback and digital (Kindle) Below is the official press release Press Release - “Along for the Ride” “Outraged by Vancouver’s “Lazy” Real Estate Millionaires? Think Again, Says Owen Bigland”---------------------------------------------------------- VANCOUVER, BC. - March 20, 2017 - In recent years, Vancouver has seen the rise of a new controversial group. These are the so-called “lazy” millionaires. People who have made their millions just by owning property during Vancouver’s real estate boom. Havin ...

Recently I have had several viewers ask me my opinion on buying an investment unit in the Whalley area of Surrey. My advice would be: If you’ve done your homework on the numbers, and you’re willing to buy and put a tenant in there for the long haul (ie 10, 15, 25 years or more), then go for it. You just can’t lose on that type of long term buy and hold strategy. With 20% down your tenant’s rent check every month will be enough to cover your interest payment on the mortgage, your maintenance fees, property taxes and repairs and at the current 2.3% 3 year mortgage interest rate, most of your principal payments as well. An area that I have been bullish on and selling to a lot of first time buyers and investors is New Westminster. Right ...

Sometimes markets and neighbourhoods can get a little ahead of themselves. That’s what I’m seeing on a new pre-sale development near the Kingsgate mall on East Broadway. They currently are offering 1 bed/1bath units at 619 sq ft for $728,900. When you add GST and PTT that’s $778,000. That comes in at over $1200 a sq foot. At that price you could take your pick of a number of quality 1 bedroom units in much more established West side neighbourhoods like the West End or Kits or Downtown Vancouver. In the past there was a much larger gap in prices between the West side and East side however over the past 2 years that gap has narrowed. With this current pre-sale price there is virtually no difference in price between East and West. In m ...

Be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel to receive notifications of my new blogs.It’s been 6 months since the Provincial Government introduced a 15% tax on all foreign buyers of Lower Mainland Real Estate. Here’s an update on the Vancouver condo and detached market as of March 2017.