BC real estate association forcasts 21 per cent decline

Steve Randall
Canadian Real Estate Wealth

While some areas may be showing signs of recovery from the impact of the mortgage stress tests introduced at the start of this year, that is not the case in British Columbia.

The province’s real estate association says that its forecast for 2018 is a 21% decline in home sales through its MLS to 82,000 compared to the record 103,768.

An 82K total would also mean 2018 sales fall below the 10-year average of 84,800.

“The BC housing market is grappling with a sharp decline in affordability caused by tough B20 stress test rules for conventional mortgages,” said Cameron Muir, BCREA Chief Economist. “While these rules have had a negative effect on housing demand across the country, the impact has been especially severe in BC’s large urban centres because of already strained housing affordability.”

2019 is looking better There is improvement ahead though with BCREA’s forecast calling for an 8% rise in MLS home sales in 2019 to 88,700.

Overall, the association says that market fundamentals remain strong with low unemployment, a growing cohort of millennials wanting to become homeowners, and growing confidence and wealth.

Additionally, the downturn in sales has given inventory a boost. Active listings were up almost 20% in July having been at decade lows and that means that most markets have trended towards balanced conditions. Even Vancouver has seen 30% rise in active listings year-over-year.

Upward pressure on prices has also eased allowing some improvement in affordability.

Copyright © 2018 Key Media Pty Ltd

The Canadian Real Estate Market by location

Penelope Graham
other

From a big picture perspective, it would seem the Canadian real estate market is poised for optimism; the latest crop of July data from the national real estate association points to strengthening sales activity and price growth, as buyers recuperate from the impact of stricter mortgage rules and affordability-slashing policy changes.

After a tepid start to the year, national home sales improved for the third month in a row, reports the Canadian Real Estate Association, edging up 1.9 per cent from June, with prices increasing by 1 per cent to an average of $481,500.

For individual buyers and sellers, however, national data doesn’t necessarily reflect market conditions in their own regions. In order to make a truly informed decision, it’s important to know what’s happening on a local level – something an aggregate snapshot can’t provide. For example, while CREA’s latest numbers hint at a recovery, much of that improvement is skewed by conditions in the Toronto and Greater Golden Horseshoe regions, in sharp contrast to slower activity in Vancouver and much of the Atlantic provinces.

Instead, activity at a local level can be more effectively measured using the sales-to-new-listings ratio: calculated by dividing the number of sales by the number of new listings over a specific time frame, this metric reveals what percentage of newly-listed homes are being snapped up, or are languishing on the market. This helps provide buyers and sellers insight to the level of competition they’ll face when entering the market.

According to CREA, a ratio between 40 – 60 per cent indicates a balanced market, while above and below that threshold indicate sellers’ and buyers’ conditions, respectively.

Canada as a whole remains in balanced territory, with a ratio of 56 per cent. That’s skewed slightly more toward a sellers’ market than the 55 per cent recorded in July 2017.

However, this differs widely in the 26 main markets tracked by CREA, as factors such as incomes, housing supply, and local economies underpin demand for real estate; a seller in Newfoundland faces a very different reality than one in Victoria, for example. So, from sea to shining sea, which are the best markets in Canada to be a buyer or seller – and which have changed dramatically over the past year?

The Top 5 Markets for Buyers

While the following Census Market Areas may not be the most affordable in Canada, they do boast the lowest sales-to-new-listings ratios throughout the nation, indicating the lowest level of buyer competition. Those looking to ascend the property ladder in these cities will encounter fewer competitive hurdles such as bidding wars, as the number of sales are too few to outweigh new inventory. Sales activity ranges from roughly flat to steep declines, from the -0.8 per cent recorded in the Edmonton real estate market, to the -33.4-per-cent drop in BC’s Fraser Valley.

1. Newfoundland and Labrador: 35%
2. Greater Vancouver: 43%
3. Fraser Valley: 45%
4. Edmonton: 48%
5. Quebec CMA: 49%

The Top 5 Markets for Sellers

Good news for those looking to list in these CMAs; in these strong sellers’ markets, your home likely won’t linger for long, and is more likely to draw in multiple offers, as strong buyer demand outstrips the number of homes available for sale. Some regions, such as the Ottawa real estate market, are becoming especially popular for their supply of affordable single-family homes, drawing a steady stream of buyers from more expensive neighbouring municipalities.

1. London and St. Thomas: 78%
2. Montreal: 73%
3. Ottawa: 72% and Trois Rivieres: 72%
4. Windsor-Essex: 71%
5. Saguenay CMA: 70%

Markets with the Greatest Year-Over-Year Declines

The last couple of years have been tumultuous in real estate markets across Canada, as a new mortgage stress test has further crimped affordability for borrowers of new mortgages. British Columbia, in particular, has weathered considerable challenges, as tougher mortgage hurdles compound with foreign buyer and speculation taxes, making steep affordability even more acute, and dampening home buyer demand. The following markets have seen the greatest year-over-year declines in their sales-to-new-listings ratios, indicating faster rates of cooling competition.

1. Fraser Valley: y-o-y change of -15%
2. Greater Vancouver: y-o-y change of -13%
3. Victoria: y-o-y change of -11%
4. Winnipeg: y-o-y change of -8%
5. Niagara Region: y-o-y change of -4%

Markets with the Greatest Year-Over-Year Increases

The ratios in these markets reflect heating conditions, with a healthy uptick in sales, well offsetting any new product placed on the market. These are housing markets to watch for, as positive underlying fundamentals support growing popularity. Comparative affordability appears to be a factor: each of the following markets boasts an average price hundreds of thousands of dollars below Toronto and Vancouver, Canada’s largest markets.

1. Saguenay: y-o-y change of +21%
2. Sudbury: y-o-y change of +18%
3. Gatineau: y-o-y change of +17%
4. Halifax-Dartmouth: y-o-y change of +11%
5. Saskatoon: y-o-y change of +10% and Saint John: y-o-y change of +10%

© 2015-2017 Zoocasa Realty Inc.

BCREA 2018 Third Quarter Housing Forecast Update

BCREA

The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) released its 2018 Third Quarter Housing Forecast Update today.

 

Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) residential sales in the province are orecast to decline 21per cent to 82,000 units this year, after recording 103,768 residential sales in 2017. MLS®  residential sales are forecast to increase 8 per cent to 88,700 units in 2019. The 10-year average for MLS® residential sales in the province is 84,800 units.

“The BC housing market is grappling with a sharp decline in affordability caused by tough B20 stress test rules for conventional mortgages,” said Cameron Muir, BCREA Chief Economist. “While these rules have had a negative effect on housing demand across the country, the impact has been especially severe in BC’s large urban centres because of already strained housing affordability.”

In spite of the policy-driven downturn in housing demand, strong fundamentals continue to underpin the market. Demographics are highly favourable, especially the millennial generation who are now entering their household-forming years. In addition, low unemployment is leading to significant upward pressure on wages and, by extension, household wealth and confidence.

The pullback in BC home sales is helping alleviate a chronic shortage of supply. After trending at decade lows, active listings in the province were up nearly 20 per cent in July. The combination of slower housing demand and an increase in the inventory of homes for sale has trended most markets toward balanced conditions. This means more selection for home buyers, fewer multiple offer situations and less upward pressure on home prices.

Zolo and BFG take the stage

Broker Financial Group
Mortgage Broker News

It’s no secret, buying a home is exciting but stressful. While getting keys to your new place is super-exciting, applying for a mortgage is arguably everyone’s least favourite part of the process — a situation made worse by recent changes to mortgage regulations.

According to a recent study released by the Mortgage Professionals of Canada, approximately 100,000 Canadians were prevented from buying a place in 2018, due to the new mortgage stress test.

“It’s hard for us, as professional real estate agents, to spend days, weeks, even months helping our buyer find the perfect place only to have their dreams smashed because of strict finance qualification rules,” explains Mustafa Abbasi, president of Zolo Realty.

To help streamline this process, Zolo Realty launched Zolo Mortgages. Buyers working with Zolo real estate agents will get immediate access to Broker Financial Group’s more than 900 agents in more than 60 brokerages across Ontario.

Already, more than five million home shoppers start their real estate search using Zolo. By getting real-time data and professional expertise and resources, these buyers make better-informed property decisions. The addition of Zolo Mortgages means these buyers can confidently purchase a home with the knowledge that the financial part of the equation is also taken care of, explains Abbasi.

Home buyers aren’t the only ones to benefit. As a partner with Broker Financial Group, agents of Zolo Mortgages can place all types of mortgages including purchases, refinances, equity takeouts, debt consolidations, renewals and mortgages for self-employed.  

“We know that five in 10 renters expect to purchase a home in the next five years,” says Abbasi. “Applying for a mortgage is arguably everyone’s least-favourite and least-understood part of the process. By working with Zolo, these buyers get a seamless, integrated and holistic approach, which is necessary given that the days of easy credit and super-fast housing sales won’t be around forever.”

Copyright © 2018 Key Media

Century 21 Canada partners with Zillow

Brian Rushton
REM

Earlier this year, Century 21 Canada announced an exciting partnership with Zillow, the largest online real estate network in the U.S. We’re thrilled to lead the way as Zillow’s first Canadian partner.

However, often with innovation and change comes uncertainty, and we know many of you have questions around what Zillow coming to town means for us, our clients and the industry. So, I want to tell you why we are partnering with Zillow and clarify a few major misconceptions and inaccuracies I’ve heard bubbling within the industry.

First and foremost, Century 21 Canada’s brokers and agents serve home sellers and home buyers and when new innovations that can improve the home selling and buying experience come along, C21 embraces those innovations. Zillow is by far the most recognized real estate portal in the U.S. and has a great many buyers searching for real estate from other parts of the world (over 100 million international visits last year) as well. By partnering with Zillow, C21 agents will expose their listings to a much wider audience, at no cost.

Zillow Group’s brands receive an average of 186 million unique users every month. Zillow has the tools, resources, brand recognition and massive traffic that will bring unprecedented global exposure for C21 listings and our agents. This is a huge advantage for us. We are very excited about this partnership and I know our clients and home sellers will be too.

What’s more, despite the false statements I’ve heard from some of my peers in the industry who are currently not partnering with Zillow, agents do NOT “buy” back leads on their own listings. C21 listing agents – and all listing agents on Zillow for that matter – will be prominently displayed on their listing. Brokerage information as well as specific information about the listing agent is always featured on the listings. It also does NOT cost money to put a for-sale listing on Zillow.

So why not just use Realtor.ca? Well, Realtor.ca is a great portal that we all own and CREA operates on our behalf. But it has never been a stellar consumer experience and is certainly not anywhere near as well-known outside of Canada as Zillow. And if all the listings from all 127,000 Realtors in Canada are on it – what differentiation is it providing to you when you’re competing for your next listing?

C21 has always led the way when it comes to technology innovation. Today, for example; we don’t simply provide our agents a list of vendors to choose from for full websites or CRM or marketing tools. We believe to provide the most consistent and professional consumer experience, every C21 broker and agent should have all the tools, tech and training they need to be successful – right from the day they start until the day they retire.

This fall C21 is launching REW (Real Estate Webmasters) websites and blogs with fully integrated CRM and marketing centre (with hundreds of instantly customizable print, email and social media marketing pieces) for every C21 broker and agent across Canada. It’s all included at no extra charge.

Instead of relying on simple DDF (data distribution facility) for our broker and agent sites, C21 Canada has invested in direct data feeds from every MLS in the country to ensure the most timely and accurate listing data and full IDX (internet data exchange) feeds where possible that provide far superior data sets.

So, what’s the downside of partnering with Zillow and investing in such a vast array of other tech and training differentiators for C21 brokers and agents? Nothing. Unless of course, you’re not a C21 broker or agent.

© 2017 REM Real Estate Magazine

One-fifth of transactions wiped off the board; separate study finds nearly one-fifth of buyers pushed out of market by stress test

Joannah Connolly
Western Investor

t may be no coincidence that one forecast issued August 20 is predicting a decline in B.C. home sales this year of around 20 per cent, while a separate study has found 18 per cent of would-be home buyers are being locked out of the market by the new mortgage stress test.

MLS residential sales across the province are expected to be 21 per cent lower in 2018 than in 2017, dropping from more than 100,000 to around 82,000 transactions this year, according to a new forecast by the British Columbia Real Estate Association.

The BCREA lays the blame for this squarely at the feet of the mortgage qualification stress test that was introduced for all home buyers in January 2018. This requires that all mortgage applicants qualify for a mortgage at a higher rate than they will actually pay, to ensure their ability to continue payments in case of financial difficulties or future interest rate rises. However, it also has the effect of reducing the amount that home buyers are able to borrow, by up to 20 per cent.

The BCREA’s report said, “The impact of stringent mortgage qualification rules on conventional mortgage borrowers introduced this year has severely eroded affordability and the purchasing power of many potential home buyers. The resulting shock to housing demand is expected to temper home sales through the rest of the year.”

The BCREA’s forecast follows a Canada-wide report issued recently by the Mortgage Professionals of Canada (MPC), which said that the stricter mortgage rules are leaving 18 per cent of home buyers out of the market.

“The stress tests mean that many prospective buyers will have to borrow less than they planned to, and which they can afford,” said report author, Will Dunning, MPC’s chief economist. “They will need to either find more funds for down payments, or buy less expensive properties.”

The MPC’s stance is that a stress test is a good idea to ensure buyers don’t overstretch themselves, but the qualifying rate used is too onerous, especially for first-time home buyers.

MPC president and CEO Paul Taylor said, “We support a stress test, albeit at a reduced rate of 0.75 per cent [above the mortgage contract rate], as it is a useful tool to test a borrower’s ability to make future payments. However, the cumulative impact of rising rates, a two percentage or greater stress test, provincial government rules in Ontario and British Columbia, and further lending restrictions are negatively supressing housing activity not just in Toronto and Vancouver, but throughout the country.”

However, for buyers, there is a clear upside to the suppressed sales activity, observed the BCREA. That’s a significant increase in home supply and, if not an actual reduction in home values, at least “less upward pressure on prices.”

The BCREA’s report concluded, “The pullback in BC home sales is helping alleviate a chronic shortage of supply. After trending at decade lows last year, active listings in the province were up nearly 20 per cent in July. Even the supply-strapped Vancouver market has experienced a 30 per cent increase in active listings over the past year… This means more selection for home buyers, fewer multiple-offer situations and less upward pressure on home prices.”

Copyright © 2018 Western Investor

Lower rents can be attained by reducing unit size

Neil Sharma
Canadian Real Estate Wealth

A new report from Rentals.ca reveals that, in the one-bedroom category, Toronto rents have surpassed Vancouver’s, but the latter’s two-bedroom units are still Canada’s most expensive.

“Toronto has been a hot market,” said Matt Danison, CEO of Rentals.ca. “The prices keep going up and up and up. Toronto and Vancouver are always battling for the top rents in the country; it’s always neck and neck. Toronto overtook Vancouver for the month July.”

The average one-bedroom in Toronto costs $1,862 to rent, while in Vancouver it’s a hair lower at $1,833. A two-bedroom unit in Vancouver rents for an average of $2,583 a month, and for $2,193 Toronto.

That Toronto and Vancouver jokey for the unceremonious title of most expensive rental city in Canada is a consequence of supply shortages in both cities. Danison has a solution that could offer some relief, albeit in a limited capacity.

“New rental buildings have to have a different approach in that, like Manhattan, the square footage has to be a lot smaller than it is. That way, you can include more rental units in a building by cutting the square footage. Instead of living in a 900 square foot apartment with super high rent, you can cut the rent by reducing the square footage to 650.”

Danison concedes tight quarters aren’t ideal, but then again, neither are escalating rents. Plus, buildings with smaller units tend to offer better amenities.

Moreover, because his idea is not unprecedented, he believes that Toronto and Vancouver should take a page out of Montreal’s playbook.

Tobias Smulders, a sales representative REMAX Escarpment Realty Inc., not only believes smaller units are ideal for single people, they will help cities like Toronto fulfill their intensification mandates.

“You could do more by increasing overall intensification,” he said. “All these buildings they’re constructing should not be limited in height as much as they are. An issue we have here in Hamilton is they don’t want to allow developers to build what they propose. If they apply for 40 storeys, they’ll get approved for something like 20 storeys.”

Copyright © 2018 Key Media Pty Ltd

10 per cent of your salary goes to property taxes

other

Imagine setting aside 10 percent of your salary every year towards paying property taxes on your home. Well, that is a reality for some homeowners in the tri-state area.

Homeowners in New York City’s affluent Westchester suburb pay on average $15,000 in annual property taxes, which is comparable to about 10 percent of the average adjusted gross income of $148,775, according to Bloomberg’s analysis of 2015-2016 IRS filings, the most recent available.

Manhattan, or New York county, is a close second, where homeowners there pay about $14,400 in annual real estate taxes. Yet, filers in the city make on average $60,000 more per year than their suburban neighbors, meaning that a smaller share of their income goes towards paying property taxes. Half of the homes in Manhattan were valued more than $1.3 million at the end of 2015.

Two more counties in New York, five in New Jersey and one in Connecticut round out the top ten highest counties for taxes in the tri-state area.

Potential homeowners must weigh the costs between renting and buying. In recent years, rising home values across the country have hindered some renters from purchasing. In fact, the renter rate rose five percentage points to 36 percent from 2006 to 2016, according to an early August report released by Zillow. Further, as home values rise, so do property taxes which are a function of the home’s assessed value, increasing the difficulties of purchasing a property.

For the time period this data was collected, homeowners could deduct their entire primary residence property tax bill. But this year, things are different, the tax changes that went into effect at the start of the year include a $10,000 cap on deductions for state and local income tax.

Homeowners who face annual property taxes above $10,000 may feel constrained in the coming years as long as the legislation remains in place and home values continue to rise. Local governments may face pressure to constrain future property tax bills too. On average, state and local governments collect $1,518 per capita in property taxes, but collections vary widely by state, according to the Tax Foundation. Property taxes are particularly high in the Northeast with each of the New England states ranked among the the highest in the country on a per capita basis.

Bloomberg looked at IRS data for counties with more than 50 individual income tax returns that contained real estate taxation information as of the 2015 filing season, and with at least 200 home-owning households according to the latest Census survey. More than 3,000 counties met the criteria to be evaluated.

To be sure, the IRS data only provides the average real estate taxes paid, which can be skewed particularly in counties where exorbitantly-valued homes dotted the upper spectrum of the housing markets.

While the New York City metropolitan area remains a desirable place to live, neighbors outside of the immediate megacity region aren’t so lucky. Bloomberg’s analysis of Census data on median real taxes payment relative to home value, both as of 2015 data, shows the burden of owning a roof over your head particularly troublesome in Western New York. 

Copyright Bloomberg News

Copyright © 2018 Key Media Pty Ltd

High on the outlooks at Brooklyn at Bernard Block

Michael Bernard
The Vancouver Sun

Brooklyn at Bernard Block

Project address: 1471 St. Paul St., Kelowna

Project scope: A total of 178 condo homes in a 25-storey commercial-residential highrise in downtown Kelowna, the first of three buildings on the 1.5-acre site. Panoramic views of the city, Okanagan Lake and the surrounding mountains. Rooftop terrace for residents with outside seating and indoor club lounge amenities. Walking distance to restaurants, boutique shops, waterfront walks and city park

Price: One bedroom, one-bed and den and two-bed homes (491 to 871 sq. ft.) with some sub-penthouses. From $349,900 to $669,900 for two-bed homes. Sub-penthouses from $599,900

Developer: Mission Group

Architect: NSDA Architecture

Interior Design: i3 Design

Sales Centre: 560 Bernard Ave., Kelowna

Hours: By appointment and website registration

Website: http://www.liveatbrooklyn.com

Completion Date: winter/spring 2021

Normally, the best views from the top floor of a concrete highrise are reserved for those willing to pay the top price for a penthouse suite. But in Kelowna, a progressive developer is opening up that favoured space to all the owners of the new building’s 178 suites.

The top floor of Mission Group’s 25-storey concrete highrise—Brooklyn at Bernard Block—will boast the city’s highest rooftop terrace and indoor lounge. At 200 feet up, residents will enjoy views of the city below and a panoramic vista of Okanagan Lake and the surrounding mountains. The terrace will also feature barbecue facilities and a firepit with seating, while the indoor lounge will have 12-foot-high ceilings and a kitchen and lounge facility.

“The best views are from the top floor, so why not give that space to the residents rather than to a penthouse?” asks Luke Turri, Mission Group’s vice-president of development.

The idea for putting the lounge on top was inspired by examples in New York, where putting such amenities high up is becoming more of a trend, Turri said.

That’s not the only feature that distinguishes Brooklyn from other highrise projects in the city’s downtown core, including Mission Group’s own projects, such as the nearby 20-storey tower Ella being built on Bernard.

The sizing of the suites in each building is also different. Most of Brooklyn’s suites will fall into a range of one-bedroom homes from 491 square feet up to a two-bedroom, two-bath corner model at 871 square feet, with a handful of sub-penthouse offerings. Ella’s suites range more broadly from 311 square feet for a studio to 2,115 for the penthouse.

The price range for each building reflects the different markets to which Mission Group is appealing. For Brooklyn, Mission Group is aiming to attract single and professional couples who seek the urban lifestyle with selling prices ranging from $349,900 to $669,900. By contrast, Ella was intended to appeal not only to first-time buyers with studios at $269,900, but also to well-heeled downsizers able to pay up to $2 million for a penthouse.

Another feature Mission Group expects will attract buyers is the freedom for owners to offer their homes as short-term rentals, Turri said. The in-fill project is being built on property zoned for hotel use, which made it easier for city council to approve rentals shorter than a month.

Turri said the downtown core is already attracting young buyers who are drawn to the Okanagan city of 130,000 by opportunities in a rapidly growing high-tech industry, which now accounts for more than 6,500 jobs in the region and more than $1 billion in economic activity. Add to that magnet, the arrival of large employers such as Interior Health Authority and the RCMP, which has expanded its divisional presence in the city.

Turri said Kelowna’s $14-million revitalization of Bernard Avenue has also contributed to the accelerated densification of the city’s downtown core. It also accounts for the high 98 out of 100 walk score accorded to the building.

“This trend of going up, not out, is not something you need to convince people of anymore,” said Turri, who formerly worked for the city’s planning department when it envisioned the massive renovation of the downtown core. “That conversation has passed.

“Now we are getting into a more sophisticated urban community here where we are not being asked whether the building should be 20 storeys or 23 storeys. It’s more about what can the building and the streetscape bring to the community here.”

The building, located on a lot formerly occupied by a bargain retail outlet and before that a Woolworth store, will have a distinctly traditional exterior look compared to the more modern appearance of Ella. It earns its New York namesake from its use of red brick and black railing features.

Inside, there are two colour choices offered by i3 Interiors, premium wide-plank vinyl flooring throughout the main areas and carpeting in the bedrooms. Kitchens feature quartz countertops complemented by subway-tiled backsplashes. All homes feature designer stainless steel appliances, including a counter-depth fridge, built-in wall oven, cooktop and dishwasher, and matte black finish cabinet hardware and faucet.

Bathrooms feature designer floor tiles, quartz countertops with undermount sinks and black faucets, black-framed mirror and towel bars. Subway tile surrounds are used for tubs and showers.

Individually controlled heat pumps in each home provide personalized heating and cooling and include heat-recovery ventilation to maximize energy efficiency. Hot water, supplied by a central hot water system is included in the strata fee.

Secure parking spaces, separated from retail parking for the businesses in the building, are provided for every home.

While Mission Group has been holding meet-and-greet sessions in Vancouver and Kelowna this summer, appointments have been through website registration. Sales will formally begin in early next month.

© 2018 Postmedia Network Inc.

Marquise takes a convenient west-side location

Kathleen Freimond
The Vancouver Sun

Project: Marquise

Project address: 495 West King Edward Avenue

Project city: Vancouver

Developer: Blairmore Development Group

Architect: GBL Architects Inc.

Interior designer: Portico Design Group Ltd.

Project size: 58 units (seven townhomes, 51 condos)

Bedrooms: one, two and three bedrooms

Unit size: 620 to 1,360 square feet

Price: one-bedroom from $795,900; two-bedroom from $1,289,900; three-bedroom townhomes from $1,949,900. Penthouses on request

Sales centre: 4033 Cambie Street

Sales centre hours: Noon to 5 p.m., Sat — Thurs

Phone: 604-359-4689

Website: marquiseliving.com

Blairmore, the developer of a new low-rise on West King Edward Avenue on Vancouver’s west side, likens the location to a jewel and continues that theme by naming the project for a classic diamond cut: Marquise.

“We see it as the jewel of Cambie corridor,” says David Zigelman, Key Marketing’s director, marketing operations.

“The location is almost an equal distance between Oakridge Mall and Vancouver City Hall. It’s steps from King Edward SkyTrain station [on the Canada Line], a few minutes walk to Cambie Village and Queen Elizabeth Park and a 10-minute walk to Hillcrest Community Centre.”

The natural topography of the area, rising and then plateauing toward the 52-hectare Queen Elizabeth Park, results in the single-family homes in the area being slightly lower than the six-storey Marquise, allowing for unobstructed views, Zigelman says.

Construction of the 58-unit development — coincidentally, the same number of facets on a marquise-cut diamond, points out Zigelman — is expected to start later this year.

Marquise comprises a condo building with a four-storey podium and two additional floors that accommodate the sub-penthouse and penthouse levels, plus seven townhomes along the laneway on the north side of the property.

Designed by GBL Architects, Marquise will be a contemporary architectural style with concrete construction, while the exterior of the two penthouse floors will be differentiated with copper-coloured metal panels. The townhomes will also be concrete construction, and all have rooftop decks.

“The penthouse and sub-penthouse levels are really the crown of the project,” Zigelman says. “These suites all have beautiful patios or balconies directly off the living room. The penthouses, in addition to a balcony, also have rooftop decks,” he adds.

With views of Queen Elizabeth Park or the Vancouver skyline, the one-, two- and three-bedroom homes have large windows and sliding glass doors to let in plenty of natural light, while individually controlled air conditioning and heating will keep residents comfortable through the changing seasons.

Homebuyers have the choice of two colour palettes for the interiors.

“Both colour palettes consist largely of warm tones which allows the space to feel open and bright,” interior designer Jamie Judd of Portico Design Group says.

‘Clarity’, seen in the show suite at 4033 Cambie Street, features light oak engineered hardwood floors while the ‘Colour’ option has darker floors and cabinetry.

Judd says the design concept for Marquise was to create a sophisticated and elegant look to appeal to a range of homebuyers.

“The minimal use of hardware, smooth finishes and creative millwork contributes to the contemporary design,” she says.

The flat-profile baseboards and door trim and flat-panel doors in the bedrooms, bathrooms and closets, support the modern esthetic. Wide-plank engineered hardwood floors will run throughout the living areas, while neutral coloured wool-blend carpeting will be soft underfoot in the bedrooms.

In the kitchen, dual-tone cabinets – veneer-wood lowers and contrasting lacquered uppers – maximize storage. A mechanized opening system eases access to the upper cabinets while the touch-to-open Legrabox drawer system [requiring no hardware] enhances the kitchen’s clean look. Corner cabinets feature Magic Corners – a shelving unit that slides out – making it easy to access the contents.

The quartz countertop on the perimeter cabinets is also used as a slab backsplash and on the island with its waterfall edges.

 “I chose the quartz [Milano by Lido] because I wanted something warm and light but that still had unique character. The tones in the veining/aggregate tie in well with the colour of the accent cabinetry to create a cohesive design,” Judd adds.

While the size of the kitchen island varies according to floor plan, the five-foot long example in the sales centre gives potential homebuyers a good idea of its functionality. It features a double undermount stainless steel sink with a stylish Kallista pull-down chrome faucet while the generous overhang provides the all-important knee space that’s necessary to accommodate a few pull-up counter stools. It’s also home to the dishwasher, concealed behind an integrated panel to match the cabinetry.

The high-end appliance package by Miele includes a gas cooktop, wall-mounted oven and refrigerator. The penthouses will also include an under-counter wine fridge.

In the ensuite bathroom shown at the sales centre, the marble-inspired 24- by 24-inch porcelain wall tiles, double sinks with wall-mounted Kallista faucets and the six- by 24-inch floor tiles laid in a herringbone pattern give the space a spa-like ambience.

In the main bathrooms, large-format tiles are specified for the floor and walls. Judd says the tiles on the walls are polished to reflect light, while those on the floor are a slip-resistant matte finish. “By using both polished and matte there is a juxtaposition of texture which highlights the unique characteristics of both tiles,” Judd says.

The development will also include a variety of amenities such as a fifth-floor party room with indoor kitchen and dining room. This entertainment area will open on to the roof deck, which comprises an outdoor kitchen and barbecue and garden plots.

On the ground floor there is a business centre.

“If you’re looking for a quiet area to get some work done this is a great space. There’s a boardroom table, work stations and an Internet connection,” Zigelman says.

All homes include parking in the underground parkade where several parking stalls feature electric vehicle charging stations. There is also secure bike storage.

© 2018 Postmedia Network Inc.