Compare Vancouver to World Wide

Keeping track of the Jones worldwide Greater Vancouver’s superb quality of life – its scenic natural beauty, moderate climate and high level of services – make it the third best place to live in the world and the best place in Canada.     That’s according to a new quality of life survey by Mercer Human Resource consulting, which measured 39 indicators including health, education, climate and availability and quality of housing in 215 cities. Only Zurich and Geneva ranked higher.     But is our quality of life making us too popular?     In the past few years, Greater Vancouver has experienced record home sales.     The main drivers have been low interest rates, rising incomes and high consumer confidence.     A shortage of buildable land and product coupled with demand has lead to high home price appreciation.     Is this making Vancouver unaffordable? Right now, the benchmark price of a detached home in Greater Vancouver is $610,382.     We are using year end (2005) numbers in the above chart to ensure comparability.     The average sales price was $655,936 in January. In February it was $705,141. In March it was $699,871.     How does Greater Vancouver stack up when it comes to affordability? By international standards, Vancouver remains very competitive. Over, and over, we’re reminded that timing is everything in real estate. If we’re waiting in hopes that the market may be showing signs of slowing in the coming years or prices may be coming down, consider this. How does Greater Vancouver home prices compare worldwide? Area In Canadian $ REBGV Detached Median price (2005) 490,800 REBGV Detached Average price (2005) 587,972 Calgary REB 1,6 306,271 Anaheim-Santa Ana-Irvine 2,3 838,313 Honolulu 2,3 714,850 New York Manhattan 1,5 3,785,082 New York-Wayne-White Plains 2,3 602,170 San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont 2,3 867,149 San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara 2,3 902,044 London 1,4 748,468 Paris 1,5 1,493,905 Tokyo 1,5 605,805 Sources: REBGV, CREA, CREB, NAR, ODPM, Paris Chamber of Notaries. Notes: REB - Real Estate Board. 1. Average 2. Median 3. Detached 4. Multi-unit dwelling 5. Apartment 6. Dec. 2005 Note: Since benchmark prices are not available worldwide, to compare international home prices, we use the median and average prices.     As the 2010 Olympics draws closer, global attention will focus on Greater Vancouver. As visitors arrive and experience our clean air, sparkling mountains, vast outdoor recreational opportunities and safe environment, our popularity – and our home prices - will likely continue to increase.