Bubble? What bubble?

Every once in a while it's fun to compare real estate here on the wet coast with other areas.

One of the things you hear right now is that international demand is going to keep pushing Vancouver values up, up, up.

And who can disagree. Eight months of dreary, endless rain make Vancouver a destination paradise.

And if you had the cash... would you want to live here? Or some crappy local like Hawaii?

Let's compare the two, shall we.

Hat tip to Vancouver_Bear who points out that you can currently procure this little 3 bedroom, 2.0 bathroom, 1,568 sq ft single family rancher home in Kailua. It sits on over 9,000 sq. ft. of land and comes with swimming pool, updated kitchen, indoor laundry, and mountain views.

Asking price $725,000 USD. Here are some photos...

Beauty, eh?

Or you can plunk down an extra $625,000 over and above the 'asking' price of that Hawaiian home and get this four bedroom, 1 bathroom, 1300 square foot dump which could easily pass as the local crack shack. It sits on a 1/2 acre property adjacent to the 401 freeway and just north of Canada Way (another freeway) & Sperling.

Available now for only $1,350,000.

I wonder if the ladders are included?

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Email: village_whisperer@live.ca
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Bad Consumer... Bad!

We couldn't help but laugh Monday as we scanned the global newspapers.

Seems the consumer is being faulted for not getting on board with all the 'recession is over' hype.

First it was the London Telegraph.

Bank of England warns of the consequences of thrift, screams the headline. "An attempt by British consumers to rein in spending after the harsh lessons of the recession could limit growth and therefore depress household income further," scolded the British central bank.

Meanwhile the L.A. Times bellowed that Savers need to resume buying habits to aid recovery. "The continuing refusal or inability of millions of American consumers to spend money the way they did before the financial crisis casts a potentially dark shadow over the nation's economic future."

Take note... it's the 'refusal' or 'inability' of savers to spend the way they did before.

Baaad consumer. Get your ass into more debt and do your part.

Not to be left out, CNBC jumped on the blame-the-consumer bandwagon as well. Apparently this winter will feature that old holiday favorite: the Consumer-Who-Stole-Christmas as the outlook for 'US Holiday Spending is Seen as Flat'.

Bah humbug.

Even the battered Japanese consumer doesn't escape unscathed as the New York Times notes that 'Once Slaves to Luxury, Japan Catches Thrift Bug'.

So now we have to ask the most important question. Is there something fundamentally wrong with an economy where more than 70% of all activity comes from personal consumption? Perhaps it's not the consumer that is the problem, but the fundamentals of the economy itself.

Bwahahahaha... what a silly notion.

Now do your part.

Roll up a newspaper, smack yourself over the head and go drop a 'mil on a Vancouver crack shack.

It's the least you can do.

Bonus Feature: Million Dollar Dump of the Day

Won't be an everyday feature, but let's let our eastern cousins see just how whacked-out we are here on the 'wet' coast.

Look at what your missing out on.

Here's a 1900 sq ft. 4 bedroom, 3 bath beauty built in 1951. It's located on the west side of Vancouver at 1030 West 49th Avenue. Asking price: $1,038,000

From the listing description:

"Priced to sell!!! Large lot 55.4 x 119. Completely renovated new roof, double glazed window, new stove & washer. Seller spent 80,000 for updates. Good for holding or build a new home."

I'll leave it to you to try and figure out where the $80,000 in updates was spent.

Just think, a million bucks for a tear-down with a carport.

Here's the mls link.

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Email: village_whisperer@live.ca
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Please read disclaimer at bottom of blog.