Vancouver by Hibino

The development of Vancouver’s real estate market has recently incited debates about the possible consequences of the current disparity between resale prices and fundamentals such as rents or incomes. According to the latest surveys, active listings are near an all-time high while sales are at decade lows, which makes the City of Vancouver one of the most threatened among all Canadian cities as far as the risk of significant price declines is concerned. What is even more concerning is the fact that the interconnection between Vancouver and other regional markets might finally trigger corresponding crashes everywhere.

Another indicator that might at least ease the overall situation is an increase in the annual rate of housing starts across the country. The number of new units rose from 214,800 in March to 244,900 in April. These positive trends have been reflected in the report published by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, according to which “the city of Vancouver continues to record strong new home construction activity with condominium apartments accounting for most of the housing starts.” Finally, an increase in building permits suggests corporate and consumer optimism, but a completely different trend can be observed in Vancouver. The city’s value of building permits has decreased in recent months from $489.1 million to $482.1 (-1.4 per cent).

It’s clear that Vancouver’s overheated housing market remains one of the most risky in Canada and it will be interesting to observe its development in the months to come as well as the consequences it will have for the Canadian real estate market as a whole.

Real Estate Market in Vancouver Report

Post from: Vancouver REALTOR® Jay Banks

Source: RateSuperMarket.ca

There has been some interesting news for the Vancouver real estate market in April. The mortgage levels are maintained low, which should attract more potential home buyers to buy new property right now, even in the overpriced environment of Vancouver real estate.

Low interest rates both for fixed and variable mortgages did not help to maintain the high number of sales in the Great Vancouver, which led to a 13.2 per cent decrease of sales in comparison with April 2011. Real Estate Bord of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) president Eugen Klein assures citizens that "although April sales were below what’s typical for the month, we continue to see, with a sales-to-active listing ratio of nearly 17 per cent, a balanced relationship between buyer demand and seller supply in our marketplace.” (source here)

Given the low interest rates of the mortgages, it is more than obvious that they are the reason for maintaining the level of overpriced housing. The government of Canada is still waiting and refuses to further reduce the legal limit of a mortgage from 30 to 25 years. The central government also announced that it is going to keep the interests rates low. There is some speculation on the Internet about the possibility of hiking the mortgage rates in the summer, but given the reports from mortgage specialists, it is improbable that we can expect some changes in the next two months both for fixed and variable rates.

Even some bloggers and economists are panicking about the possible hike. The last RBC survey reports an increase in the confidence of Canadians. “Half of mortgage holders (55 per cent) do not think interest rate increases will cause them financial difficulty (up from 49 per cent a year ago).”

Next month will show if the decrease in Vancouver sales was just a statistical deviation or a symptom of disease. For now, Canadians should stay calm and keep confidence in their government and banks that mortgage rates will stay low as promised.

Source: RateSuperMarket.ca and RateHub.ca

Mortgage Rates in British Columbia

Post from: Vancouver REALTOR® Jay Banks

Eugen Klein, REBGV president, commented on April market’s situation: “Although April sales were below what’s typical for the month, we continue to see, with a sales-to-active listing ratio of nearly 17 per cent, a balanced relationship between buyer demand and seller supply in our marketplace.”

The MLS® HPI benchmark price for all residential properties in the Greater Vancouver Area experienced a minor growth of 3.7 per cent over the last year, rising to $683,800 since April 2011, and a 2.8 per cent increase since February 2012. The benchmark price for all residential properties in the Lower Mainland is $612,000 — 2.6 per cent more than three months ago.

Residential property sales reached 2,799 on the Multiple Listing Service®, falling by 2.6 per cent compared to March’s 2,874. This represents a 13.2 per cent decline compared to April 2011 sales, which reached 3,225 and 8.4 per cent fall from the 3,137 home sales in April 2010. With 16,538, the total number of residential property listings on the MLS® raised by 8.5 per cent compared to March 2012 and increased 16 per cent from this time last year — leaving the situation almost identical to the last month.

• Detached property sales on the MLS® (1,126 units) experienced a 19.7 per cent drop compared to April 2011 (1,402 units) and a 17.8 per cent decline compared to April 2010 (1,370 units). The benchmark price increased 6.3 per cent from April 2011 to $1,064,800 .

• Apartment property sales (1,190) declined 0.9 per cent compared to April 2011 (1,201) and 22 per cent compared to April 2010 (1,526), while the benchmark price increased by 1.1 per cent from April 2011 to $375,900 .

• Town home property sales (483 units) experienced a 22.3 per cent decline compared to April 2011 (622 units) and a 21.6 per cent decrease compared to April 2010 (616 units). The benchmark price rose by 1.7 per cent since April 2011 to $487,300.

New listings for detached, attached, and apartment properties amounted to 6,056 — reaching a 3.6 per cent increase in growth compared to March, when new listings reached 5,843. This represents the same 3.6 per cent increase compared to April 2011, when 5,847 homes were added to the MLS® in Greater Vancouver.

Greater Vancouver Real Estate Market Results: April

Post from: Vancouver REALTOR® Jay Banks

Since 1997, the question of sustainability has taken a serious place in global politics. The plan to reduce a level of greenhouse emissions to approximately 5 per cent lower than 1990 levels by 2010, brought by the 1997 Kyoto protocol hasn’t been fulfilled by most of the countries that signed the protocol. Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions have increased by more than 20 per cent since 1990. Scientists now warn us that 1990 greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced by 20 to 25 per cent by 2020 if we are to avoid the dangerous effects of climate change. It is the overconsumption of non-renewable resources that has allowed pollution levels to increase to intolerable numbers.

Sustainable architecture is not about mere materials used; it also includes the very process of construction and design. However, material used has always been the crucial element of sustainable housing. According to the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC)

First Nations people were perhaps the last inhabitants of North America to have truly understood the meaning of sustainability and to have lived accordingly. The present day examples of truly sustainable architecture are rare, if not non-existent.

Green Building Rating Systems

RAIC is actively trying to build a comprehensible rating system for green housing. They attempt to raise the awareness of people about sustainable architecture and standards of building design and construction.

One of these systems, called LEED® Canada, covers six key areas and gives points to building that reached a appropriate level in any of them. The LEED® system has been adopted also in the United States. According to RAIC, this rating system has raised public awareness, interest, and knowledge about the importance of building more environmentally sustainable facilities. These are six points included in LEED®:

- Sustainable Site Planning
- Safeguarding Water and Water Efficiency
- Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
- Conservation of Materials and Resources
- Indoor Environmental Quality
- Innovation and Design Process

Canada Green Building Council

Another initiative by Cascadia Green Building Council called Living Building Challenge tries to engage builders, architects, and designers in reaching the highest standards of LEED® rating system and beyond. The Living Building Challenge targets problems of construction sites, water supplies, energy efficiency, and use of local renewable resources and systems. A few of buildings in Canada now consume less than the equivalent of 100kWh/m2/year (360MJ/m2/year), a level of energy consumption that could soon be met cost effectively by on-site or neighbourhood renewable energy systems. The intent of the Living Building Challenge is to encourage and stimulate sustainable architecture in the future.

RAIC tries to implement and encourage various systems for the sustainable architecture evaluation and implementation. According to the Institute,

Architects should encourage all levels of government, building owners, and clients to achieve a high level of energy performance for the design and construction of new and renovated buildings. The application of building rating and point systems as well as involving “Accredited Professionals” in the design and commissioning process of a building must not be a replacement for applying careful thought, logical decision-making, and skill to the design development and detailing of an energy efficient building.

So far, leadership in sustainable design has generally been evident in the public sector. According to SABMag, universities, provincial power utilities, and government institutions have been among the best performers in the field of green and sustainable architecture. However, we are now beginning to see private sector companies recognizing the benefits of green design. The RBC Centre in Toronto was a SAB Award winner in 2011, and the trend seems set to continue.

Radically Sustainable Buildings

Earthship

When talking about sustainable and green housing, we have to mention the Earthship project. It is clear that no part of sustainable living has been ignored in this ingenious building. The project is really ingenious. The question is whether they really are able to be built in any part of the world, in any climate, and still provide electricity, potable water, contained sewage treatment, and sustainable food production. I really had some serious doubts about the ability of Earthship architects to overcome hostile weather conditions of, let’s say, Northern Canada. According to their own words, Earthships all around the world include their own utilities made onsite. One Earthship building uses little to no fossil fuels to provide modern amenities. They claim to be simply adapting human needs to the already existing activities of the planet. I’ve chosen this project as the model because although it may sound boastful sometimes, in the end, it’s one of the most complex and thoroughly designed radically sustainable building systems you can find today.

I have to admit that when you look at the projects that have been already successfully built in various parts of the world, the Earthship project seems quite astounding. However, some parts of their philosophy might be a bit off-putting, as well as the name Earthship, which sounds like something of science fiction. Enough about theories; let’s look at the schematics of Earthship homes, which are truly astonishing in their complexity, sustainability, and most importantly, simplicity. It’s the simple and natural character of all the buildings that seals the deal. Even your 6-year-old would come to same principles if you asked him simple some straightforward questions.

Systems

It is crucial to get your water, electricity, temperature, light, and many other things from somewhere. It is even harder when you want to do all this in the “green” way. (The other question is what green architecture really means in the true sense of the word, but let’s focus a bit less on the philosophy and a bit more on facts.) The systems necessary to implement in one of the Earthship houses take up to 25 per cent of the total process of house construction, providing little or no utility bills every month. Initially, it might scare you off because we are really not accustomed to this type of power and water solution, but the final product is quite impressive. It might have a few glitches though, but which house doesn’t?

• Water

Rainwater harvesting system
by Wikimedia Commons

In Earthship houses, water is caught from roof catchment systems and channeled via silt catches into cisterns. Cisterns then use gravity to feed a DC pump and filter panels. A DC pump and filter panel pushes water into a pressure tank, and the result is conventional household water pressure in your taps. (These are part of system referred to as the Water Organizing Module – WOM) The toilet is separated from the drainage system of all other household plumbing fixtures. Water is used in a conventional way, such as bathing or washing dishes. After it is used, this water is then drained into linear biologically developed interior grey water treatment and containment systems.

Water is heated with the sun and natural gas. The sun heats the water and the natural gas water heater only turns on if the water is not hot enough. This is called “gas-on-demand” water heating.

• Electricity:

The house gets all its electricity from the sun and the wind. Photovoltaic panels convert the sun’s energy into DC current electricity and is stored in golf-cart-type batteries. An Earthship Power Organizing Module (POM) draws the electricity from the batteries, inverts some of it for AC electricity, and transfers it to the home, where it’s used for daily use of washing machines, computers, various kitchen appliances, printers, vacuum cleaners — simply anything you need can be used normally. No electricity is required for heating and cooling! The POM can accept electricity from a gasoline generator or be tied in with the city energy grid, so if you want to be extra careful not to run out of energy, you can make arrangements. Personally, I think that this is quite a wise thing to do because having only photovoltaic panels and a wind turbine doesn’t always mean energy 24/7, especially in Canada.

• House’s heating/cooling:

Naturally, different climates around the world require different designs for the home to interact with these two sources of temperature. However, I remain skeptical of the effectiveness of the system, but I have to admit the houses built in Canada and their owners, especially Earthship houses in BC, are standing proof that something like radically sustainable architecture really exists.

The great advantage of Earthship homes is that they are thermal mass homes first, passive solar homes second. Therefore the layout and design of such houses can be completely customized to look like any conventional home and still be sustainable.

The basic idea behind the Earthship model of sustainable living without any need for heaters or any thermo-regulatory devices is the right usage of the Sun and the Earth. There is a thick layer of tires filled with soil around the house, basically creating the walls, merging with the surrounding soil, creating a house that’s practically incorporated into a hill of some sort. What the sun does is heat up the earth that surrounds the walls of the house, which are practically made of the earth as well. When there is a difference between temperature inside the house and the soil itself, it will start radiating heat back inside the house, making it warmer. If there is too much heat in the house, you simply open the valves in the houses walls, and air will take care of the heat for you. The system is a bit more complicated, but this is it in a nutshell.

Going Commercial

South and west view of Earthship
passive solar home by Wikimedia
Commons

The Earthship project is amazing. You could say that it represents sustainability at its top. Currently there is scarcely a project that could be compared to the Earthship and this has reflected on the commercial part of it heavily. The next Earthship Biotecture Seminar that’s going to take place in Toronto, September 21-23 already costs $400 per person. The Earthship Biotecture Academy costs $1600 for March/April and June/July 2012 sessions $2400 for September/October 2012 session, and it’s already full. It looks like that there’s quite a demand for the Earthship know-how in the international community, and Canadian society is no exception.

Green Buildings Program in Vancouver

The City of Vancouver has a mandate to improve the environmental performance of city’s buildings, which account for 55 per cent of Vancouver’s greenhouse gas emissions. Constructing and operating buildings consumes a great deal of natural resources and produces a large volume of waste. The City of Vancouver’s green building program tries to promote more sustainable methods of home construction and maintenance. The goal is to use fewer resources and design houses with ongoing efficiency in mind. Owners and contractors are encouraged to think ahead to create buildings that suit their intended use, the local climate, and the natural environment.

According to theGreen Buildings and Sustainability Program:

The City of Vancouver is moving towards a goal of carbon neutral buildings by 2020. The green building program aims to not only educate about green building techniques but to align regulations and bylaws to make it easier to design and construct green buildings.

The Greenest City 2020 Project

The initiative is the part of wider Vancouver – the Greenest City 2020 project. The Greenest City 2020 Action Plan (GCAP) builds on the 2009 work of Mayor Gregor Robertson’s Greenest City Action Team. A group of local experts researched best practices from leading green cities around the world and established the goals and targets that would make Vancouver the world’s Greenest City. This work was published in Vancouver 2020: A Bright Green Future. Recognizing the importance of working toward the goals and targets right away, the team also recommended more than 75 quick-start actions that City of Vancouver staff could begin to act on immediately. The team then tasked City staff to come up with a more robust plan to outline what would be needed to achieve the goals and targets. The result is the Greenest City 2020 Action Plan. More than 9,500 people, most of whom live in Vancouver, actively added their ideas, insights, and feedback to help determine the best path to achieve this plan.

City Council has adopted two in my opinion quite ambitious targets to adopt GCAP’s goals into housing as well. City staff took on this challenge and have begun work on charting a path to meet these goals:

1) to reduce community GHG emissions to 33 per cent below current levels by 2020
2) to have all new construction in Vancouver be greenhouse-gas-neutral by 2030

City Council also runs various programs supporting families, individuals, and companies that want to embark on green housing. They support green house energy updates with home energy loan program. Vancouver is on the brink of becoming one of the greenest-thinking cities in the world, so don’t miss your chance and jump on the bandwagon too.

Sustainable Architecture & Green Buildings in Vancouver

Post from: Vancouver REALTOR® Jay Banks

House in Vancouver by Amy
Thibodeau

What is the relationship between household debt and the depth of economic downturns?

If household debts increase considerably before the recession kicks in, the effect of such a downturn would be far more serious. Real GDP and household consumption would plummet, unemployment would increase considerably, and the time of the recovery would be prolonged. According to IMF’s research, household consumption falls by more than four times the amount that can be explained by the fall in house prices in high-debt economies. The relationship between household debt and the contraction in consumption also holds for economies that did not experience a banking crisis around the time of the housing bust.

Why might gross household debt be a problem?

It’s already been mentioned that IMF’s findings suggest that downturns are more severe when they are preceded by larger increases in household debt. Household debt is dangerous mainly because it amplifies the effect of macroeconomic shocks and weakens recoveries significantly. The pattern is as follows:

De-leveraging could stem from a realization that house prices were overvalued, a tightening in credit standards, a sharp revision in income expectations, or an increase in economic uncertainty. Here, a sufficiently large fall in the interest rate could induce creditor households to spend more, thus offsetting the decline in spending by the debtors.

What can governments do to support growth when household debt becomes a problem?

Mantioba House by Wendy Cutler

The main idea behind the governmental policies is that:

Targeted household debt restructuring policies can deliver significant benefits. Such policies can, at a relatively low fiscal cost, substantially mitigate the negative impact of household de-leveraging on economic activity… reduce the number of household defaults and foreclosures, and alleviate debt repayment burdens. In so doing, these programs help prevent self-reinforcing cycles of declining house prices and lower aggregate demand.

How’s Canada Holding Up?

Canada has also introduced more regulations in the mortgage market. There is the dispute of whether these changes are right, but there’s definitely ground for some change. The debt-to-income ratio among Canadian households fell in the fourth quarter of last year to 152.9 per cent from 154.2 per cent. According to a report released by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), only 42 per cent of homeowners in Canada are mortgage-free. According to a report by CIBC World Markets Inc., the surge in Canadian borrowing over the last five years has been driven by the most indebted households. Households heavily dependent on borrowing now hold 73 per cent of all household debt in Canada. Despite several warnings in the media, Canadians have no reason to be discouraged yet. Mortgage rates are still at historic low levels.

How Dangerous is High Household Debt for the Economy?

Post from: Vancouver REALTOR® Jay Banks

Home sales in March stayed below the ten year average in Greater Vancouver while home listings reached higher numbers than expected. March 2012 sales were the second lowest total for the month in the Greater Vancouver region since 2002. These stayed 16.8 per cent below the ten year sales average for the month.

Eugen Klein, REBGV president, commented on the situation: “Home sellers have been more active than buyers the first few months of the year, but we continue to see a relative balance in the total supply of homes for sale and current demand in the marketplace. The total number of properties for sale in Greater Vancouver has increased each month since December, which means there’s more selection to choose from as we enter what’s traditionally the busiest season of the year in our market.”

Last month’s new listing total was 4.5 per cent above the ten year average for listings in Greater Vancouver for March. New listings for detached, attached, and apartment properties amounted to 5,843 — reaching a 5.2 per cent increase in growth compared to February, when new listings reached 5,552. This represents a 14 per cent decline compared to March 2011, when 6,797 homes were added to the MLS® in Greater Vancouver.

• Detached property sales on the MLS® (1,183 units) experienced a 34.1 per cent decrease compared to March 2011 ( 1,795 units) and a 11.5 per cent decline compared to March 2010 (1,336 units). The benchmark price increased 9.2 per cent from March 2011 to $1,056,400.

• Apartment property sales (1,191) declined 26.6 per cent compared to March 2011 (1,622) and 4.9 per cent compared to March 2010 (1,252) the benchmark price increased by 2.2 per cent from March 2011 to $375,100 .

• Town home property sales (500 units) experienced a 24.6 per cent decline compared to March 2011 (663 units) and a 8.9 per cent decrease compared to March 2010 (549 units). The benchmark price was raised by 0.9 per cent since March 2011 to $480,900 .

The MLS® HPI benchmark price for all residential properties in the Greater Vancouver Area has experienced a hardly noticeable growth of 5.3 per cent over the last year, climbing up to $679,000 since March 2011, and a miniature 1.1 per cent increase compared to February 2012. The benchmark price for all residential properties in the Lower Mainland is $ 607,700 — 4.8 per cent more than in March 2011.

Residential property sales reached 2,874 on the Multiple Listing Service®, increasing by 12.9 per cent compared to February’s 2,545. This represents a 29.6 per cent decline compared to March 2011 sales, which reached 4,080 and 8.4 per cent fall from the 3,137 home sales in March 2010. With 15,236, the total number of residential property listings on the MLS® increased by 8.4 per cent, compared to February 2012 and increased 16 per cent from this time last year.

Greater Vancouver Real Estate Market Results: March

Post from: Vancouver REALTOR® Jay Banks

BMO first offered 2.99 per cent five-year fixed closed mortgage in January this year. In March, it triggered another mortgage battle, repeating its 2.99 per cent offer, that was ended by the end of March. RBC and TD Bank have increased their four-year mortgage rates from 2.99 per cent to 3.49 per cent, effective March 29th. They also raised the rates on a five-year variable mortgage rate to 20 basis points above prime.

Warning Finger of Specialists

Specialists warn that the times of extremely low interest rates are over. The rates reached their bottom and now there is only one path to go: up. “Everybody is looking at the bottom here and thinking, ‘When are rates going to go up?’” says Kelvin Mangaroo, president of RateSupermarket.ca.

“If you had told me when we were lending money at 21 per cent, that we would one day be down to 2.99 per cent, I’d have been laughing,” said Laura Parson, BMO area manager of mortgage specialists for the district of Calgary, Manitoba, and Northwest Ontario. In next months, 2.99 per cent rate will become just a ridiculous story of mortgage history.

In fact, this isn’t the first time we’ve heard such warnings. Chief economist with TD, Craig Alexander, admitted: “Unfortunately, we have been saying for years ‘that’s it, rates can’t go any lower than they are today’ and then they are 12 months later.” This time, his predictions will come true. “Short of the Canadian economy going into a recession and causing the Bank of Canada to cut rates back to their all-time low, there really isn’t an environment that would lead to significantly lower mortgage rates,” Alexander said.

Take or Do Not Take?

So the question is: Did you take your chance and get an extremely low-rated loan? If so, are you prepared for interest rates to go up?

A survey by BMO says 20 per cent of Canadian households wouldn’t handle their living costs if the rates rose by two percentage points — one fifth of Canada’s households! “Truthfully, I think two per cent is pretty reasonable to expect,” said Laura Parson.

If your answer to the question in the title is negative, don’t hesitate too long. If you have been considering a mortgage, remember that rates are still quite low — lower than they will be in the following months as forecasters agree they will be rising. However, think carefully. Can you afford your home even when interest rates increase? Canada’s high debt-to-income ratio reached 151 per cent and isn’t likely to decrease; 58 per cent of Canada’s households are indebted and most of them are heavily dependent on borrowing (they hold 73 per cent of all household debt in Canada). Don’t increase these numbers when you aren’t sure you can handle your debt.

Canada’s Low Interest Rates: Did You Take Your Chance?

Post from: Vancouver REALTOR® Jay Banks

Moving permanently is one of the biggest decisions in one’s life, and it should be thought through properly. This article will attempt to make this kind of decision as painless as possible. There are hundreds of possibilities you can decide from, from a condo in the centre of Vancouver to a hut in the woods of the interior. Let’s concentrate on the most common choice, a house for a family. Obviously, the first thought that pops into your mind is whether to buy an old house and renovate it or build a brand new one.

(Re)construction

Finding the perfect combination of house and location can often be quite challenging. Perhaps you have found a vacant property with a lovely view, privacy, and mature vegetation — an ideal place for you and your family. The only problem is the house. The foundation is cracked, the kitchen is the size of your sock drawer, and there’s no chance your bedroom is going to accommodate your wardrobe. Rather than letting the opportunity go, consider whether it’s feasible to renovate or rebuild. Once you have done a careful analysis of the renovation costs, it’s time to weigh them against the costs and benefits of rebuilding from the ground up. One of the benefits of building a house from scratch is freedom of choice. Whatever the size, layout, style, or other features of your future home you choose, it’s up to you. At the same time, a decision like this bring with it great responsibility.

Evaluation

Before you go any further, you have to understand that you have to provide your future contractor with as many details as possible so he can adjust your house to your standards and needs. The more time you spend on this, the more satisfied you’ll be when the work is done.

Size

Home by Jay P

Consider whether you’ll be having children, or possibly accommodating your elderly parents. In both cases, you’ll need more space, and it will be cheaper to build extra rooms right away. Houses without spaces added later look more natural. However, if you’re not in a financial position to invest, it might be better to put more rooms in the house on hold. More space means more money, since most contractors are going to charge you by square foot, and extra rooms also mean extra expenses. You have to provide them with heat and electricity, and you also have to take care of them even though you don’t plan on using them just yet. One of the most expensive considerations is the foundation, so you should seriously consider a multi-storey house instead of sprawling bungalow.

For a house on a 100-square-metre lot (maximum two stories), depending on the details, materials, and style, you can build a two-storey 1200-1400-square-foot house, costs ranging around $130,000-$150,000.

Looks and Requirements

The style of your house will directly influence the cost of your house. For a basic house that will include all the major requirements, the price of which is likely to be between $100 to $125 per square foot excluding the cost of the lot. Factor in an architect and a good general contractor and construction manager and you should add 25-30 per cent. With a house in West Vancouver, you can easily fall into a $300.00 per square foot range, given of course that the home is highly customized and modern. Not having a basement will reduce the cost of construction as well.

Every aspect of your future household adds a new variable, and cost can often vary up to 20 per cent of the total price. You want your trimmings, floors, appliances, and lighting to look different? Prepare not only for the upgrade inside the house, but also on the cheque you’re going to write. The only way to find an accurate cost per square foot is to know exactly what you want and to start pricing each and every detail.

Curves Cost Money

Be aware that the shape of a home can affect the cost of construction. A rectangular or square home is the least expensive to build. The more angles and corners, the more labour and materials will be required.

Stairs and Floors — The Budget Killer

Heritage House by Lara604

The real budget nightmare is if you want to get hardwood stairs, which cost around $200/stair, more if you have a landing, and even more if you have a winding stair case. For example, if you have a landing and 12 steps without any turns, you’ll pay around $2500-$3000. Flooring might climb up to around $7.00 per square foot, so for an 1,800-square-foot house with stairs, you’ll pay around $11,000.

Think About Your Future

Building a house is a great commitment: obviously, if you’ve decided to build a house, you will use it for more than just a short period of time — probably for life. You should consult your contractor about the possibility of making your house mobility friendly for the future. Some might see this as a bit far fetched, but creating a space to accommodate a wheelchair or walker is a very rational thing to do. The traditional layout of rooms in a house, especially bathrooms and kitchens, doesn’t fit very well with elderly and disabled people’s requirements. The Canadian Housing and Mortgage Corporation recommends allowing a manoeuvring space of 75×120cm (30×47 inches). Countertops in the kitchen and bathroom should be lower than the traditional 86cm (34 inches) to 91cm (36 inches) as well.

What Kind of Materials to Use

The standard type of house in builders’ terms usually means foundations with a concrete slab and wood frame, finished with wood siding and a pitched roof with shingles. The roof is one of the most problematic parts of a building.

Many homeowners underestimate the value of a quality roof. If you’re thinking about reconstruction, don’t forget that the more you invest in your house, the better you’ll want to protect it. You need to consider rain, snow, wind, and everything else that can ruin your masterpiece in a matter of hours. You really should put all possible effort into finding the most suitable roof for your house. You should invest some time into finding out what kind of roof is best for your house. You have to compare lifespans and prices, which vary from $200 up to $2000 depending on the materials used.

Exterior materials also play an important role in your financial planning. Exterior home maintenance could become a nightmare if you don’t pick the right exterior finishing material. These materials are expected to both protect your home from any unwanted damage caused by the elements and give your home an attractive exterior. It’s crucial to pick the right material for your house. You have to take a great number of factors into consideration, such as the climate of your region and the accessibility and quality of materials.

The use of energy-efficient materials and building techniques can substantially reduce heating, cooling, and lighting costs over the long term. Water heaters using solar technology will easily pay off in eight to ten years, and with a lifespan ranging from 20 to 30 years, you can enjoy ten years and more of free hot water.

Where to Build

House and Tree Byinternets dairy

To save money, try to find a property that doesn’t need to be reformed in any way. This basically means that if you have any substantial vegetation growing in the place of your future house, you’ll need to hire somebody to remove it for you. If you don’t have any means to deal with such a problem on your own, you’ll need to hire a contractor, which will add to the cost of the construction of your house substantially. You should also consider any kind of slope your financial enemy. Of course, if the idea of your dream house includes one and you have enough resources, there is only one thing you should be concerned about, and that is hiring a responsible and skilled architect and an experienced contractor. Communicate with your contractor frequently and, ideally, at the worksite.

Alternatives You Might Consider

The Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation made a series of case studies based on the concept of flexible housing. This brings a whole new perspective to the problem of house construction. It’s something mainly young families should think about, since it’s very adaptable, and that’s one of the criteria this target group usually takes into consideration.

Flexible housing allows the homeowner to reconfigure their house as their lifestyle changes. Rooms can change in size and/or a complete floor may change in function. The house is equipped for such changes with pre-wiring and plumbing ready for adaptation. Flexible housing is also built to be accessible with features to accommodate young children, the disabled and the elderly. FlexHousing (a term used to describe all types of flexible housing) allows space to be used differently with minimal changes and expenditures. Flexible housing is usually designed to permit surplus space to be rented out to either a non-related tenant or a family member and thereby reduce the costs of ownership. As the family size increases or its needs change, the dwelling can be reconfigured.

For example, one of the case studies was in Vancouver. The convertible house is an affordable house that can convert from a one-dwelling unit to a two-dwelling unit and vice versa. This is very suitable for first-time homeowners and secondary suite tenants.

Today, almost everything is possible, but you must have a comprehensive, professional, and technically sound project, a good contractor, and a serious construction manager to build the house of your dreams at the cost you expect and with the details you desire that is above all sustainable and environmentally friendly.

Home Construction Costs in Vancouver

Post from: Vancouver REALTOR® Jay Banks

Although February sales in Greater Vancouver were only 151 sales below the ten-year average, they placed third lowest among February totals in the region since 2002.

Rosario Setticasi, REBGV president, commented on the situation: “With a sales-to-active-listings ratio of over 18 per cent, we see fairly balanced conditions in our marketplace as we move into the traditionally busier spring season.”

Residential property sales reached 2,545 on the Multiple Listing Service®, increasing by 61.4 per cent compared to January’s 1,577. This represents a 17.8 per cent decline compared to February 2011 sales, which reached 3,097 and 2.9 per cent increase from the 2,473 home sales in February 2010.

• Detached property sales (1,101 units) experienced a 21.5 per cent decrease compared to February 2011 (1,402 units) and a 12 per cent increase compared to February 2010 (983 units). The benchmark price increased 10.5 per cent from February 2011 to $1,042,900.

• Apartment property sales (1,020) declined 15.4 per cent compared to February 2011 (1,206) and 5 per cent compared to February 2010 (1,074). The benchmark price increased by 2.8 per cent from February 2011 to $373,300.

• Town home property sales (424 units) experienced a 13.3 per cent decline compared to February 2011 (489 units), and a 1.9 per cent increase compared to February 2010 (416 units). The benchmark price raised by 0.7 per cent since February 2011 to $472,800.

The MLS® HPI benchmark price for all residential properties in the Greater Vancouver Area has experienced a slight growth of 6 per cent over the last year, climbing up to $670,900 since February 2011, and a 0.9 per cent increase compared to January 2012. The benchmark price for all residential properties in the Lower Mainland is $601,300 — 5.5 per cent more than in February 2011.

New listings for detached, attached, and apartment properties amounted to 5,552 — reaching a 2.5 per cent reduction in growth compared to February 2011, when new listings amounted to 5,693. This represents a 3.5 per cent decline compared to January 2012, when 5,756 homes were added to the MLS® in Greater Vancouver. Last month’s new listing count was the second highest February total in Greater Vancouver since 1996.

Greater Vancouver Real Estate Market Results: February

Post from: Vancouver REALTOR® Jay Banks

Attention home buyers in British Columbia! The British Columbia provincial government and the Ministry of Finance recently published a tax information notice on Enhanced New Housing Rebates and the Re-Implementation of the Provincial Sales Tax.

This Notice is intended to provide certainty about the application of tax during the transition for British Columbians who are buying new homes or constructing their own homes and for builders& who are constructing new homes. The temporary transition measures for new housing will help to ensure that purchasers are treated equitably and& will smooth& the transition from the HST to the PST/GST.

This Summer, British Columbians participated in a province-wide referendum on the elimination of the harmonized sales tax (HST) and the re-introduction of the provincial sales tax (PST) plus federal goods and services tax (GST). The vote turned out in favor of the return to the PST/GST system. The provincial government has committed to make the transition and PST will be re-implemented on April 1, 2013.

As a result of this enhancement, eligible purchasers of new homes with a purchase price of up to $850,000 will be entitled to receive a rebate of 71.43 per cent of the provincial component of the HST paid up to a maximum of $42,500. For a new home wit a purchase price of $850,000 and above, the purchaser will be entitled to the maximum rebate of $42,500. This enhanced rebate represents a 60 per cent increase in the maximum rebate currently available.

Download and read more about Enhanced New Housing Rebates in B.C.

Enhanced New Housing Rebates in B.C.

Post from: Vancouver REALTOR® Jay Banks