West Van Detached Sales Comparison Jan to July 2006 to Jan to July 2007

Following is a table and chart comparing the past year’s single-family home sales in West Vancouver for the period of January to the end of July.

It is interesting to compare the average days on market between 2006 and 2007. Overall the average is down to 56 days on 2007 compared to 69 days for the same period in 2006.

	2007 Sales	Diff from 2006	Avg Days on Market	Diff from 2006	2006 Sales	Avg Days on Market
January	51	-14%	78	-11%	59	88
February	52	-32%	68	62%	77	42
March	67	-19%	42	-16%	83	50
April	85	18%	61	65%	72	37
May	103	41%	47	-2%	73	48
June	80	21%	58	32%	66	44
July	45	-21%	42	-25%	57	56

This chart indicates that 2006 started out faster than the same period in 2007, but April to June had much higher sales volume only to lose ground in July 2007.

Waterfront Living – Horseshoe Bay

There is a new development by Primex Developments named Galleries on the Bay completing soon in Horseshoe Bay . Galleries on the Bay features sixteen exclusive, individually crafted homes in the Village. Each residence is a unique masterpiece using natural materials and glass that frames the beauty around you.

The project consists of:

• 8 Private Collection Ocean View Residences
• 8 Luxury Mountain View Suites
• 4 Live / Work Studios
• 8 Retail Opportunities

Pricing for the units has been set as follows:

Live / Work Studios:
$ 455,800 to $ 640,600 + GST

Spacious Mountain View Suites :
1 Bedroom, 1 Bedroom + Den or Solarium
$ 565,000 to $ 753,000 + GST

Unobstructed Ocean View Residences:
2 Bedroom, 2 Bedroom + Den or Solarium
$ 1,089,000 to $ 1,450,000 + GST

The developer seems to have captured the essence of West Coast living with many details that might go unnoticed such as:

• Designer line Gas fireplace with custom designed mantles & tile surround
• Pre-wired high speed internet and multi-media cables
• Designer-line brushed nickel light fixtures
• Engineered maple floors with 40 lb underlay in living and dining area
• Luxurious, Canadian made, extra life Stainmaster Berber carpet in bedrooms
• Hand-Honed Limestone flooring in entrance, kitchen ,hallways and baths
• Radiant In-Floor heating throughout
• Elegant high profile baseboards
• Crown Moulding
• Air-Conditioning with individual temperature controls
• 7’6” Solid Wood Interior Doors
• 10 ft Ceilings ( many suites have vaulted ceiling )
• Recessed Ceiling Lights with dimmer switch control
• Security System
• California Closet Organizers
• California Shutter-Style Window Blinds

And the exterior has been designed to complement the beauty of the area and deal with the weather with the latest rainscreen technology.

• Over-height 7’6” Garden doors to terraces
• Post-tension concrete foundation
• Durable & low maintenance Hardiplank fibre-cement exterior cladding
• Long-life metal roof
• Dual paned, milgard aluminium windows with increased thermal efficiency
• Suspended concrete terrace floors
• Superior insulation and soundproofing throughout

Call Maria Werbicki of RE/MAX Select Properties at 604-836-7355 or visit the web site at www.galleriesonthebay.com for more information.

New Listings July 20 – 28, 2007

Address	List Date	Realtor	Price	ML#	Bdrms	S.F.
4121 Burkehill Rd	7/26/2007	Eric Christiansen	1,445,000	V661321	3	2738
4620 Woodburn Rd	7/26/2007	Steven Kellough	1,480,000	V661421	3	2637
2326 Chippendale Rd	7/26/2007	John Jennings	4,988,000	V661424	3	0
4401 Woodpark Rd	7/25/2007	Peter T. Ebner	1,548,000	V661010	2	1962
4717 Woodgreen Dr	7/25/2007	Eric Christiansen	1,749,000	V661274	5	4467
880 Jefferson Av	7/25/2007	Allan Angell	1,188,000	V661308	4	2080
6165 Gleneagles Dr	7/24/2007	Malcolm Hasman	2,195,000	V660567	5	3200
389 Moyne Dr	7/24/2007	Darlene C. Dunnett	1,149,000	V660952	3	1450
1049 Millstream Rd	7/24/2007	Bita Basir	1,439,000	V661453	6	4945
84 Laurie Cr	7/23/2007	Sherry S. Ghanbari	985,000	V660746	4	2567
585 Hadden Dr	7/23/2007	Jason Soprovich	1,798,000	V660749	4	3073
2565 Westhill Wy	7/23/2007	Jila Rezai	2,749,000	V661175	7	5400
820 Mathers Av	7/23/2007	Holly L. Wood	1,899,900	V661433	4	1716
875 Fairmile Rd	7/22/2007	Darlene C. Dunnett	1,788,000	V660527	4	5380
4605 Port View Pl	7/22/2007	Karen Bong	988,000	V660559	3	2728
3345 Craigend Rd	7/21/2007	Geoff A. White	3,290,000	V660483	5	4580
5387 Westhaven Wd	7/20/2007	Lionel Lorence	2,895,000	V660343	6	5951
6472 Marine Dr	7/20/2007	Anne Leblanc	849,000	V660377	2	1155
855 Andover Cr	7/20/2007	Darlene C. Dunnett	1,595,000	V660480	3	2650
555 Inglewood Av	7/20/2007	John Jennings	1,135,000	V660621	5	2827
5765 Westport Rd	7/20/2007	Theresa Lee	1,598,900	V660715	6	4795
1408 31st St	7/20/2007	Tim Webb	3,835,000	V660914	5	6200

Total Houses, Apartments and Business in West Vancouver

A lot of people are surprised when they learn about how many homes there are in West Vancouver. Following are the total number of addresses for homes, apartments and businesses in West Vancouver according to Canada Post data as of July 28, 2007. In parentheses are the number that will accept unaddressed ad-mail.

Homes – 12,653 (11,572)
Apartments – 5,800 (5,213)
Businesses – 1,486 (1,353)

So the next time you get a memo pad in the mail you may be one of 18,138 West Vancouver residents enjoying the use of it.

West Vancouver Open Houses July 27 – 28, 2007

This is a map of the open houses in West Vancouver as advertised in the North Shore Real Estate Weekly. Just click on the link below and a Google map (like the one below) will open showing every open house. Click on the yellow house for more information or on the address on the left.

Click here to open a Map of Open Houses in West Vancouver

Wondering How Much That Flat Sold For in England?

There is a new service in the UK called NetHousePrices that offers a free public service that provides access to UK house prices in England, Scotland and Wales, as recorded by the Land Registry (since April 2000) and the Registers of Scotland (since May 2000). I am not aware of any service like this in the U.S. or Canada, but I think it would be a useful too

You can go to Sold Prices, enter a postal code and then refine your search from there. If you need a postal code you can use SW5 0BE . I don’t know exactly where it is, but it will give you results.

Income Required to Buy a Home in Greater Vancouver

It never ceases to amaze me how hot the real estate market is in Vancouver. To put it into perspective for people trying to buy a home following are some sobering statistics using benchmark prices from May 2007:

Property Type - Single detached
Benchmark Price – $ 653,616
Annual Income Required – $ 172,299

Property Type – Townhouse
Benchmark Price – $ 406,676
Annual Income Required – $ 108,005

Property Type – Apartment
Benchmark Price – $ 331,519
Annual Income Required – $ 88,016

Occupation Average Annual Income

Early Childhood Educator $ 32,760
Firefighter $ 57,540
Nurse (Registered) $ 55,237
BC MLA $ 75,400
Police Officer $ 54,639
REALTOR® $ 50,000
School Teacher (Elem) $ 53,222

So unless an elementary school teacher marries both a politician and a Police Officer there is not much chance of him/her buying a single family home in Vancouver.

Canadians Underestimate Mortgage Interest Costs

In a news report by the CBC on July 19, 2007, Toronto-based TransUnion conducted a survey asking consumers how much total interest they’ll pay over a 25-year mortgage and only 20 per cent of Canadians polled gave the right answer.

TransUnion, a credit and information management company, commissioned GfK Roper Public Affairs & Media to conduct the survey in late June, when it polled 1,000 Canadian adults across the country.

The question they were asked was “Homeowners usually pay off considerably more money than the original value of their mortgage loan because of the rate of interest on that loan. On average, what percentage of the original loan amount do you think a Canadian homeowner with a 25-year mortgage would end up paying?”

Only one-fifth of respondents got the right answer; 151 to 200 per cent of the original loan amount is the mortgage cost amortized over 25 years.

“By the end of a 25-year term, if you a have a traditional fixed-rate mortgage at 6.43 per cent, you’ll actually pay close to $200,000 on top of your $200,000 mortgage, just in interest,” said Tom Reid, director of consumer solutions, TransUnion.ca, in a release put out Wednesday.

Women and men were equal in giving the correct response, as were Canadians who owned their homes versus those who rented.

Of those polled, Canadians with more education answered correctly more often.

In total about 45 per cent of those interviewed underestimated the cost of interest over the mortgage’s lifetime.

There are ways to save on interest costs. For example, on a $200,000 mortgage, at an interest rate of 6.43 per cent, amortized over 25 years, Canadians opting for weekly payments (instead of monthly payments) would save $40,000 in total interest charges over the course of mortgage.

Or take that same monthly mortgage and amortize it over 20 years, which would increase monthly payments by about $150, and slash more than $40,000 in total interest costs.

Most Expensive House Sold In West Vancouver in 2007

Based on MLS data the most expensive house sold in 2007 in West Vancouver (as of July 25,2007) was for $ 10.5 million.

The house is located at 3430 Ross Crescent was on the market for 46 days and was listed by Jason Soprovich.

New Listings July 18 -23, 2007

Here are the newest listings in West Vancouver:

July 22, 2007 – 4605 Port View Place – $ 988,000 – 3 Bedrooms – 2,728 sf
July 20, 2007 – 555 Inglewood Avenue – $ 1,125,000 – 4 Bedrooms – 3,219 sf
July 20, 2007 – 6472 Marine Drive – $ 849,000 – 2 Bedrooms – 1,155 sf
July 18, 2007 – 751 Burley Place – $ 1,099,000 – 6 Bedrooms – 3,218 sf
July 18, 2007 – 1315 11th Street – $ 995,000 – 3 Bedrooms – 1,640 sf