There is no doubt Vancouver is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. The city of West Vancouver is nestled between Burrard Inlet and the North Shore Mountains and offers city, water and mountain views from its many high-end neighbourhoods.
The lower mainland has also developed unique architectural and design styles that benefits from the natural beauty of our environment. Beautiful homes decorate the neighbourhoods and it’s not difficult to find prestigious design projects around town.
Today we’re bringing to the blog, this incredible property – a stunning, custom-built 5 bedroom home designed by Georgie Award Winner Marque Thompson.
Marque is the Principal of Design Marque Consulting Ltd and has won both silver and gold design awards at the Georgie Awards. He has been featured in countless design magazines and has completed more than 1,200 projects from small cottages to multi-million-dollar homes throughout Canada, United States, England and Singapore.
This home is situated on a large property with south-facing back gardens and beautiful views of the ocean, city and Stanley Park. As you walk through the front doors, you’ll find a modern, open-concept space, with 20’ ceilings in the living room.
The kitchen is equipped for family dinners and entertaining, featuring Wolf & Sub-Zero appliances.
Walkout on to a large covered heated deck, built-in BBQ, & outdoor gas fireplace. Perfect for entertaining on long summer nights.
The private master suite is a romantic escape with a fireplace and large deck from which to enjoy views.
Ready to make this dream home yours! Click here to request a private showing and view more property details.
Enjoy some of the best views around the city with these fantastic waterfront properties currently listed by Macdonald Realty.
#2601- 277 Thurlow Street, Vancouver, BC Listed by Juliana Jiao Personal Real Estate Corporation
Imagine living with one of the world’s most majestic waterfront views of the ocean, mountains, Stanley Park, the Lions Gate Bridge, Coal Harbour Marina & Park, plus a 360-degree city view. Amazing terraces covering 688 square feet with two fireplaces.
#1102 – 1139 W Cordova Street, Vancouver, BC Listed by Lucie Ingoldby
Sensational waterfront home at Two Harbour Green. This 2400 square feet home with unobstructed views of the ocean, Stanley Park and Harbour Green Park plus the North Shore mountains has a great entertainment size family room with direct access to the wrap-around balcony.
2707 Point Grey Road, Vancouver, BC Listed by Manyee Lui
Everlasting views on the prestigious Point Grey Road. With its waterfront location, this property captures the best of water, mountain and city. Enjoy the rooftop decks and incredible family living spaces.
#2101 – 1077 W Cordova Street, Vancouver, BC Listed by Joseph Chiang
Amazing views of Coal Harbour, mountains and city from all windows. This open layout features an entertainment-size living room, fabulous gourmet chef’s kitchen and more. Relax in the spacious master bedroom with a spa only for you.
#1605 – 1328 Marinaside Crescent, Vancouver, BC Listed by Murphy Costello Personal Real Estate Corporation and Jodi Norrison
180-degree views to the South, East & North of False Creek, Science World and the city. Floor to ceiling windows, elegant interior floor plan, updated kitchen, and hardwood flooring. Everything with fabulous resort-level amenities.
1418 Haywood Avenue, Vancouver, BC Listed by Jennie Frizzo Personal Real Estate Corporation
Situated on south-facing back gardens and beautiful views of Stanley Park, the city, and ocean and well designed with modern, open-concept and 20’ ceilings in the living room in a beautiful and functional floor plan.
#5604 – 1128 W Georgia Street, Vancouver, BC Listed by Frank Ye Personal Real Estate Corporation
Incredible views of English Bay and the Gulf Islands. This Shangri-La 5-star home has updated Italian closets, entertainment center, and multiple amenities.
In the market for a new ocean view? Search listings on our website www.macrealty.com and find your dream home today. Partner with one of our real estate agents.
SENSATIONAL TROPHY VANCOUVER PENTHOUSE – Atop a 32 storey skyscraper this three level sky mansion sprawls over 6,000 square feet of living space and 1,700 square feet of terraces. Outstanding first impressions from the direct elevator access leading to a grand living room featuring soaring 16 foot ceilings, panoramic English Bay views and a grand curved staircase. Master boasts gas fireplace, large steam shower and a two person jetted tub situated mid room. Main level offers second master suite with fireplace and numerous built-in cabinets. Bespoke chef’s kitchen with 48 inch Décor six burner range, numerous built-in ovens and appliances anchored by huge granite island and access to 700 square foot terrace with fireplace and built-in Viking BBQ. Family room with grand wet bar, air conditioning, concierge and six-car private garage. LP $7,838,000
Tour amazing homes across the globe, vote for your favourites, and enter for your chance to win a $10,000 cash prize! And remember you can vote for your favourites once a day. Follow the instructions below to vote for Macdonald Realty’s Nominee for HGTV’s Ultimate House Hunt 2016:
Step 1: Tour the homes in the category.
Step 2: When you’ve found your favorite, click “I’m Ready to Vote.”
Step 3: Choose your favorite by clicking “Vote.”
Step 4: Click “Continue to Next Category” to tour more homes.
If you think Vancouver’s housing prices are overdue for a major price adjustment, tell that to the surging number of luxury home buyers.
According to MLS statistics provided by Macdonald Realty, a record 375 homes — including nearly 50 condos — sold for over $3-million in 2010, breaking the record of 209 set in 2009 and more than double the 167 sold in 2008.
Of those, 73 homes sold for over $5 million.
The sales were primarily, but not exclusively, on Vancouver’s west side, with the priciest home going for $17.5-million at 3489 Osler.
The second and third priciest homes — the second also on Osler and the third on Point Grey Road -both sold for about $11 million.
As well, Macdonald Realty says, if current patterns hold, the number of $3-million-plus homes is expected to reach 550 this year, raising the spectre that in some neighbourhoods a $3-million home may no longer be considered particularly exclusive.
In 2000, just 10 properties in Metro Vancouver sold for over $3-million, none of them condominiums.
The market for luxury homes is now “insanely hot,” with mainland Chinese buyers — who are also affecting the Richmond market in a big way — the primary purchasers, said Dan Scarrow, Macdonald Realty vice-president of corporate strategy.
“Ninety-per-cent (of the luxury home purchases) are on the west side, probably some in West Vancouver,” he said in an interview. “But it’s incredibly striking, when you think what the prices were 10 years ago.”
Scarrow said that while a $3-million house has always been categorized as “luxury,” he no longer knows if that’s the case in key West Side neighbourhoods, including Shaughnessy and Point Grey.
“We’re part of a global luxury market by the ultra-wealthy,” he said. “And from the buyers’ perspective, prices here are cheap for what you get.”
Tsur Somerville, director at the centre for urban economics and real estate, Sauder School of Business at the University of B.C., said in an interview that just because there are more homes selling for over $3-million doesn’t mean they’re not luxury homes.
“It’s pretty subjective,” he said. “But $3-million is an expensive home. And just because it’s on a small lot doesn’t mean it’s not a luxury house.
“And the fact that there’s a whole lot more ($3-million homes) than a decade ago, with the price increases, there’d better be.”
Mr. Somerville also said that China is a huge source of immigrants to B.C. and that mainland Chinese immigrants tend to be investors and entrepreneurs.
“Clearly, there’s a very targeted demand for higher-end properties that many associate with the mainland Chinese market.”
But he said there’s an absence of clear data on the specifics of those buyers, whether it’s primarily immigrants or investor money from China. As an indication of how the luxury condominium market has grown, Mr. Scarrow said that last year a total of 49 condos sold for over $3-million — including seven for over $5-million — with the top three closing in on $6-million each, the priciest at Two Harbour Green, 1139 West Cordova, in Coal Harbour, for $5.8-million and the other two at the Shangri-La in downtown Vancouver.
Scarrow said many more properties are crossing the $3-million threshold, which now buys a new or newer house in the 2,500-to 3,000-square-foot range on a smaller west side lot.
“Now, you see multiple $3-million-plus homes on every block. I’d say $5-million is now where you’re going for that luxury range.”
Alice Zhang, who moved from Hangzhou, China, to Vancouver two years ago, now lives in one of six properties that she and her husband have purchased in Vancouver since moving here.
Zhang, who has two children, is waiting to move into a new home they’re constructing on a Shaughnessy lot that they bought for about $3.1-million. The house is expected to cost another $3 million, which Zhang believes is a good deal.
“We moved from the most beautiful city in China to Vancouver, which we consider more beautiful,” said Zhang, whose family owns hotels and a real estate development company in China.
“I think that compared to other Canadian cities, Vancouver is expensive. But, China is more expensive (than Vancouver).
“And the air is very fresh here and it’s very green. You feel like you’re in a garden.”
Scarrow cited another client who purchased a 2,600-square-foot condo in Coal Harbour for about $1,600 a square foot.
“(She and her family) has homes all around the world. In Knightsbridge, London, a flat was sold to her for $8,000 (Cdn) per square foot. Their flat in London was 3,000 square feet and they paid $24 million for it.”
She also has two homes in Hong Kong, one in Lake Tahoe, one in San Francisco, one in New York and one in Madrid, Spain, Scarrow said. “They all say their Vancouver property is their favourite home. They think it’s the best value.”
Macdonald Realty sales manager Matthew Lee, whose firm sold the three most expensive homes in Vancouver in 2009 and two of the five most expensive homes in 2010, believes that it’s not just mainland Chinese who are fuelling the luxury market, “but buyers from Europe and the U.S. are willing to pay these prices as well. Globally, Vancouver is still seen as a relatively good bargain.”
While the west side of Vancouver had the largest number of luxury homes sold, other areas in B.C. have also seen some very expensive sales, including the Fraser Valley’s top three sales between $5.3-million and $6.1-million, the Okanagan, from $5.4-million to $10.7-million, and Victoria, from $3.9-million to $6.8-million.
And while Vancouver has seen some very expensive homes sold over the past decade, including one for $17.5 million in 2008 and one for $17-million as far back as 2004, it’s the sheer numbers that are striking. In 2000, just 10 homes sold for over $3-million, and 78 in 2005.
Were we spoiled by the early spring flurry? Probably.
Does the inventory have to decline at the same rate as the number of units sold to maintain market integrity? Probably not.
The market appears to be levelling. Prices are adjusting slightly downward but not in all areas depending on inventory. Once again proving that one of our principle rules of real estate analysis is “supply and demand” and that rule is absolute. Inventory is declining and prices may be stabilizing but perhaps not at the same rate. Buyers and sellers are having trouble reading the market signs.
With the stock markets and the economies of USA, Europe and others regions all are emitting mixed signals, it is hard to pick a cause or effect that has any long term significance. This brings to mind our second rule of analysis, that of “cause and effect”. Good things cause good things to happen and bad things cause bad things to happen. One day consumer confidence is good then the next day builders confidence is down then business leaders are optimistic then Ben Bernanke says he won’t intervene, and then he will. The stock market goes down and then recovers. The bank of Canada says interest rates will rise then when they do the banks ignore and keep offering low mortgage rates. Nobody knows what is to do and nobody can predict how the various markets will react and that I guess is why they call it a market.
Today, according to the Conference Board of Canada, consumer confidence in BC is down. Experts say this is the result of the implementation of HST. We would guess it is a combination of many factors and externalities. Although we must admit we have seen a lot of confusion as to the HST and Real Estate. No doubt our industry could of done a better job of educating the public. But so could have the government and the fifth estate (who spent a lot of time creating a kafuffle to sell papers rather than explaining the tax).
Throw in our last rule of real estate analysis, that ”history repeats itself” and it gets even more confusing. As we have noted previously, and our friend Bruno recently calculated, that after the last big real estate correction in Vancouver, it took 7 years (from 1996-2003) for prices of West Side detached houses to recover to the previous high .The following 6 years (from 2003 – 2009) saw a compounded average growth of 13% for Westside detached houses. Then in the last three quarters of 2008 and first quarter of 2009 we experienced a 20% plus downward correction but then were fully recovered by the fall of 2009. Anybody heard of the “dead cat bounce”?
Prices seem to have corrected downward over the past few months by 5%-10% although we may be seeing a levelling. It should be noted that it is not uncommon for prices to adjust up and down during a cycle, upward or downward cycles.
—-
Blog post provided by Murphy CostelloPersonal Real Estate Corporation, a REALTOR® with Macdonald Realty in Vancouver.
