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Little shacks going for 2 million dollars in vancouver? Haha what a joke. Vancouver is just a little dumpy city of barely 6 hundred thousand and no significant enterprises or economy, why is realistate so expensive? It's not Toronto.
I think Vancouver has the same issue west coast US cities also have which is geography restricts expansion. Water on one side so, you can't go there. Mountains the other side so you can only build in a limited amount of area there even if there isn't foreign speculation driving up prices. Just the fact that there is limited space makes available land a premium. I am not too familiar with Toronto. I've only been there once, but I think , aside from the lake to the south, there is more room to expand in other directions.
I think Vancouver has the same issue west coast US cities also have which is geography restricts expansion. Water on one side so, you can't go there. Mountains the other side so you can only build in a limited amount of area there even if there isn't foreign speculation driving up prices. Just the fact that there is limited space makes available land a premium. I am not too familiar with Toronto. I've only been there once, but I think , aside from the lake to the south, there is more room to expand in other directions.
that's a lame reason I heard so many times. There are 10,000 cities in the world that look "restricted" by nature but are not expensive. Geography is hardly the reason here. Plus, there is quite a lot of land south of Vancouver and unlimited amount east of it. Toronto is restrict by the lake on the south and green belt on the north too.
Be aware that while land is limited, house supply shouldn't be. The problem with so many expensive cities is often the same: height restriction. We are not talking about skyscrapers here (before someone freaks out as if Vancouver becomes Hong Kong or Manhattan). If you allow 6-10 storey buildings in most areas like they do in Europe, instead of the typical bungalows or two stories, your supply is increased by 5 times instantly, as if Vancouver becomes 500 sq km, instead of 100. The issue is not about how much land, it is about what you do with the land.
that's a lame reason I heard so many times. There are 10,000 cities in the world that look "restricted" by nature but are not expensive. Geography is hardly the reason here. Plus, there is quite a lot of land south of Vancouver and unlimited amount east of it. Toronto is restrict by the lake on the south and green belt on the north too.
Be aware that while land is limited, house supply shouldn't be. The problem with so many expensive cities is often the same: height restriction. We are not talking about skyscrapers here (before someone freaks out as if Vancouver becomes Hong Kong or Manhattan). If you allow 6-10 storey buildings in most areas like they do in Europe, instead of the typical bungalows or two stories, your supply is increased by 5 times instantly, as if Vancouver becomes 500 sq km, instead of 100. The issue is not about how much land, it is about what you do with the land.
I don't think Vancouver has too much height or development restrictions, unlike many U.S. cities (SF being primary example). In fact, you can pretty much see high rise condos dotted throughout the city even in suburban neighborhoods. I think at the moment pretty much every Skytrain station around Vancouver is being built up with mid to high rises at the moment.
Was visiting Vancouver last December and noticed a lot of construction like this along its rapid transit lines, mostly mid to high rises between 10-30 floors under construction:
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