RE/MAX Select Properties

Well...after a nail biter of a hockey game...the Winter Olympics of 2010 are almost done. The special Olympics will be taking place over the next few weeks...but the primary bulk of the events have been completed. Canada has realized its potential...the pride in the nation is amazing...and we have some amazing and wonderful memories to keep in our minds and hearts from this event.

 

Over the last few days it seems as if the city of Vancouver has come alive with the fever of the games. I have seen people on the street at all hours of the day in Canadian gear...face painting and the red and white garb...today when Canada won the gold medal game in hockey, the response was unmistakable on the streets. People were honking their car horns and singing the national anthem...I have never experienced anything like the unity of the city during these last few days.

 

Last night we went to the olympic village area for the last time to bid farewell to the event and the atheletes. The crowds were so wonderful and energized that we didn't want to leave.

 

In terms of real estate in Vancouver during this period of the games...it does seem that there was a distraction from the games that impacted on the number and scale of the deals in the Select office, but it looks like all of the slight dip will be over compensated for with the increase in business that will be following in the coming months!

 

 

As the Winter Olympic Games of 2010 begin to wind down in Vancouver, the lasting impact and impressions will begin to make themselves clear. Most of our agents have not experienced any obvious slow down in their business. In fact one agent was telling me that she put together 3 deals last weekend, at the height of the Olympic Festivities.

 

 Real estate activity can defy predictablility often. The early fears of a negative impact on activity and marketability of properties during the Games, were simply proven to be unfounded. While the media began to call the Vancouver Games the "glitch-olympics", the spirit and excitement on the streets kept building. This final week of the games have turned all the negatives around...in fact, it even began snowing on Cypress Mountain! While Canada may not have achieved the medal count of The Turin Games, we have accomplished a far more important goal. We have created an atmosphere of fun and excitement as good hosts to the world.

 

Vancouver is a world-class city in a setting that can leave a visitor breathless in awe of the natural beauty. We welcomed the world, and showed what makes Canada, and Vancouver special. As long as there are more people wanting to move to Vancouver than there are suitable properties on the market, our economic growth will continue. After the Sydney Games, the real estate agents there noted a spike in activity for the following 2 years. Now that the atheletes and fans from around the world have been exposed to the magic of Vancouver, there is no reason to believe the same effect will not take hold.

 

 

 

 

The expected lull termed the olympic effect has not hit the market yet.The activity remains brisk in the office with both buyers and sellers.

 

Over the last 12 months the MLS housing price index has increased by 17 percent. The benchmark price for all residential properties in Greater Vancouver is now at $573,241 up from $489,007 last year at this time. The city is also seeing an increase in new listings. In January there was a total of 5,147 lisitngs. This is up by 39 % from a year ago in January..

 

If we do see a slow down due to the olympic factor, it may be a good time for motivated buyers to search for properties. The spring will most likely be a strong market if interest rates remain low as buyers may want to buy before the HST comes into effect his summer.

 

In a recent  survey of "most live-able" cities in the world, Vancouver ranked as number one. The housing market here in Vancouver attests to the desire many have  to plant roots in this city.

 

Canada has now moved into Gold medal territory...and the excitement in the streets of Vancouver continues to grow.

As the hours count down to the start of the 2010 Olympics it seems that real estate activity is stepping up dramatically in our office here at RE/MAX Select Properties. I was just speaking with our conveyancing department, they tell me that the number of deals this week have more than doubled from the previous weeks. One of the agents just showed me a 4.8 million dollar listing that they processed this morning...so activity remains strong here on the West Side of Vancouver.

 

The Olympic flame will be passing through my neighbourhood on Thursday morning, but I will be on a plane to the RE/MAX Western Conference in Edmonton. Word is that the airport will be much busier than usual in Vancouver. The airport authority is claiming that March 1st will be the busiest day in the airport history.

 

The excitement is building now in the city for the games. It seems that even the most cynical are beginning to warm up to the notion that they are part of something very special.

So far the traffic has not been an issue here in Vancouver. A number of road closures have required a change in routes for delivers and commutes, but the drivers have adapted. The word on the radio is that transit usage is up, so that might be part of the reason that the congestion on the roads has not been too bad at this point. I did note that there were 5 buses lined up on King Edward at Cambie for the morning commute.

 

On friday the official opening ceremonies will take place. It will be interesting to see how that impacts on the commute from the areas around Vancouver. Friday will most likely set the tone for the functioning of the city around the increased population of visitors to the area.

 

Vancouver Real Estate has not been impacted in any tangible way at this point. Sales and listings continue unabated on the West-Side. The number of new listings is remaining relatively static. There is some indication from a few of our agents that they have clients wanting to wait out the Olympic period before they list or buy, but the numbers do not reflect any appreciable change at this point. If there is some slowing of the market for the games, it will only serve to create a frenzied spring market as the pent up demand will be so much greater.

 

The fundamentals remain strong in the Vancouver area markets. There is presently more demand for housing than there is supply...even given the higher prices in the Vancouver marketplace.