INTERESTING ARTICLES AND NEWS ABOUT EAST VANCOUVER AND IT’S REAL ESTATE MARKET
Take a look at a few of the articles making up this real estate digest and news making the round in East Van – both about Real Estate and the neighbourhoods:
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Leaky Condo Crisis Rears it’s Ugly Head Again (The Vancouver Sun)
A long piece about Vancouver condo buildings and the depreciation reports they must complete that detail the status of all the buildings components: roof exterior, windows, boilers, etc. These reports are shedding new light on how many buildings in the city need exterior (read: rainscreen) work done to prevent “leaky” condos. A takeaway from this article should be the importance of reading strata documentations, engineering reports and doing your due diligence when it comes to your potential new condo. Real Estate Agents should be guiding you through this process and offering professional, knowledgeable advice to ensure you’re investment in a building is worth it.
See our blog for more on Depreciation Reports and Rainscreens.
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BC’s Property Transfer Tax Could be Made Less Harmful (The Vancouver Sun)
Property Transfer Tax is another cost BC Homebuyers have to pay on the price of their property. It’s calculated as 1% on the first #200,000 plus 2% on the remainder of the property’s sale price. This quickly adds up for Homebuyer’s who are already trying to save as much as possible towards a down payment for their new home. Many people are opposed to this tax – including the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver – and there have been campaigns focused on abolishing/lowering the tax for years. The Provincial Government makes around $750 million a year thanks to this tax, and aren’t ready to let that money go. This article offers some solutions.
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HUB Cycling wants Powell St Separated Bike Lane (The Georgia Straight)
The city has added lots of bike lanes in the last few years, and continues to do so (see Point Grey Bike Lane). Now that they’ve started, cycle enthusiasts won’t let them stop. One of the biggest hindrances of bike lanes is the lack of connective routes between established bike lanes, and HUB Cycling is aiming to fix the gap in Vancouver’s North East. HUB Cycling are campaigning for a separated bike lane to start at the Vancouver Convention Centre (the bike path that takes you around Stanley Park) going all the way to Victoria St (to connect with the Wall St bike path). This would be a fantastic way for The East Village and Hastings residents to get from their homes to downtown, without the risk of biking on the street. Will this ever happen? We’ll have to wait and see.
See my post about The East Village / Vancouver Heights.
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New East Vancouver Development: Strathcona Village
Not much information has been released, but this new Development should really add some life to this area of town. We’ll stay on top of the news.