I well remember my first bear encounter when I was still a very young boy. The only bear I had ever seen prior to this encounter was a drawing in a childhood storybook in Holland. My family immigrated to Canada from Holland in the early fifties and moved to a remote hunting and fishing lodge on a lake in north-central British Columbia. My mother worked at this lodge and it was here that I was given my first job at the age of 10.
Jeff Nagel , Burnaby NewsLeader – January 4, 2008
The number of millionaire homes in the Lower Mainland climbed nearly 50 per cent over the past year.
And while Vancouver and West Vancouver again have the most homes assessed at more than $1 million, other cities are gaining at a faster clip.
The number of seven-figure properties more than doubled from a year ago in Richmond, Burnaby,
Alex Rinfret, Queen Charlotte Islands Observer, January, 2008
Strong demand for recreational property all over BC, especially waterfront lots, helped propel property values on the islands to their highest level in many years, perhaps ever.
According to BC Assessment, which mails out assessment notices every January to property owners, most real estate on the Charlottes has increased in value significantly over the past year.
“Most homes on the Queen Charlotte Islands (Haida Gwaii) are worth more on this year’s assessment roll than they were on the 2007 assessment roll,”
Derek Penner, Vancouver Sun, November 19, 2007
The flip in the Canada-U.S. currency advantage is encouraging some American owners of B.C. real estate to take an exchange-rate gain by selling their properties, realtors are beginning to notice.
“We are seeing some activity that is the result of people assessing the exchange-rate situation and deciding to [sell] now rather than later,” said Patrick Kelly, president of Whistler Real Estate.
Joyce Li, GolfNerve, September/October, 2007
(Note: This article was originally in Chinese, and has been translated.)
Before most investors invest in real estate, the stock market or other businesses, they need to collect necessary information. Now days, the internet is one of the tools which may help you. But if you want to get systematic and complete information, you need professional help. Today, I have the opportunity to interview Rudy Nielson,
Grant Wing/Derek Mach, Western Investor, July, 2007
Local technology startups are pressing the global warming hot button in hopes of attracting investment dollars to their green technology business ideas. And the green-tinged interest extends into real estate pitches, where recreational projects are increasingly turning to individual investors.
Reducing global warming and lowering CO2 levels were common goals for several entrepreneurs pitching business ideas to potential investors at a recent Vancouver angel investment forum.
Charlie Smith, Georgia Straight, July 19, 2007
About 20 years ago, Jack Lessinger, a retired University of Washington professor, introduced the term penturbia to readers of the Atlantic Monthly. Penturbia was the fifth great region of colonization in the United States. This followed the movement into the central and southern colonies, then into the Mississippi and Ohio river valleys, then to the great industrial cities, and next into the suburbs of America.
Derek Penner, Vancouver Sun, July 18, 2007
For someone who wants land, lots of land with starry skies above and doesn’t want to be fenced in, the Alexis Creek Ranch may be just the property.
It will have to be a rich someone, however, with a $23.5-million US list price for a working ranch of 104,000 hectares (4,000 hectares deeded and 100,000 acres of range leases) that begins about 80 km west of Williams Lake.
Jeani Read, Vancouver Province, June 24, 2007
Vancouver Island, the Sunshine Coast and the Okanagan remain the most popular buyer targets in B.C. for recreational and retirement property. But buyer attention is going a lot farther afield than these traditional Big Three. Here is a rundown of choice choices, according the experts.
– Interest is increasing in the likes of even the once-distant Queen Charlotte Islands — one of the best buys still available,
Jeani Read and Ashley Ford, with files from Alex Frasier-Harrison, Vancouver Province, June 24, 2007
From the shores of Tofino to the mountainside resorts of the Columbia Valley, B.C. buyers seek out new areas for their recreation properties, and B.C. continues to attract buyers not just from this province, but also from Alberta and the U.S.
“The world has discovered B.C. It really has, and that is not going to change,”