There’s no better place in the world to be than Vancouver. The Vancouver real estate market is booming as we wrote about yesterday. There’s always interesting stories in the industry there. Today’s is a new listing, an upmarket condo once owned by Belgian actor and martial artist Jean-Claude Van Damme.
Here are the details, courtesy our friends at Faith Wilson Christie’s International Real Estate, who are listing the property. It’s a five-bedroom, seven-bathroom condo at One Sheraton Wall Centre, priced at just under $10 million. The property combines three suites into one – 4,674 square feet, rocking panoramic views of the ocean, city and North Shore Mountains.
Other features:
- Limestone floors throughout the main living area.
- A formal dining room with coffered ceilings separated from the living room via a double-sided expansive electric fireplace.
- Private study and a chef’s kitchen with built-in appliances and a sizeable centre island.
- Private entrance to the residence (plus a separate lobby and entry for guests).
- Floor-to-ceiling windows, which follow the contours of the building and provide every bedroom with panoramic views of the city below.
- Parking space for six vehicles.
- A sensational master suite that includes a spa-inspired ensuite featuring twin sinks and a 150 sq. ft. dressing room and ambient gas fireplace.
- Family/media room perfect for screening Universal Soldier, Timecop or Kung Fu Panda 3.
- The space comes complete with a fully-loaded wet bar.
New RE/MAX study: Pandemic accelerated luxury home ownership values in major Canadian cities
Demand for luxury properties shifted into high gear in 2021, coast to coast, according to the latest RE/MAX study. It’s amazing, when you look at it, how the pandemic has shifted people’s focus to real estate investment in this country. More and more real estate is seen as a safe refuge to put your money. Your home is your retirement, in a sea of instability, sickness, lockdowns, death. Some day there will be substantive studies done on the psychological impact of the Covid spread. Right now we’re seeing it play out in real time.
For the ultra-wealthy, real estate is an essential asset class in investment portfolios, typically multi-unit residential, commercial, industrial, and land.
“The currency of home ownership has clearly taken on a new dimension in 2021,” says Christopher Alexander, President, RE/MAX Canada. “Canadians are moving to secure their future. The pandemic fuelled a run on real estate that has encompassed every segment of the market. And the value of housing has increased exponentially as a result. That’s not only as a form of shelter but a desirable asset class that provides an attractive return on investment.”
Barrie, London, Kitchener-Waterloo, Hamilton lead the charge
The study examined trends in the sales of freehold and condos priced over $3 million in the Greater Toronto Area and the Vancouver real estate market, and tracked sales over $1 million in 17 other housing markets. In 18 of those 19 markets there were double- and triple-digit price increases.
Top of the charts, in terms of appreciation? Barrie, London, Kitchener-Waterloo and Hamilton, where sales of homes priced over $1 million have climbed 517.8 per cent, 255.1 per cent, 208 per cent and 199.5 per cent respectively.
Toronto and Vancouver lead the charge
Canada’s largest markets for luxury product – the Greater Toronto Area and Metro Vancouver real estate – experienced increases of 112.8 per cent and 75.8 per cent respectively for homes over the $3-million price point. Transactions of homes priced over $10 million rose a substantial 156 per cent and 167 per cent respectively. The only outlier was Charlottetown, where sales over $1 million declined to four units, down from seven unit sales one year earlier.
“Despite a third and fourth wave of Covid-19 in 2021, real estate markets continued to rattle and hum,” says Elton Ash, Executive Vice President, RE/MAX Canada. “Tight inventory levels were prevalent in at least half of the markets we surveyed and contributed to an uptick in values across much of the country. More so than ever before, it appears that buying a home is a retirement strategy which many people believe will help that next generation achieve home ownership.”
RE/MAX brokers pointed to economic drivers, tied to a national vaccine rollout. Stock markets rallied, interest rates remained at historic lows, and businesses in 2021 gradually re-opened their doors.
Top image (Van Damme): Shutterstock
