5833 replies to this topic

[Citified.ca]

The West Shore condominium market saw significant demand throughout 2021, and an 80-suite project that began selling in early fall has sold-out.

 

Langford's 80-suite Reunion condominium offering becomes fastest selling development of 2021

https://victoria.cit...opment-of-2021/

[Banksy]

The Lisa Helps effect and her army of 30 year old disgruntled malcontents are the best thing to happen to Victoria's suburbs. Maybe next year I will list my condo and move to the suburbs too. I tell myself just one more break in Banksy, you've got one more break in left in ya before you pack it in and move west.

[Daveyboy]

The Lisa Helps effect and her army of 30 year old disgruntled malcontents are the best thing to happen to Victoria's suburbs. Maybe next year I will list my condo and move to the suburbs too. I tell myself just one more break in Banksy, you've got one more break in left in ya before you pack it in and move west.

I want to personally thank Lisa and her little helpers for encouraging me to move out of the city of Victoria.  Finding peace and quiet for the past 6 months has made my stress level drop, my personal security improve dramatically and the sounds of drug-addled people screaming at all hours of the night disappear completely.  And to top it off, I no longer need to deal with the ethical dilemma of my property taxes supporting the idiocy of COV decision making.  Best move ever!

[Mike K.]

Well, we are starting to see hints of who will be running in municipal elections next year in Saanich and Langford. And it looks like the Victoria way of doing businesses is seeking export opportunities.

[A Girl is No one]

The Lisa Helps effect and her army of 30 year old disgruntled malcontents are the best thing to happen to Victoria's suburbs. Maybe next year I will list my condo and move to the suburbs too. I tell myself just one more break in Banksy, you've got one more break in left in ya before you pack it in and move west.

By then you might not be able to afford it… suburban values are going up while Victoria values are flat and could go down.

[A Girl is No one]

Well, we are starting to see hints of who will be running in municipal elections next year in Saanich and Langford. And it looks like the Victoria way of doing businesses is seeking export opportunities.

It’s a cancer that is metastasizing…

[Barrrister]

West Coast Crazy

[Mike K.]

By then you might not be able to afford it… suburban values are going up while Victoria values are flat and could go down.

It’s a complicated discussion, for sure. Did anyone think houses in Sooke would be selling for CoV prices? The cheapest SFD on the market right now is $1 million. But you’ll likely have to budget $1.1 to $1.3 for a typical SFD.

[Barrrister]

I am guessing more like 1.6 million this spring for an average SFH.

[Tom Braybrook]

i'm a realtor, he's a realtor, she's a realtor, we're all realtors, ... you can be a realtor too!...be a realtor, think, be a realtor  (  sung to the dr.pepper tune ;-)   )

 

https://www.theglobe...4Mmj_tpVJ18gYUs

[Mike K.]

Average gross income of a realtor in Greater Victoria is $55k per year. And that’s before your realtor expenses, like fees, gas, etc.

It’s a job people think is a quick way to earning a lot of money but it’s very tough to make money at consistently. Eventually the newcomers run out of family and friends to sell or buy with, and the industry is full of people in that predicament.

[Victoria Watcher]

Average gross income of a realtor in Greater Victoria is $55k per year. And that’s before your realtor expenses, like fees, gas, etc.

It’s a job people think is a quick way to earning a lot of money but it’s very tough to make money at consistently. Eventually the newcomers run out of family and friends to sell or buy with, and the industry is full of people in that predicament.

 

Per hour of productive work it's very lucrative.  

 

It's just that most Realtors work very short hours per week.  Most just wait for listings.  Most Realtors have no listings and nobody is going to convince me they spend 40 hours a week looking for some.

 

It's the usual 90/10 or 80/20 Pareto distribution.

 

The average salary for the top 10 or 15% of Realtors is well over $200,000.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 01 January 2022 - 10:45 AM.

[Citified.ca]

Victoria real-estate saw $9 billion change hands in 2021 amid modern era's fastest rising market

https://victoria.cit...-rising-market/

[Mike K.]

Generation Squeeze wants to tax homeowners who live in homes valued at $1 million or more.

They believe that by taxing homeowners, that will make housing more equitable and the revenue can go towards building affordable housing.

But as quick as we are to tax hard working average people, we don’t like to talk about the government inputs that cause housing prices to rise, like the Step Code, delays in issuing permitting, per-unit fees or DCCs, amenity contributions and, of course, the urban containment boundaries we’ve created that are now fully maxed out with nowhere for developable land values to go but up. And fast.

Zoning is not going to change the affordability crisis, only more land available to development will. Yes, I’m looking at you, the 70km stretch between Sooke and Port Renfrew.

We can dance to the zoning song all day long, but that’s not going to stop prices from rising. We’re also not going to tax ourselves into affordability.

[Nparker]

...We’re also not going to tax ourselves into affordability.

But you know the current governments - both here and in Ottawa - will try and do this. It's at the heart of their philosophies.

[Mike K.]

Society is operated on the premise of homeownership as a laudable goal and an aspiration, so crucifying homeowners once they buy a home is counter productive and ultimately destructive. Governments know this.

What we’re likely to see is what we saw post-war in Canada, those being incentives for people to move into rural communities.

And it’s already happening without those incentives. ‘Homesteading’ and a return to a slower pace of life is what drove Vancouver Island real-estate prices through the roof last year. 30-50 year olds are giving up on the urban experiment in droves, and seeking places where they don’t have to play some faux role or part to fit into a society that has changed from a meritocracy to some bizarro world vigilante-driven class struggle. Everything is a crisis, everything is a problem. Who wants to live with that hanging over you all day, everyday?

Tom Green has started a new YouTube series (self filmed, independent) of his new life on a homestead back in Canada. He sold his LA home and now lives on 100 acres in the wilds of (I think) Ontario. This is a look into the future, folks. And he’s not comedian Tom Green, he’s serious, getting back to his roots Tom Green who left behind the urban race to pursue a healthier, slower life.

[Nparker]

Society is operated on the premise of homeownership as a laudable goal and an aspiration, so crucifying homeowners once they buy a home is counter productive and ultimately destructive. Governments know this.

Governments are driven by what is most likely to get them elected and re-elected. That is all.

[qv]

Governments are driven by what is most likely to get them elected and re-elected. That is all.

Yes, this is true. It's why a punitive tax on homeowners won't happen any time soon.

[qv]

Society is operated on the premise of homeownership as a laudable goal and an aspiration, so crucifying homeowners once they buy a home is counter productive and ultimately destructive. Governments know this.

What we’re likely to see is what we saw post-war in Canada, those being incentives for people to move into rural communities.

And it’s already happening without those incentives. ‘Homesteading’ and a return to a slower pace of life is what drove Vancouver Island real-estate prices through the roof last year. 30-50 year olds are giving up on the urban experiment in droves, and seeking places where they don’t have to play some faux role or part to fit into a society that has changed from a meritocracy to some bizarro world vigilante-driven class struggle. Everything is a crisis, everything is a problem. Who wants to live with that hanging over you all day, everyday?

Tom Green has started a new YouTube series (self filmed, independent) of his new life on a homestead back in Canada. He sold his LA home and now lives on 100 acres in the wilds of (I think) Ontario. This is a look into the future, folks. And he’s not comedian Tom Green, he’s serious, getting back to his roots Tom Green who left behind the urban race to pursue a healthier, slower life.

Mike, I disagree with you on this. I think people were motivated by a drive for security during a life-changing event, and that's what drove the move away from cities. Also, what's the point of being in a city if all your favorite things to do are closed because of a pandemic, and you can work from home?

I expect that people will keep moving to cities as Covid recedes, whenever that is. In spite of romantic ideas about rural life, many people will continue to be drawn to places that have economic opportunities, diverse entertainment amenities, and activities for their kids. More than anything, young people want to be around other young people.

I'm sure many will keep looking for the big family home in the exurbs, but I don't see the draw on of cities disappearing.

[Mike K.]

The drive for security is absolutely at the crux of this transition: housing security; physical security; COVID security; food security; security of self-reliance.

It’s all related. Are the cities ‘done?’ No, of course not. But the way Victoria was mismanaged over the last four years has changed people, and the spillover into rural and semi-rural communities and suburbs that have less government oversight and daily intervention is very real and happening as we speak.