Check out this nice luxury home, located in Whistler, BC. A bit pricey but you get what you pay for. My favourite features are
-the 10 foot front door
-the hardwood flooring
-the nice wine cellar
-a room with a full mirror, great for a gym or a dance studio
Check out their site here
A story from CBC speaks about a BMO report that shows the housing prices in Canada is severly overvalued. In Vancouver, home prices have risen 20 percent in the past year to January. I’m not sure about other cities but I think Vancouver will be fine. The strength of Vancouver housing market lies in new money coming in from mainland Chinese buyers. These buyers need a way to get money out of China and one of the best way is to invest in real estate. Vancouver’s relative close distance to China and democratic freedoms are magnets to the Chinese money.
It also doesn’t hurt that Vancouver has once again rated #1 on the list of the world’s most livable city.
If you’ve ever wondered what it takes to become a realtor in Vancouver, I’ve outlined some steps here
Step 1
Check out the BC Real Estate Association and the Real Estate Council of BC website
Step 2
Check out the Real EstateTrading Services Licensing Course you need to pass before you can get your license. The course is offered at UBC and it’s offered online so no need to attend classes if you don’t want to.
Step 3
Calculate the fees required to get licensed
Provincial Fees
These fees are payable directly to the organizations noted.
| Education/Licensing | Organization | Fee |
| Licensing Course Financial calculator |
Real Estate Division, Sauder School of Business, the University of British Columbia | 875.00 60.00 |
| Licencing fee and assessments (two years) | Real Estate Council of British Columbia | 500.00 |
| Errors & Omissions Insurance | 600.00 | |
| Real Estate Compensation Fund Assessment | 100.00 | |
| Residential Trading Services Applied Practice Course or the Commercial Trading Services Applied Practice Course (includes HST) | British Columbia Real Estate Association | 756.00 |
| Total (start-up) | $2,843.75 | |
| Every two years after start-up | $1,200.00 | |
Real Estate Board Fees
These fees are payable directly to the local real estate board and vary throughout the province. They include:
| Fee Description | Fee | HST | Total |
| BCREA new member initiation fee | 150.00 | 18.00 | 168.00 |
| BCREA annual dues | 198.00 | 23.76 | 221.76 |
| The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) new member installation fee | 200.00 | 24.00 | 224.00 |
| CREA annual dues | 220.00 | 26.40 | 246.40 |
| Total (start-up) | 768.00 | 96.16 | 864.16 |
| Yearly after start-up | 418.00 | 50.16 | 468.16 |
Additional real estate board fees may include a board initiation fee, board monthly/annual dues and listing fees.
Check with your local board for specific fee information.
Step 4
Read The Millionaire Real Estate Agent by Gary Keller. Gary Keller started Keller Williams and it’s now of the largest real estate brokerage firms in North America. You’ll read about sales techniques and strategies in selling homes and you’ll see if this is what you really want to call as your career.
The Mark is going to be Yaletown’s tallest tower and it is going to be located at Mainland & Davie in Vancouver. Right now, Onni is previewing The Private Collection, which spans floors 35 to 47 and is the more upscale sibling to The Mark, which spans floors 1-34 in the same building. The Residences start at $359,000 and the Private Collection is from $432,900 to $5.9 million.
Here are some features that stand out in The Mark
-Air Conditioning
-24hr Concierge
-Designed to meet LEED Gold standards
-Concrete construction with modern Rainscreen building technologdy
-Over height ceilings in most homes
-private 10,000 sq ft wellness centre
Some outstanding features of The Private Collection include
-Premium engineered oak hardwood
-High-efficiency front loading washer and dryer
-Multiple high speed internet outlets
-Automated lighting and sound controls with built-in speakers in kitchen
-remote control power for interior roller shades in living and dining rooms
The presentation centre is located at
1035 Seymour Street,
Vancouver, BC
Check out The Mark and The Mark Private Collection
The Vancouver Sun has posted an article that the Millennium Water Olympic Village has gone into receivership. Bob Rennie is also on board to sell these condos.
It’s a nice, new area, but the prices are definitely not cheap.
Here is the link to the article in the Vancouver Sun.
Here is link to Millennium Water if you are interested in checking out their condos. Their Sales Centre is located at
1693 Manitoba Street
Vancouver, BC
