Without affordable housing, Vancouver risks becoming an economic ghost town
business.financialpost.com
Without affordable housing, Vancouver risks becoming an economic ghost town
1–10 of 629 posts
Re: Without affordable housing, Vancouver risks becoming an economic ghost town
#2I'm curious how this problem is unique to Vancouver. Berlin's real-estate values have risen some 40% in just the last 7 years or so. New York City, in the 10 years I lived there, had an enormous escalation in what you get for the same rent payment, even adjusted for inflation. Big cities deal with this all over, so how do they deal with this "problem," or is Vancouver somehow unique in other ways?
Re: Without affordable housing, Vancouver risks becoming an economic ghost town
#3> There are already enough houses and condos in the city with no lights on because no one actually lives in them.
To me, there seems to be a pretty obvious public policy response. Institute a very high property tax, which is abated on some kind of curve according to the amount of time the owner or tenants spend living in a property, with no tax being due if the property is legitimately occupied for more than, say, ten months.
It might not solve the problem entirely, but at least you would reduce the effect of a diminution of housing supply that is driven by these kinds of absentee owners, and that must be driving up rents, at least.
Re: Without affordable housing, Vancouver risks becoming an economic ghost town
#4Where does the youth diaspora in Vancouver lead to? The suburbs? Other cities in Canada or the US?
Re: Without affordable housing, Vancouver risks becoming an economic ghost town
#5I'm curious how this problem is unique to Vancouver. Berlin's real-estate values have risen some 40% in just the last 7 years or so. New York City, in the 10 years I lived there, had an enormous escalation in what you get for the same rent payment, even adjusted for inflation. Big cities deal with this all over, so how do they deal with this "problem," or is Vancouver somehow unique in other ways?
I think Vancouver's problem is that they don't have a strong economy otherwise. Berlin and new York are bad but at least they offer well paying jobs. That's what I gathered from a coworker who used to live in Vancouver.
Re: Without affordable housing, Vancouver risks becoming an economic ghost town
#6> There are already enough houses and condos in the city with no lights on because no one actually lives in them. To me, there seems to be a pretty obvious public policy response. Institute a very high property tax, which is abated on some kind of curve according to the amount of time the owner or tenants spend living in a property, with no tax being due if the property is legitimately occupied for more than, say, te…
What you're describing is similar to the approach south Florida takes - assume many purchasers are non-residents, and therefore rely on property taxes rather than income taxes to fill the coffer
https://southfloridaforbeginners.wordpress.com/2012/04/04/th...
Re: Without affordable housing, Vancouver risks becoming an economic ghost town
#7I'm curious how this problem is unique to Vancouver. Berlin's real-estate values have risen some 40% in just the last 7 years or so. New York City, in the 10 years I lived there, had an enormous escalation in what you get for the same rent payment, even adjusted for inflation. Big cities deal with this all over, so how do they deal with this "problem," or is Vancouver somehow unique in other ways?
Over the last five years, the Canadian Dollar has declined more against the Yuan than the Euro or USD. It is mentioned in the article. I think that explains why Chinese investors purchase more property in Vancouver than say, Seattle.
Re: Without affordable housing, Vancouver risks becoming an economic ghost town
#8I'm curious how this problem is unique to Vancouver. Berlin's real-estate values have risen some 40% in just the last 7 years or so. New York City, in the 10 years I lived there, had an enormous escalation in what you get for the same rent payment, even adjusted for inflation. Big cities deal with this all over, so how do they deal with this "problem," or is Vancouver somehow unique in other ways?
Vancouver is not unique. Similar problems exist in many cities around the world. Vancouver today is a more vibrant and economically diverse city than it has ever been. The conversation over the direction of the city is contentious pitting the old guard against the new guard, the haves vs the have nots. I would say San Francisco and Seattle have similar issues. And like you say, Berlin and Munich probably have similar problems. Although I'm not sue if Germany is seeing similar large inflows of Chinese capital and immigration.
Re: Without affordable housing, Vancouver risks becoming an economic ghost town
#9I'm curious how this problem is unique to Vancouver. Berlin's real-estate values have risen some 40% in just the last 7 years or so. New York City, in the 10 years I lived there, had an enormous escalation in what you get for the same rent payment, even adjusted for inflation. Big cities deal with this all over, so how do they deal with this "problem," or is Vancouver somehow unique in other ways?
I think Vancouver's problem is that they don't have a strong economy otherwise. Berlin and new York are bad but at least they offer well paying jobs. That's what I gathered from a coworker who used to live in Vancouver.
Exactly, the best job you can get in Vancouver right now is... Real Estate Agent. And you have to speak Mandarin.
Re: Without affordable housing, Vancouver risks becoming an economic ghost town
#10I'm curious how this problem is unique to Vancouver. Berlin's real-estate values have risen some 40% in just the last 7 years or so. New York City, in the 10 years I lived there, had an enormous escalation in what you get for the same rent payment, even adjusted for inflation. Big cities deal with this all over, so how do they deal with this "problem," or is Vancouver somehow unique in other ways?
London is also suffering from gentrification (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gentrification)