Hello and welcome to my new web page! I will be writing weekly blogs concerning Vancouver’s ever increasing real estate market. In this week’s blog let’s start by talking a little bit about what’s going on at this moment. Canada’s housing market, and especially, the Metro Vancouver market, weathered a tumultuous storm well during 2009. Office vacancy rates didn’t show much impact at all in the first part of 2009, which gave us a good idea of how strong our market is, and the Canadian market was active enough to pick up that billion dollar shortfall. But, because activity south of the border does reflect in the Canadian markets, that U.S. commercial bank recovery is essential for markets to return to normal. The retail market has been amazingly resilient, not like in the States, where retail is a pariah, and Canadian multi-residential sales is a result of immigrants moving to Canada. I predict a regular year in the real estate market, across the board, with the last half perhaps, better than the first half of 2010. I’m not euphoric… I am cautiously optimistic; I think it will be a normal to good year everywhere. Mortgage interest lending rates still at historic lows, allowing money lenders and investors to remain stable in troubled times, the market was much more solid than many expected. The strength of the Canadian banking system was a huge help, and likely means more lending opportunities with fewer restrictions in 2010, while interest rates are expected to rise by some, but not much. The industry has certainly stuck to its principles and rode out the storm without any government bailouts. It’s a much changed market from what we saw a few months ago, Vancouver is the only place on the planet where there has been a shift from a buyer’s to a seller’s market. With CMHC and the B.C. Real Estate Association calling for real estate prices to increase four to eight percent this year, however, I feel those numbers could be double somewhere around ten percent to fifteen percent if not more! If you remember back in 1986 here in Vancouver we had the world on our door step with Vancouver Expo 86’…very soon after it was a smash success, Concord Development scooped all of that prime waterfront property for a bargain basement price of $125,000,000 and developed to what is now False Creek North, Yaletown, Crosstown and prices reaching upwards of $800 dollars per square foot to a $1000! With the Olympics just days away, it is the biggest and best marketing campaign ever for B.C. I encourage investors and first-timers to act positively, to get involved and take risks, to which I believe you will be very much rewarded! Peace all, until next week!