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The reason so many off-shore buy here ( including American investors ) is because it is a good deal when taking in worldwide prices.
There is very little "investor buying" in the condo mania of Vancouver at least in the traditional meaning of the word "investment"....it's more of "asset shielding" (considering that many of them are empty so they return exactly zero).
You are absolutely correct, Vancouver rents are not that expensive compared to the La-La land RE prices which make returns (ratio of capital outlay vs. rent income) laughable at best.....returns on RE properties in a lot of southern US locales (just to mention a situation I know very well) blows Vancouver return to smithereens (even taking in consideration taxes)
A savvy and astute investor would definitely stay away...but then again, real investment is not the main goal of many big buyers in Van.
For a brief getaway, I'd enjoy that I'm sure. For living..not a chance. Having more space is only good if you need it, I don't.
I'd rather step out my door and have everything I need, including forest, ocean and mountain views, not too mention every type of grocer store imaginable, theatres, restaurants, shops and pubs.
Evening Natnaski!
We do need the room! We use one room as a recording studio, one room as a photography studio, and I write (approximately 12 hours a day - 5 days a week) in our private bedroom so we can leave the living room area tidy for company. The bathrooms are useful, as it isn't easy making a dash for the ladies' room when one is confined to a wheelchair.
As for the location, we don't live nearer Whistler because I don't find that what passes for civilization nowadays is not... civil. When you spend as much time on tour as we do, it's nice (even necessary) to live in peace in quiet when it's time to create again, as in write, record, and film.
Vancouver may not be NYC, but buying a place here offers things NYC or even Toronto does not offer that some people love and are willing to pay for and that is mountain views, ocean, beaches downtown, skiing at you doorstop etc.
How DARE you lol - just a short ferry ride from DT Toronto and you have The Toronto Island's and all kinds of Beaches including clothing optional one's
A savvy and astute investor would definitely stay away...but then again, real investment is not the main goal of many big buyers in Van.
Maybe they are just wealthy people who just want to live in an amazingly serene, clean, pristine and beautiful place - if not for all of the year - atleast for some of it... They can afford it and park their dollars and time in Vancouver and that's ok.. Not everyone wants to live in Palm Springs or Sydney lol..
Maybe they are just wealthy people who just want to live in an amazingly serene, clean, pristine and beautiful place - if not for all of the year - atleast for some of it... They can afford it and park their dollars and time in Vancouver and that's ok.. Not everyone wants to live in Palm Springs or Sydney lol..
Parking assets (ill-gotten or otherwise) in danger of being seized has nothing to do with "serene, pristine and beautiful places" at least not completely.....lax immigration rules play a very important part...
Parking assets in danger of being seized has nothing to do with "serene, pristine and beautiful places" at least not completely.....lax immigration rules play a very important part...
What? Mrs Hong's houses are in danger of being siezed... By whom? Stephen Harper, Barack Obama, Tony Abbot Xi Jinping??. Lax immigration rules - what the heck are you talking about..
Which is crazy, because circa '04 or so, I was thinking of buying a condo in Vancouver near the yet-to-be-built Olympic stadium because it was a fraction of what it would have cost to buy a place in LA and LA is quite ridiculously overpriced in any desirable neighborhood.
I pay about $775 USD/mo for a really nice 100sq/m, or 1076sq/ft 3-bedroom/2ba with marble floors in a brand new tower in what is basically the nicest part of Guangzhou, and I have three different 24-hour minimarts and a couple all night restaurants downstairs from me, plus I'm walking distance to a ton more restaurants, nightclubs, etc and one block from the Zhujiang (Pearl River).
I pay way less than I did for a studio in SF, plus I make more and my money goes farther... yeah, I don't think I'll be moving back any time soon.
Just curious, given the filthy air over there, are face masks included in the rent?
The Nimby's (Not In My Back Yard) haven't yet made a big splash in many 3rd world countries, but they'll arrive sooner or later, and then?
Califor-Nimbya, here we come!
SE Asia? For those intolerant of sky-high humidity, along with high temp's, not even a free apartment over there would entice them to move there!
I've been a desert rat for 21 years now, enjoying only 4 inches of rain a year, and humidity levels as low as 3% in June, and one day over there, I'd be keeling over on the sidewalk!
What? Mrs Hong's houses are in danger of being siezed... By whom? Stephen Harper, Barack Obama, Tony Abbot Xi Jinping??. Lax immigration rules - what the heck are you talking about..
Remember that famous quote from the "All the President's men" movie?? Follow the money....so ask yourself how many of these properties are bought from overseas investors....asset shielding indeed.
Lax immigration rules refer to Canada immigration for business people and investors at least up to very recently....you could fog a mirror and get a red carpet welcome as long as you brought some moola, no questions to ask....
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and LA is quite ridiculously overpriced in any desirable neighborhood.
