Is buying a luxury home in Vancouver really worth it?

Is buying a luxury home in Vancouver really worth it?

If you’re like most people, the first thing that comes to mind about Vancouver is the beautiful scenery. Many Vancouverites are proud of their city’s gorgeous landscape and pristine environment, so much so they have become willing to sacrifice space for an extra bedroom or dining room because living with this beauty makes up for it. That being said, Vancouver is one of the top cities in North America when it comes to luxury home prices. Housing demand has been consistently increasing over the years, especially with foreign investors who want investments outside their country.

Looking at the equity growth over the past 40 years, the answer is clearly yes so now the question is, at what level does this longer make sense? $3,000,000? $5,000,000?

Vancouver’s housing market is a tough one to crack. Vancouver realtors have been saying for the past couple of years Vancouver is a sellers’ market, but will this continue in the future as Vancouverites keep moving here and population numbers keep increasing? This is coming from people who are mostly concerned about making money rather than living in Vancouver.

If you’re only interested in buying as an investment then good luck as Vancouver real estate becomes even more pricey due to it being such a great place to live and attracting so many new residents every year. Vancouver realtors have been saying Vancouver is a great city to invest in Vancouver rental properties because Vancouverites are known for being good tenants who pay their rent on time every month.

In Vancouver, in 2014 the average sale price of a single-family home was $1,094,767; this equals about $672 per square foot which comes out to be about $325k for 1,500 sq ft (pretty expensive indeed). This number has increased by 7% from 2013 and is expected to hit 2 million by 2020 [so if you’re not already thinking about how much Vancouver is worth, start thinking about Vancouver real estate]. A luxury home in Vancouver would certainly be higher though, more in the $4,000,000+ range.

Luxury Vancouver homes are not for you? Well, maybe Vancouver is not the right city for you. Vancouver realtors have been saying Vancouver is a great place to live due to it being a city with a growing population and a lot of people want to live in Vancouver because it’s such a nice place. Those who love nature will appreciate Vancouver more than those who prefer urban life.

Vancouverites are known for being one of the highest-taxed citizens in Canada because Vancouverites have to pay provincial taxes, Vancouverites have to pay federal taxes and Vancouverites also have to pay city taxes.

As Vancouver population numbers increase, more and more people are moving into Vancouver condos because buying a luxury home often is just not worth it. All that money you’re spending on Vancouver luxury homes could be going to a Vancouver mortgage instead. Vancouverites have been complaining about Vancouver housing prices for years now and it doesn’t look like this is going to change any time soon as Vancouver population numbers keep increasing.

If you want all that Vancouver offers then Vancouver real estate might just be the best place for you as Vancouver housing keeps soaring in Vancouver. Vancouver keeps going up and Vancouverites go on living their lives as if nothing is wrong.

So if you’re trying to choose between being an investor or owning your own luxury home, think twice before making your final decision as housing prices keep increasing on what feels like a weekly basis. In Vancouver, it’s almost impossible to find anything priced under $500,000 [but I guess that would be Vancouver real estate for you].

Jessi Johnson

Greater Vancouver Realtor