Tariff Freeze

Well that was close! The insanity of the past week put a stall in the upswing in the market that began last November. The dramatic events of the past week put a chill through everyone worldwide but no more so than homeowners here in Vancouver who saw the possibility of their home values plummet along with the Loonie.

While we are ‘safe’ for now it opens an important conversation into where your equity is heavily weighted and if mostly in your home, it might be time to ‘cash out’ before sh*t really does hit the fan globally.

There is so much going on that may affect market values on the west side. Let’s dive in and look at this month’s market headwinds, tailwinds and trends to help you make sense of your real estate investments.

Macro Headwinds

We have a 30 day freeze on the possible tariff war. The question remains of whether this is going to continue as an imminent threat for the next four years or if it will settle down and Trump’s focus will shift off his trading partners. Continued political volatility will affect the financial markets. In fact, forward looking treasury rates are increasing, meaning a stock market correction may be imminent.

When money flows out of the financial markets it tends to go to safe havens like gold, the Yen and real estate. The moratorium on foreign buyers in the Lower Mainland is in effect until January 2027 at least so we’ll be counting on individuals and corporations to shift their money into hard assets in the short term in order for prices to keep rising. The question is will they allow their money to flow into real estate or will they go to cash and sit it out with a wait and see approach?

Micro Headwinds

The loosening of zoning restrictions on the West Side is going to dramatically alter the landscape of our neighbourhoods. Less dense areas of the Upper West Side, such as Dunbar, Southlands, Arbutus, West Point Grey, Mackenzie Heights and Kerrisdale to name a few are seeing more and more duplex and multi family homes replace detached single residential properties.

While this is great for society as a whole, it’s not so great for those current single family homeowners in the +3MM market. Why? Let me break it down; the market for more expensive single family homes is significantly smaller than that of condominiums and townhouses. Primarily because of affordability. While many in our neighbourhood have seen their properties appreciate significantly over the past 20 years, this trend is becoming stagnant.

The primary purchaser of single family detached homes over $3 Million right now are developers, not individuals. And developers, like individuals are only willing to pay so much in order for the redevelopment to make sense. People with homes between $3-5 MM (on the right size lot) will be the winners of development offers. People with properties over $5MM may get stuck living between houses of much lesser value upon redevelopment. Just look at the situation on lower Alma street where multi million dollar new builds are now sitting next to multi family townhomes. Those properties will be much harder to sell at an appreciated value going forward.

Macro Tailwinds

The good news is that the political situation will most likely motivate the Bank of Canada to continue to decrease interest rates to help keep the economy growing. Lower interest rates allow more buyers into the marketplace, especially first time buyers. This should keep the Vancouver market moving, especially in the Dunbar, UBC and Kerrisdale new condo markets.

This is going to increase density in the neighbourhoods which will spur more investment, more conveniences such as restaurants, shopping, and coffee shops which in turn spurs more local investment. Great news for condo’s, duplexes and smaller home sales (under 4MM). Not so great for unprotected zoning streets which allow the new R1-1 multi family along with single family high end homes.

Micro Tailwinds

A crush of small to medium size developers are eager to scoop up as many eligible properties as they can. Smaller lot size home owners can take advantage of this by teaming up with at least one neighbour to attract the right developer to get max dollars out. A land assembly is no longer 3-5 houses. It can be two smaller lots joined and offered for combined sale. It makes for an awesome easy exit and some developers, like one of my partners, are offering really interesting investment opportunities where you can agree to sell your house and remain as a Limited Partner and benefit up to 30% in profit in the redevelopment. Thereby really maximizing your profit. Heck you can even negotiate a killer price on a redeveloped unit if you are looking to downsize! It’s a cool concept and one both small and large lot owners can consider. Reach out if you want more intel.

And now for Market Stats!

Blog Post Title Two

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.

Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.

Blog Post Title Three

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.

Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.

Blog Post Title Four

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.

Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.