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Old 07-09-2010, 01:01 AM
 
3 posts, read 33,363 times
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Hello all,

We're looking to purchase a home in the Greater Vancouver area and hopefully relocate there in the coming year. Having done a bit of research, it looks like West Point Grey, Shaughnessy, and West Vancouver (Altamont area) could each potentially be a good match for our family in terms of what we're looking for in a property. However, we were hoping to gain some perspective about the ambience in each of those neighbourhoods. Mainly, how do the residents differ?

I guess what I'm trying to ask is: If the price of the property didn't matter, which one of those three neighbourhoods would you choose to settle in? and why?


Thanks for your help.

Last edited by aj88; 07-09-2010 at 01:07 AM.. Reason: typo
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Old 07-09-2010, 09:00 PM
 
Location: Kalamalka Lake, B.C.
3,563 posts, read 5,343,380 times
Reputation: 4975
Cool THAT'S A CHOICE?I can't wait to see the other answers!!

Quote:
Originally Posted by aj88 View Post
Hello all,

We're looking to purchase a home in the Greater Vancouver area and hopefully relocate there in the coming year. Having done a bit of research, it looks like West Point Grey, Shaughnessy, and West Vancouver (Altamont area) could each potentially be a good match for our family in terms of what we're looking for in a property. However, we were hoping to gain some perspective about the ambience in each of those neighbourhoods. Mainly, how do the residents differ?

I guess what I'm trying to ask is: If the price of the property didn't matter, which one of those three neighbourhoods would you choose to settle in? and why?


Thanks for your help.
Not much information from you as to family type or interests/activities'
ARE YOU POLITICALLY AND/OR ACADEMICALLY CONNECTED HERE or are going to be through your employment??
All are near the new seawalks, but Pt. Grey and Shaughessy put you right into downtown and entertainment. West Vancouver is a bedroom community and the sidewalks roll up about seven p.m. and you're gone on the weekends to Whistler/the islands anyway. British, and Sentinel High School. In my humble opinion (wink, wink) the friendliest once you've been there awhile, and it helps a lot if you're caucasian or Persian. Imported money and laundered money. Largest noise: all those damn new Mazerati's.

Shaughnessy: none of your neighbours are ever home, including Kurt and Goldie. I think the Belzburgs are still around; probably their second home. Old railroad barrons homes; large lots with dark and old wood. Old money. You'll meet your neighbours at the local fundraisers inside circle and/or political compaigns. I think the Falung Gong protesters have been pushed out. Quiet but near everything.

West Pt. Grey is either the Yacht Club (Royal with a capital R) or the 4th. Avenue academic earth mother crowd. Important area for important people; just ask, they'll tell you. Live really, really close to people and their dogs. Beach activities crowd summer; lots of artsy types and music/innovation. And street basketball, folk fair, and funk.
Being vegetarian gets you accepted fast. Rule of 72 money.

OK, locals: take me down! How am I doing so far??
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Old 07-09-2010, 10:54 PM
 
3 posts, read 33,363 times
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Thanks for your reply, interesting points. So I gather from what you're saying that West Vancouver is more on the "nouveau riche" side, whereas Shaughnessy and W Point Grey residents are more established/conservative?

And to answer your question, we don't have any previous connections to the area. We do quite a bit of international travel because of my occupation, and it is my personal belief that Vancouver (or Canada in general) is the perfect place to establish a long term home base in because it offers a high level of safety along with political/economic stability that is unparalleled in the rest of the G8.

Quote:
Not much information from you as to family type or interests/activities'
Sailing is important to our family and from what I've seen in Vancouver I'm sure we'll be content in that department regardless of where we end up!
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Old 07-10-2010, 01:07 AM
 
Location: Canada
14,633 posts, read 14,725,582 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by aj88 View Post
Hello all,

..... it looks like West Point Grey, Shaughnessy, and West Vancouver (Altamont area) could each potentially be a good match for our family in terms of what we're looking for in a property. However, we were hoping to gain some perspective about the ambience in each of those neighbourhoods. Mainly, how do the residents differ?

...... which one of those three neighbourhoods would you choose to settle in? and why?
Regardless of money, rather than asking what other people would settle for it may be helpful if you could explain a bit more about your family and what it is that YOUR expectations and needs are. What are you looking for in the way of property, and what kind of lifestyle, ambience, community and recreational conveniences and educational facilities are most suitable for your family?

.
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Old 07-10-2010, 03:46 AM
 
3 posts, read 33,363 times
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Quote:
What are you looking for in the way of property, and what kind of lifestyle, ambience, community and recreational conveniences and educational facilities are most suitable for your family?
We are looking for a property on the larger side which would allows us to entertain and could accommodate a small live-in staff as well; waterfront and/or view would be a nice bonus but privacy takes precedence.

However I know that unfortunately nowadays, in a lot of communities which have those kind of properties, life seems to be entirely centred around garish/ostentatious displays of wealth (waste) more than anything else (think Beverly Hills, or Scottsdale). I really do not want to expose my family to that kind of vapid lifestyle.

This is why I posed my question as I did, Vancouver looks like a fairly compact city, I thought it'd be reasonably simple to drive from one area to another in order to access recreational/educational facilities, so I was interested to know more about the people in those neighbourhoods.

I hope that made it more clear.

Last edited by aj88; 07-10-2010 at 04:04 AM..
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Old 07-10-2010, 02:08 PM
 
Location: Canada
14,633 posts, read 14,725,582 times
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Thank you, that's helpful.

If privacy, plenty of space for entertaining and for housing staff, and less ostentatiousness is more important to you than a place with a view then you may be disappointed with all 3 of the neighbourhoods that you chose. In my opinion those neighbourhoods are changing and becoming crowded and more heavily trafficked.

If money was no object and I absolutely must remain in the city proper, I would choose to look for a property in the Dunbar-Southlands area or the Kerrisdale area. Vancouver Neighbourhoods & Districts

Take a look at the link above, the information there will tell you somewhat of the demographics of each neighbourhood, i.e. percentage of age groups, primary languages spoken, average household incomes, the number of dwellings per hectare, types of dwellings, etc.

I'd suggest you try a google satellite view and google street view of Vancouver's neighbourhoods to give you a bit of a bird's eye view.

.
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Old 07-12-2010, 11:54 AM
 
Location: Pacific Northwest
1,075 posts, read 4,299,897 times
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My opinion is that West Van would probably offer the most space, and privacy.

As far as sailing goes, all three are close to marinas, actually with Shaughnessy being the furthest away. If you have a boat, you may want to google some of the marinas in the areas for moorage, as most have a pretty lengthy wait list I think?

Shaughnessy area also has some huge and very spacious lots with grand older houses, and lots of big old shade trees and gardens abound.

Point Grey area in my mind, is more perhaps .. 'modern' and 'happening' vibe .. more 'yuppyville'. Miles and miles of beaches stretching all the way from Kitsilano and Granville Island area, all the way to UBC. It's a crowded, uptown, upbeat, lots of coffee places, great grocery-shopping options, cafes and restaurants .. right in the hub of it all.

Shaughnessy as pointed out already, is a older established, more conservative 'old money' type place, very quiet neighbourhood.

West Vancouver is spectacular in scenery as it winds it's way along the coast to Horseshoe Bay, where the ferries connect to Vancouver Island and other smaller islands. Howe Sound is one of the most beautiful places in the world, making the two-hr drive to Whister a very popular destination.

West Van is expensive to live, as are the other three .. but West Vancouver is more on it's own whereas the other two neighbourhoods are in amongst other parts of Vancouver, so you get more of a mix of people in the area.

All three areas get more sun than many other areas of Vancouver. All are beautiful with gorgeous grounds and gardens.

Shaughnessy is not near the water (well, not that far either) but the other two are situated on coast-line. West Vancouver is situated at the bottom and on the side of a mountain covered in huge fir, cedar, etc. Three of the local mountains are right there, Cypress (west van) Grouse (middle) and Seymour (north van) and all open for skiing.

If the mountains are not adequate, Whistler is only a couple of hours away.

If you're into sailing, West Van is in a excellent location for exploring all the islands and coastline at your fngertips.

I don't know where to point you to actually. All three are spectacular areas to live.

Have to admit that I'm partial to the north shore myself. Love the clean air and air movement that comes down off the mountains, the abundance of forests, rugged coast-line and ocean.

Now! have we got you completely confused?!!
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Old 09-21-2010, 08:14 AM
 
Location: West Vancouver
2 posts, read 12,109 times
Reputation: 10
Default Try West Vancouver

Hi AJ88
All 3 neighbourhoods you are considering are excellent, but they are different. I am going to suggest you take a good hard look at West Vancouver, and I’ll give you some reasons:
West Vancouver has the lowest crime rate for any urban area in Canada
Fastest police response rate in the country (under 3 minutes)
Some of the best public schools in the country ranking amongst the highest student scores and university entrance acceptance rates
Huge lot sizes – You usually get more lot for your money in West Vancouver
Incredible parks, beaches and new, modern recreational facilities
There are several other really good things about West Vancouver that you should check out. You can read a short article that explains West Vancouver’s advantages at www.westvancouverguide.com/why-west-vancouver (broken link)

Last edited by icunliffe; 09-21-2010 at 09:09 AM.. Reason: formatting problem
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Old 09-22-2010, 03:37 PM
 
Location: Canackistan
746 posts, read 1,671,698 times
Reputation: 682
Quote:
Originally Posted by thedwightguy View Post
Not much information from you as to family type or interests/activities'
ARE YOU POLITICALLY AND/OR ACADEMICALLY CONNECTED HERE or are going to be through your employment??
All are near the new seawalks, but Pt. Grey and Shaughessy put you right into downtown and entertainment. West Vancouver is a bedroom community and the sidewalks roll up about seven p.m. and you're gone on the weekends to Whistler/the islands anyway. British, and Sentinel High School. In my humble opinion (wink, wink) the friendliest once you've been there awhile, and it helps a lot if you're caucasian or Persian. Imported money and laundered money. Largest noise: all those damn new Mazerati's.

Shaughnessy: none of your neighbours are ever home, including Kurt and Goldie. I think the Belzburgs are still around; probably their second home. Old railroad barrons homes; large lots with dark and old wood. Old money. You'll meet your neighbours at the local fundraisers inside circle and/or political compaigns. I think the Falung Gong protesters have been pushed out. Quiet but near everything.

West Pt. Grey is either the Yacht Club (Royal with a capital R) or the 4th. Avenue academic earth mother crowd. Important area for important people; just ask, they'll tell you. Live really, really close to people and their dogs. Beach activities crowd summer; lots of artsy types and music/innovation. And street basketball, folk fair, and funk.
Being vegetarian gets you accepted fast. Rule of 72 money.

OK, locals: take me down! How am I doing so far??
Actually that was a pretty honest review of those neighbourhoods.
I don't know too much about West Van, other than driving through it.

I actually had an apartment once near west 4th/Alma. Great neighbourhood, lots of Asians & students and a fairly "young" vibe, hence why I lived there (I was only 20 at the time). Closer to the water, I would place it somewhere in between West van and Shaughnessy in terms of how modern it is.
Also had a gig driving pizzas that served Shaughnessy area. Wonderfully huge old homes, I was in awe getting those addresses on my runs. Very private houses, lots of shade, trees.
Very close to DT. Not as close to the water.
That would be my pick, it's definitely the "oldest" of neighbourhoods I guess you could say.

Check out mls.ca, it will give you an idea of what types of housing is on offer around Van:
www.mls.ca

One thing with access to airport:
Shaughnessy: 10KM, 15 min.
West point grey: 13-14 KM, almost 15-30 min
West Van; 25-30 KM and at least 30-45 min without traffic. Something I would consider if it were me.

Not sure how much you would need to fly, but something else to think about.

Last edited by The_gateway; 09-22-2010 at 03:58 PM..
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Old 09-22-2010, 08:20 PM
 
1,264 posts, read 3,847,829 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by aj88 View Post
Thanks for your reply, interesting points. So I gather from what you're saying that West Vancouver is more on the "nouveau riche" side, whereas Shaughnessy and W Point Grey residents are more established/conservative?

And to answer your question, we don't have any previous connections to the area. We do quite a bit of international travel because of my occupation, and it is my personal belief that Vancouver (or Canada in general) is the perfect place to establish a long term home base in because it offers a high level of safety along with political/economic stability that is unparalleled in the rest of the G8.

Sailing is important to our family and from what I've seen in Vancouver I'm sure we'll be content in that department regardless of where we end up!
We have plenty of marinas



and classy residents



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