'$1,000 bucks for all this?': Students live like kings in Vancouver’s empty mansions
It turns out the marvelous mansion, was actually a real deal. The nine-bedroom home, dubbed “The Castle” by the 14 students who share the property, is apparently owned by an Afghani pop artist, according to Boodhoo.
“Honestly, I would stay here for as long as I could,” he said, sitting on a white couch while sipping from a Slurpee cup. “$1,000 bucks for all this?”
Currently because of the new rental taxes, any student could have the opportunity to grab a beautiful mansion at a very cheap price.
It’s a far cry from the frenzy of a few years ago when the city was at the center of a global property boom. Prices more than doubled in the decade through 2016, outpacing gains in New York and London. But government policies to tame the market—from new taxes to stricter mortgage regulations—have fueled a plunge in sales to the weakest since the global financial crisis. Prices are down 8.5 per cent from their peak in June, according to the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver.
The city boasts a thriving tech and tourism scene and sits in the province with the lowest unemployment rate in the country. But the sense of unease in the real estate market is palpable.
The Lucky Renters
With taxes on an empty Vancouver home potentially adding up to 3 per cent in annual levies, every single homeowner is rushing their way to lease their homes, according to many real estate agents.
“You have houses that are worth $4 million renting for $4,500,” said Steve Saretsky, a Vancouver realtor whose popular real estate blog was pointing out cracks in the market even as benchmark prices peaked last year.
The Bargain Hunters
Buying a house seemed an impossible dream for Brandon Chapman.
The 28-year-old financial planner first started looking at one-bedroom condos in 2016, around the peak of the market. “It was just bananas so I took a step back,” he said, in an interview at his Vancouver office.
Now in 2019 He is glad that he waited, he now figures he might even be able to afford a detached home and is viewing properties at around the $1.1 million mark in East Vancouver. To make it affordable, he’s teaming up with his best friend to purchase the property and offering way under asking. It hasn’t quite worked out yet. One offer for about $200,000 less than the listing price was rejected.
“We haven’t closed on anything but the market in my opinion is still trending down so why would I rush into buying something if I don’t need it this second?” he said.
Then there’s Robin Rickards, who happened to be looking for a temporary home at a serendipitous time. The 64-year-old orthopedic surgeon needed a place to stay while his current home was being rebuilt into an oceanside oasis. He ended up making an offer on three different homes and got one for almost $1 million less than the original asking price.
“It’s like a candy store for buyers right now,” Clara Hartree, the realtor working with Rickards, said by email.
The Frustrated Flippers
You probably have seen this cantilevered glass tower before, when you are either leaving or heading into downtown, its one of Vancouver’s most hotly anticipated developments. It starts as a triangle at its base—wedged awkwardly between the on and off ramps of a downtown highway—before swiveling into a square at the top.
That iconic silhouette helped developer Westbank Corp. rapidly sell out some 400 ultra luxe units when pre sales began in 2014, thanks in part to avid interest from Asian buyers. As it nears completion, investors are seeking to offload rights to more than two dozen units, according to listings cropping up on realtor websites.
One flyer offers a 368-square-foot unit at $515,000. “Transfer at original price,” it reads in Chinese. Last year, it would’ve fetched as much as $800,000, says Jerry Huang, a realtor with Nu Stream Realty Inc., which specializes in presale developments.
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