Vancouver General Discussion Thread

[jollyburger]

Better off buying a car and sticking that sign on the back of it.

[mcminsen]

Originally Posted by Feathered Friend

https://globalnews.ca/news/6227952/99-b-...ion-on-north-americas-busiest-bus-route/

Thanks!

[scryer]

Originally Posted by mcminsen

Broadway, Vancouver, Nov.29 '19, my pics
...

I found my new best friend

Well done!

[SpongeG]

.

[SpongeG]

India, China trade places and Brazil gains ground as top sources of permanent residents to Metro Vancouver

Brazil, Vietnam, Ireland make the top 10 while Taiwan, Iraq and Russia drop off

Maryse Zeidler · CBC News · Posted: Jan 11, 2020

Julia Moioli and her husband were in search of adventure, access to nature and a better future when they moved to Metro Vancouver from São Paulo, Brazil, last August.

Moioli, 24, says jobs were plentiful in São Paulo, but political turmoil after Brazil's national elections in 2018 left the young couple feeling uneasy.

"It's very complicated with politics in Brazil right now and doesn't seem to get any better," said Moioli, who now studies tourism at Capilano University. Her husband quickly landed a job as a data analyst shortly after they arrived.

In 2019, about 1,275 Brazilians immigrated to Metro Vancouver and became permanent residents, according to data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada from the past decade.

...

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/metro-vancouver-immigration-data-1.5421457

[Feathered Friend]

Members of the 2020 Urban Design Panel

6 members from the Architectural Institute of British Columbia
Angela Enman, Architect, Mcfarlane Bigger Architects + Designers Inc.
Walter Francl, Architect, Francl Architecture Inc.
Michael Henderson, Architect, HCMA Architecture + Design
Alan Davies, Architect, Acton Ostry Architects Inc.
Marie-Odile Marceau, Architect, McFarland Marceau Architects
Sydney Schwartz, Architect, MCMP Architects

2 members from the Association of Professional Engineers
Brittany Coughlin, Engineer, RDH Building Science Inc.
Matt Younger, Engineer, AME Consulting Mechanical Engineers

1 member from the British Columbia Society of Landscape Architects
Margot Long, PWL Partnership Landscape Architects Inc.
Jennifer Stamp, Groundswell

1 representative from the Vancouver Planning Commission
Karenn Krangle, Urban Arts Architecture

1 member representing the development industry
Muneesh Sharma, Building Owners' and Managers’ Association

1 member representing art professionals
Adrien Rahbar, Associate Director, Real Estate at Graham

https://vancouver.ca/your-government/urban-design-panel.aspx

A new year brings a fresh group of volunteers to Vancouver's Urban Design Panel. The turnover rate seems rather high, as only 5 members from the previous term have returned. Our best wishes to the new chair Jennifer Stamp & vice-chair Adrien Rahbar

https://twitter.com/City_Duo/status/1216532363175292928?s=20

[Migrant_Coconut]

Might help if the city paid them to do it. Can't think of many professionals with full resumes that'd want to argue with Council and developers for free.

[dreambrother808]

Originally Posted by Migrant_Coconut

Might help if the city paid them to do it. Can't think of many professionals with full resumes that'd want to argue with Council and developers for free.

There must be some prestige involved, as well as pride in shaping the city’s future. Any truly talented person isn’t just in it for the money.

[Migrant_Coconut]

Absolutely, but you need to really love the job when you volunteer... it would appear that this particular job's appeal wears off pretty quickly.

[cairnstone]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

India, China trade places and Brazil gains ground as top sources of permanent residents to Metro Vancouver

Brazil, Vietnam, Ireland make the top 10 while Taiwan, Iraq and Russia drop off

Maryse Zeidler · CBC News · Posted: Jan 11, 2020

Julia Moioli and her husband were in search of adventure, access to nature and a better future when they moved to Metro Vancouver from São Paulo, Brazil, last August.

Moioli, 24, says jobs were plentiful in São Paulo, but political turmoil after Brazil's national elections in 2018 left the young couple feeling uneasy.

"It's very complicated with politics in Brazil right now and doesn't seem to get any better," said Moioli, who now studies tourism at Capilano University. Her husband quickly landed a job as a data analyst shortly after they arrived.

In 2019, about 1,275 Brazilians immigrated to Metro Vancouver and became permanent residents, according to data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada from the past decade.

...

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/metro-vancouver-immigration-data-1.5421457

I like this article as it confirms what I have been saying for a while. Our immigration is not mainly asian as people believe. And the foreign buyers tax is hurting the housing market as it prevents foreign nationals from investing in the multifamily market. Several projects have stalled out do to not hitting presale limits. If the presale is not hit the lower rate housing is not built attached to the permit. The surcharge on foreign buyers may be a good thing in single family houses but has a reverse effect on multifamily.

[misher]

Originally Posted by cairnstone

I like this article as it confirms what I have been saying for a while. Our immigration is not mainly asian as people believe. And the foreign buyers tax is hurting the housing market as it prevents foreign nationals from investing in the multifamily market. Several projects have stalled out do to not hitting presale limits. If the presale is not hit the lower rate housing is not built attached to the permit. The surcharge on foreign buyers may be a good thing in single family houses but has a reverse effect on multifamily.

Top source of immigrants has usually been the Phillipines with China competing with India for #2.

FBT isn't a terrible idea but it was very poorly implemented. FBT should be waived on units that are rented out as investment properties, speculation benefits us by keeping rents low. Also FBT should only be 5% or less, something small that makes us income without scaring people away.

This focus we have on housing prices just ruins strategies that actually help affordability because affordability=rents not home prices.

And honestly if we were going to put a "color" to foreign buyers in BC it would likely be a competition between yellow, brown or white. Vancouver has more Chinese but Metro Vancouver has a lot of Indo-Canadians.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by cairnstone

I like this article as it confirms what I have been saying for a while. Our immigration is not mainly asian as people believe. And the foreign buyers tax is hurting the housing market as it prevents foreign nationals from investing in the multifamily market. Several projects have stalled out do to not hitting presale limits. If the presale is not hit the lower rate housing is not built attached to the permit. The surcharge on foreign buyers may be a good thing in single family houses but has a reverse effect on multifamily.

The FBT absolutely does not prevent foreign players from investing in the multifamily market. They're more than welcome to build a rental apartment building with no extra taxes, just the same that apply to local builders.

[misher]

Originally Posted by whatnext

The FBT absolutely does not prevent foreign players from investing in the multifamily market. They're more than welcome to build a rental apartment building with no extra taxes, just the same that apply to local builders.

You overestimate the intelligent of our government. At least you get to criticize the BC Liberals here?

foreign buyers have expressed interest in Vancouver buildings but are put off by B.C.’s 20% foreign-homebuyer tax, which applies to rental apartment buildings.

“The taxes are just crazy. Some owners have simply had enough.”

https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/real-...ings-for-sale-metro-vancouver-bc-1945870

[cairnstone]

Originally Posted by whatnext

The FBT absolutely does not prevent foreign players from investing in the multifamily market. They're more than welcome to build a rental apartment building with no extra taxes, just the same that apply to local builders.

That wont happen anytime soon as there is no incentive to own purpose built rental. There is only a handful in the the market now. With many of the purpose built rental being built on spec. and hoping that they have a REIT buy them out before they turn into an operating rental project. Reform is needed to the tenants act to change this. To many dead beats in the system makes the foreign investors prefer to put there eggs in the Strata market. And the smaller investors are buying blocks of units to operate as rentals or what ever.

Strata has been the prefered method of housing for about 35 plus years everyone wins but the government had to go put in half ass policies that have back fired as rental rates have not changed and finding a place to live is worse now than it was a few years ago

[GenWhy?]

Originally Posted by misher

You overestimate the intelligent of our government. At least you get to criticize the BC Liberals here?



https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/real-...ings-for-sale-metro-vancouver-bc-1945870

They just have to play by the new rules to get around the tax. Not not being the following helps:

"A foreign corporation is a corporation that is one of the following:

Not incorporated in Canada, or
Is incorporated in Canada but is controlled directly or indirectly by one or more foreign entities (see section 256 of the Income Tax Act (Canada) for further details), unless the shares of the corporation are listed on a Canadian stock exchange."

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by cairnstone

That wont happen anytime soon as there is no incentive to own purpose built rental. There is only a handful in the the market now. With many of the purpose built rental being built on spec. and hoping that they have a REIT buy them out before they turn into an operating rental project. Reform is needed to the tenants act to change this. To many dead beats in the system makes the foreign investors prefer to put there eggs in the Strata market. And the smaller investors are buying blocks of units to operate as rentals or what ever.

Strata has been the prefered method of housing for about 35 plus years everyone wins but the government had to go put in half ass policies that have back fired as rental rates have not changed and finding a place to live is worse now than it was a few years ago

The last thing we need is more amateur landlors renting a couple of crappy units each.

Since we keep hearing how the Mainland Chinese are "in it for the long term", the prospect of spinning money from buidling with hundreds of new units should be appealing. Some of Vancouver's most discreet fortunes are built on it.

[misher]

Originally Posted by whatnext

The last thing we need is more amateur landlors renting a couple of crappy units each.

Since we keep hearing how the Mainland Chinese are "in it for the long term", the prospect of spinning money from buidling with hundreds of new units should be appealing. Some of Vancouver's most discreet fortunes are built on it.

Amateur landlords provide most of our housing stock we do not have any substitutes and everything else is just a bonus to aid it rather than a replacement. But I am in agreement with whatnext here, using foreign money to fund rental apartment buildings is a smart move. China has us funding their apartment buildings so vice-versa is fair play. Unfortunately we instead chased it out. Speculation/speculators/investors/money launderers, honestly who cares as long as they are renting out whatever they buy. You can't tax your way to affordability.

PS: A funny scenario here that I just considered, do we charge renters a speculation tax if they aren't present in their rental for 6+ months a year?

[SpongeG]

I'm going to be living in Whalley soon. Don't know what to think about that. Living in Surrey. yikes.

[SpongeG]

Opinion: Coronavirus is scaring Burnaby residents into staying home
Chris Campbell / Burnaby Now
FEBRUARY 6, 2020

A weird thing happened last Saturday – I went to Metropolis at Metrotown in Burnaby and found a parking spot right by a door to the mall.

Like, I found this parking spot in seconds – didn’t even have to do the “search circle” waiting for a spot to open up.

In fact, things were so weird that I had more than 20 open spots to choose from.

Why is that weird? Because normally it’s a kill-or-be-killed fight to find parking in Burnaby’s biggest mall.


This was at 1 p.m. on a Saturday.

Then I went inside the mall and, while it was busy, it’s wasn’t Metropolis-level busy. I could tell the difference from other Saturdays.

...

https://www.burnabynow.com/opinion/blogs...p5lEM1KDlVHB3M6WzJx2TIEINuegvYEAWi9fP33M

[Klazu]

https://www.concordpacific.com/cny2020/

If I would be to buy an apartment from Concord, I'd rather take a similar discount instead of the jewelry...