R E A L E S T A T E
S P E C I A L F E A T U R E
Developing Nicely
With increasing foreign investment and a healthy demand for
properties to live, work and play in, real estate in B.C. is flourishing
M
ark Twain's famous
suggestion to "buy land,
they're not making it
anymore" resonates with
anyone who has witnessed
Metro Vancouver's
transformation from a laid-
back West Coast retreat to a high-power
international destination.
Land once so seemingly abundant is
now precious, and when it's procured,
development assumes painstaking
proportions in order to maximize usage—
and profit; and in 2016 B.C. real estate
insiders point to a host of issues that will
influence the course of residential and
commercial construction in the province.
"In no special order of importance,
technology, environmental policies,
affordability, housing form and tenure,
and source and flow of foreign investment
are the main issues that will have a huge
impact moving forward," says Richard Weir,
executive vice president – real estate and
development for Bosa Development.
Weir, who is also chairing the March
30 Vancouver Real Estate Forum, says
these issues will be examined and debated
extensively during the one-day event. "It's
an exciting time to be in real estate," he
says. "Each one of these issues has the
potential to effect enormous change. For
example, the growth of online shopping is
forcing retailers to reconsider their brick
and mortar presence, and it could well be
that retail outlets of the future will have
small retail space but include expanded
shipping and receiving areas."
Moreover, Weir points out that
environmental considerations are already
changing the physical landscape of the city,
especially with the increasing number of
smart buildings entering the market, and
high-density, mixed-use communities being
built around transportation hubs.
Affordability is arguably the biggest hot
topic of discussion in Metro Vancouver,
and Weir remarks that the cost of housing
"is a crisis that will definitely impact our
industry as we try to strike a balance
between affordable housing and a
productive industry."
On the topic of housing form and
tenure, Weir expains: "We all know about
the controversy of single family home
prices being far beyond the means of young
families, but this raises the question, is
multi-family housing suitable for these
families? In Vancouver, the evidence clearly
suggests that it is. Single family homes
are indeed prohibitively expensive, but
on the other hand families have more
accommodation options than ever."
Furthermore, discussions about foreign
investment are crucial, says Weir, if only
to generate more information about
who is investing in what, and how this
is influencing B.C. "There's no question
foreign investment has driven a lot of
demand in our market, but we need to
determine if it's sustainable in the long-
run," he explains.
Located atop Burnaby Mountain, UniverCity is a
sustainable urban community offering people a
picturesque place to live, work and learn
SF
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