Vancouver’s most expensive condominium unit hit the market this week with an $18.2-million price tag. The penthouse apartment at 1000 Beach Ave was sold for less than $3 million just three years ago. To be fair, Vancouver businessman Randy Bishop has spent several million dollars completing the property that was an empty shell when he bought it in 2004 for an estimated $7-million.

Personally, I wonder if Vancouver is ready for such a pricey piece of property. Currently, there are about 200 condo units for sale over $1M, but this is reaching new heights in dollar value.

That being said, this price equates to $2000/sq ft. Interestingly, this is a price point which we’ve seen before in this city.  The difference is that we just haven’t seen a unit of this size (7,600 sq ft) come to market recently.  

 Of course, as was recently reported, Vancouver is now the 4th most expensive downtown core in the world (well ahead of such cities as Hong Kong, Tokyo and New York). Being an international market, this property will likely be marketed most heavily outside of the city. In fact, there is reportedly already significant interest from buyers.

Situated downtown at the northeast corner of the Burrard Bridge, right on the Seawall, the property has never been lived in - former owners reportedly include Axl Rose, front man for rock group Guns N’ Roses, and the Russian Rocket himself, Canucks star Pavel Bure.

The 26th-floor, two-level luxury unit includes a private elevator, an additional guest/nanny suite on a separate floor, a private four-car garage and two extra parking stalls, a boat slip at a marina, and floor-to-ceiling windows that offer 360-degree city views. 

Other features in the 7,600 square feet unit include solid marble stairs, walnut walls, hand-carved doors, and a kitchen with Miele-brand appliances. 

The building is 14 years old, but the condo unit is virtually brand new as a two-year renovation finished just last week. Building residents voted to allow the owner to increase the living space of the unit knowing that it would draw international attention to their building.

They were right.

Sources: The Globe and Mail, The Vancouver Sun

We’ve seen a dramatic rise in the lending rates on mortgages over the past month. In that time, there has been almost a full-percentage point gain. We haven’t seen that type of movement for a very long time.

 How is this affecting real estate in Vancouver? So far, there hasn’t been much of an affect that I’ve noticed on the market. Activity is as rabid as ever. However, given that last month saw the average house price in the city reach a new high, as well as a traditional summer slowdown coming, I wouldn’t be surprised to see the new mortgage rates temper price gains a little bit.

Predicting the future in the Vancouver real estate market is a very tough job, though. Many have been predicting an adjustment for years now and they continue to be proved wrong.

These rises in mortgage rates bring home an important point. It’s critical to get your mortgage pre-approved when you begin the homebuying process. Have the lender secure your interest rate (this can often be done for 90 - 120 day periods) while you look for your new home. If rates rise before you purchase your home, you’ll get the benefit of the lower interest rate you secured weeks or months earlier. If they drop, you can pick up the new rate.

If you need help finding the right lender, bank or mortgage broker I would be happy to help. I have numerous contacts that will be able to help you find the right mortgage at the right price.  

For those of us that are interested in real estate in this city, there’s a new website that’s worth checking out. The city recently adopted a new strategic plan for development in the city which they have termed EcoDensity.

In a nutshell, EcoDensity is an attempt by the city to reduce our ecological footprint. They are attempting to work out how to allow the city to continue to grow sustainably, simultaneously maintaining our “livability” and increasing affordable housing.

 These are all goals that most residents of the city can agree upon, but the challenge is a large one. At this point, the plan is in it’s early stages. There are opportunities for public input as the process is currently in the consultation stage. If you are interested in shaping this city’s future, this might be a great opportunity.

The website can be found here:

http://www.vancouver-ecodensity.ca

The CMHC recently released their semi-annual Housing Market Outlook for Vancouver. The forecast for the rest of this year and into 2008 remains bullish. Reasons for this continued strength include the continued strength of the local economy, predicted historically low mortgage interest rates, tight rental markets and continued in-migration.

 Specifically, strong employment growth and steady in-migration will “keep MLS sales up near the record level achieved in 2005″. Higher mortgage carrying costs, however, will have the effect of dampening demand slightly through 2007 and 2008.

They foresee price increases continuing, but not at the steep rates we’ve recently seen (about 16% for 2006). Significantly more supply than last year will result in more modest price growth. CMHC is predicting increases of 5%-8% for resale homes in the GVRD.

The big news for May is that the average benchmark price for a single-family detached home broke all previous records. For the first time ever, we saw the price above $700,000. Apartment properties rose 11.5% from one year ago to an average benchmark price of $358,428.

The market isn’t quite as hot as it has been, but it’s certainly not cooling. We are seeing strong activity continuing as evidenced by the fact that the average days a property spent on market dropped once again (for the fourth consecutive month) to 37 days.

What I take away from last months statistics is that despite rising prices, appropriately priced homes are still finding buyers.

Please feel free to take a look at the latest statistics for Vancouver East here:

http://vanrlp.powweb.com/statistics/download/Vancouver%20East%20Residential%20Stats%20-%20MAY%202007.pdf

Or, you can view the May 2007 stats for Vancouver West here:

http://vanrlp.powweb.com/statistics/download/Vancouver%20West%20Residential%20Stats%20-%20MAY%202007.pdf