Richmond Condo News

Richmond Regency Park was Richmond's premier concrete 17 storey high-rise project that was built more than 30 years ago. For many years. the 3 high-rise towers were one of the most outstanding land-marks in Richmond city Center. Residents on the higher floors at Regency Park Towers can enjoy sweeping views of Richmond and the snow-capped mountains of Northshore and Mt. Bakers.

In spite of its age, Richmond Regency Park is still a favourite residence for many of its residents.

Prime Richmond City Center Location

Richmond Regency Park towers are located in Richmond City Centre, and to the east of Richmond Centre Shopping Mall. The high-rise towers are within walking distance to Minoru Park, Richmond main library, Minoru Community Centre, Richmond Aquatic Center, Ice Skating Arena and Richmond Center Mall.

Over the past few years, many more high-rise condos like Acqua, Ocean Walk, Lotus Living, Versante' Hampton Park, etc were built in and around Richmond City Center. Richmond Regency Park Towers compared very favourably on location, amenities and being next to scenic Minoru Park. Richmond Regency Park condos are affordable alternative residences for home owners who prefer living in the City Centre of Richmond.

The convenience of Richmond Centre Shopping Mall, the soon to be completed Skytrain transit system, public amenities, etc enhance the attractiveness of having a residence at Richmond Regency Park Towers.

Price History

The appearance of Regency Park Towers may not be as appealing as compared to the new condos. But, compared with the newer condos around Richmond's City Center, the selling price per sq ft at Richmond Park Towers at just around $300 per sq ft is un-beatable. The following table summarized the condo prices from 2005 to present:

The Regency Park towers cost around $300 per sq ft, and this compared favourably with current new condos' prices around $450 to $500 per sq ft. A smart home buyer who desires a more comtemporary home can spend a moderate sum of money to remodel and up-date his/her condo. Some buyers will pay a higher price for units that are on higher floors that have panoraic view of the Minoru Park and the snow-capped mountains.

If you like to have more information on the condos available for sale at Richmond Regency Park, kindly email me.

Richmond BC warehouses are in demand by business owners and investors.

The market for warehouses and commercial and Industrial properties in general are very different from residential properties. The capital appreciation for such properties is keeping pace with the rate of inflation. And in areas of high growth, the appreciation in property values is much higher.

Warehouses that are built to cater to business owners are designed to provide a show room at the front and warehouse space at the back of the building. Most also have office space on the mezzanine floor or second floor just above the showroom.

The smaller Richmond warehouses have between 1,500 to 1,800 sq ft on the ground floor and between 500 to 750 sq ft on the mezzanine or second floor.

The market activities on warehousing are centered on the sale and leasing of warehouses to business corporations and business owners.Business owners prefer to own their own premises if ownership makes more sense to them.

Business corporations that are established and profitable will want to buy their own business premises rather than continue to pay rent for their warehouses. Click here to view some richmond warehouses available for sale or lease.

Warehouse Financing

Unlike residential properties, the financing and capital appreciation of industrial buildings and warehouses are different from residential properties. For some real estate investors, there are certain aspects of commercial and industrial property investments that are appealing to them.

If you are interested to have more information on strata warehouses or industrial buildings for sale or for lease in Richmond, you are welcomed to contact James Wong at 604-721-4817.

Richmond Terra Nova Neighborhood

This is a planned residential sub-division to the north west corner of Richmond. The residential homes here are consisted of single family houses, townhouses and some co-op (under Richmond's social housing guideline) townhouse units. Development works started in 1990 and by 1992 home buyers took possession of their new homes.

Historical Prospective - 1992 to 1995

The earliest sub-division where the new homes were built were around the Cornwall sub-division. The lot sizes were mostly from around 5,500 to 6,600 sq ft and the built up area ranged from around 3,000 to 3,400 sq ft.

There were a few homes on larger lots with built up area just over 4,000 sq ft. Most of these homes were designed with 2 garages, 4 or 5 bedrooms and 3 to 5 bathrooms.

From 1992 to late 1995, home prices in Terra Nova followed the market uptrend cycle. From the base price around $400,000 - $450,000 in early 1992, single family home prices in Terra Nova gradually increased to the peak price level around $550,000. The market took a turn towards the end of 1995 and started the long decline until 2001. During this period, home prices in Terra Nova held on to their values quite well. Homes owners who sold during this period were selling their homes at $450,000 to $500,000 range.

Buying Interest Returned in 2001

Home prices in Richmond started to rise after 2001. By 2003, detached home prices in Terra Nova were changing hand at around $600,000. More gains were recorded every year after that ,pushing home prices higher to $700,000 and then $800,000 range in 2005. By 2007 most single family homes in Terra Nova between 2,750 t 4,000 sq ft were selling at $900,000 range. Current prices are holding steady at close to $1,000,000.

There were a few homes sold at $1,2000,000 range and the larger homes on River Road with great river and mountain views were sold at $1,500,000 range recently.

The gains in home prices in Terra Nova had been spectacular. Townhomes in Terra Nova also gain in values over the past 7 years. The Terra Nova sub-division is a preferred neighborhood for home buyers.

Future Outlook

With the demand and sales of residential properties in Greater Vancouver dropping off sharply, the market sentiment has changed. Many home buyers are cautious and they are watching the market closely. Home sellers are adjusting to the market, and some are lowering their selling prices.

The supply and demand for homes is now in favour of home buyers. For those who are looking to buy, they are in no hurry to make their offers. More low-ball offers can be expected from home buyers, and selling prices will drift down due to lower demand. Home prices in general have already declined 12% to 15% from their peaks. A moderate decline of another 8% to 15% in the home prices are anticipated over the next 18 months.

You can view the Terra Nova detached homes and Terra Nova townhouses currently listed for sale in Terra Nova.

 If you are interested to find out more information on properties for sale in Terra Nova, kindly call me at 604-721-4817 or email me.

West Richmond detached homes sale in June and July 2008 at 115 and 92 units respectively were down significantly from the average sales of 150 units for 2007.

Homes prices dropped 4% compared with the previous month. High inventory combined with dropping sales will exert pressure on home prices until the supply and demand for housing is in balance.

New Home Sale Activities

For builders who purchased older homes as building lots at peak prices of $750,000 or more, they need to build and sell the new homes at prives over $1,500,000 or more to stay in business.

According to Richmond MLXchange sales data, only 11 million dollar new homes under 2 years old were sold in July. With supply of 250 homes in Richmond priced over a million dollar, the market has 22 months supply. With the housing market slowing down, home builders will be under pressure to drop their selling prices.

Will Richmond Housing Repeat What Happened in 1993?

When compared with the housing peak in 1993/1994, the stake this time is much higher. The average selling price then for new homes in prime Richmond locations were just around $850,000.

The selling prices for these new homes dropped to $685,000 level. The market languished for almost 8 years before recovering to the $850,000 level in 2002.

New home prices now are double the previous 1993 peak. The are a fairly large number of million dollar homes for sale in Richmond currently. The next few months sales will provide a clearer picture as how the market will adjust to the slower sales for million dollar homes in Richmond.

Garden City Residences On a Park

The Garden City Residences is consisted of 2 nineteen-storey high-rise towers and the condos are designed with glass and concrete construction. Joining the 2 high-rise towers, the project incorporates 20 townhomes with private patios to cater to home buyers who prefer a townhouse residence. The residences are consisted of one bed, one plus den, two bed and two+den townhomes. There are some luxurious penthouse suites for buyers who favour them.

Garden City Residences offer some of the most luxurious homes in the city. Higher-level condos enjoy the views of Northshore mountains, Mount Baker and Garden City Park.

The McLennan North Neighborhood

As part of this master planned residential community is 21 acre Garden City Community Park planted with shrubs, flower plants, lake, park picnic benches, kids playground, walking/jogging trails, etc.

Other residences at McLennan North sub-division are consisted of the Katsura/Hampton project, Mandalay, Fulleton, etc.

According to the MLS listing information, there are now 57 1, 1 + den, 2 and 3 bedroom condos at the above high-rise project available for sale. These condos units are available for sale from the Receiver Manager after the developer ran into financial difficulties. It may be assumed that buyers for these presale condos did not accept the new prices offered by the Receiver Manager, and agreed to cancel their contract and their deposits returned to them.

These new condos are now priced from around $410 for lower level units to $490 per sq ft for the higher levels units. Most of the condos are priced from $435 to $465 / sq ft. These units are directly competing with condos that are offered as assignment sale at Versante that are priced around this price range. Adjacent to the Garden City Residences are the more luxurious Mandalay mid-rise condos by Cressey's Development.

The Garden city Residences condos can be compared with recently completed high-rise condos at Acqua by Bosa Properties, Ocean Walk, Lotus Living, Flo, Paloma, etc. These resale condo units are priced at $460 to over $500 per sq ft inclusive of GST. The cost per sq ft on the GST component and transfer tax paid by these condo sellers is estimated to account for around $20 per sq ft.

For more information on any of the above condos, kindly contact James Wong 604-721-4817.

About Richmond Mandalay Condos

Mandalay is a mid-rise concrete multi-family project  built by Cressey Development in Richmond. The Mandalay project is consisted of two five-story concrete low-rise buildings consisting of 232 luxury residences. The condo units are designed to offer a variety of floor plans finished with modern and contemporary designs.

The centerpiece for Mandalay's luxurious condos is the 6,600 sq ft clubhouse which house an indoor pool, swirlpool, fitness studio with gym, steam room, games room and furnished terrace.

The mid-rise architectural design for Mandalay allows for extension of interior floor space to the exterior through incorporation of the balcony space for each condo unit. Mandalay condos are considered the most prestigious and luxurious in Richmond. Hence, the cost per sq ft for the Mandalay condos is higher than any other new condos in Richmond.

The Floor Plan

Mandalay offers a variety of internal floor plans. The one bedroom condos are consisted of 576, 650 and 678 sq ft interior living area.  The one bedroom + den floor plan has 732 sq ft interior living space, while the two bedroom floor plans are consisted of very functional 961 and 999 sq ft interior spaces. The penthouse units are mostly 2 bedroom condos ranging in size from 920 sq ft to 1,067 sq ft. Most are designed with extention of the interior to exterior with extra large balconies.

View homes for sale at Mandalay - 9371 Hemlock Drive and 9373 Hemlock Drive.

Garden City Park

Mandalay condos are just steps away from the 21 acres beautiful Garden City Park to the south. The park is designed with a man-made lake with all weathered trails for recreational activities, like jogging, rollerblading, etc. This is a favourite park for kids and families around the surrounding neighborhoods.

Together with Hampton Park - a previous Cressey development at Mclennan North sub-division, Mandalay Development set a new standard for planned residential development in Richmond.

This well-planned neighborhood with parks, schools and Richmond City amenities close by is one of the most important selling features for Mandalay condos.

Mandalay Condos Available For Sale

9371 Hemlock Drive and 9373 Hemlock Drive.

If you like to have more information, or interested to view any of the above condos, kindly contact me at 604-721-4817 or email me.

Market Update For Ocean Walk Condos

Ocean Walk was released for sale in May 2005, and home buyers responded eagerly buying up 200 homes in one week. The timing was right, and geographically, Ocean Walk is ideally located. It is close to the City core for shopping, next to the Olympic Oval and within a short walk to the Richmond dike/trail and north arm of the Fraser River. The trail along the river is a favourite for Richmond's residents.

The great demand for Ocean Walk's condos were fueled by metro Vancouver's professionals and young couples who were ready to buy a home. Many first time home buyers and investors were attracted to Richmond because new condo prices were more affordable compared with Vancouver and Burnaby.

Sales Activities At Ocean Walk

At Ocean Walk, non-Asians accounted for 20 per cent of the buyers. Richmond is attractive to many first time home buyers due to its proximity to Vancouver. The soon to be completed Canada Line Skytrain system will further enhance the attractiveness of Richmond as a place to live.

The composition of condos at Ocean Walk are 1 bedroom - 622 to 637 sq ft, 2 bedroom - 850 to 865 sq ft, 2 bedroom + den - , 3 bedroom - 1,291 to 1,305 and some penhouse units between 1,592 to 1,655 sq ft. The selling prices ranged from $290,000 for the smaller units to $800,000 for the penhouses. The cost per sq ft varies from $430 to over $500.

At the time this blog is prepared, there are 8 units for sale from the developer, CENTURY GROUP LANDS CORPORATION. There are about 2 dozen resale units (post GST price) available for sale from investors. According to the MLS sales record, there were 72 units resold by investors in 2007 and 2008. About half a dozen of these units sold were from the developer.

Ocean Walk's condo sellers are competing for buyers who have a great selection of new condos to choose from. Now that the market is slowing down, condo sellers from other new condos like Acqua, Versante', Lotus Living, Mandalay, Garden City Residences On a Park, etc have to price their properties right to attract these buyers.

If you are looking a condo at any of the above locations, kindly call me at 604-721-4817 or email me.

Steveston Village, Richmond

Steveston is a historic fishing village and and a popular tourist destination because of its rich heritage character and many interesting places for tourists to visit.

Post-war Steveston developed along with Richmond into a residential suburb for Vancouver as farmland was converted to housing. Since the 1970s the community, which remains an active fishing port, has developed its heritage character and its waterfront to attract business and tourism.

Today, Steveston is still very much a small fishing village. Steveston Harbour is the home to Canada's largest commercial fishing fleet - home base to more than 600 seiners, gill-netters, trawlers and other vessels that line the docks.

Steveston & Tourism

The village boasts over 350 businesses and services to accommodate its growing population. Steveston has become a popular place to visit and live. On sunny days, visitors flock to Steveston's waterfront boardwalks to enjoy the scenery, people and food. Small business owners can promote their businesses via Steveston ivillage link, or increase their online exposure.

Whale watching is a popular tourist attraction for many visitors to Richmond. Steveston harbour now is a the gateway shuttling boatloads of tourists and locals out to the Gulf of Georgia to watch orca (killer whales), seals and bold eagles.

Each weekend, hundreds of local residents, people from other parts of BC and foreign visitors come to the Steveston waterfront to relax and enjoy their visit here. There are 101 things to do in Steveston Village.

New housing developments in Steveston greatly expanded the village, and many new residents choose to live in the Steveston neighborhood for it's proximity to the river and the very unique village character.You can view detached homes, townhouses and condos located at Steveston South neighborhood of Richmond.

Steveston Area Condos

Some of the condos around Steveston area are:

The Village -4280 Moncton St, London Station - 6233 London Rd, 6077 London Rd, Imperial Landing - 4211 Bayview St, Britannia - 12911 Railway Ave, 12931 Railway Ave The Villa @ South Cove - 5800 Andrews Rd and River Reach - 5700 Andrews Rd.

The village atmosphere is retained with the blending of modern buildings around the village helps to preserve Steveston Village's semi-rural and country heritage. If you like to have more information on properties for sale in Steveston Village area, kindly emal me or call me @ 604-721-4817.

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Richmond Acqua Condos

Centrally located, the Richmond Acqua residential condo tower is a seventeen story concrete and glass tower in the heart of downtown Richmond. This multi-family highrise project was built by Bosa Properties.

The condos were completed in 2006. The condo suites are consisted of 1 bedroom - 609 to 668 sq ft, 2 bedrooms - 822 to 938 s ft, 2 bedrooms + den - 1,040 to 1,241 sq ft and limited number of pen-houses ranging in size from 1,402 to 2,375 sq ft.

Current Acqua condos available for sale can be viewed here.

The Acqua Condos Neighborhood

All the amenities and local conveniences are within walking distance from this strata complex. Some of Richmond's landmarks around Aqua are Catcus Club Restaurant, Milestones, Sun Sui Wah, Earls, Safeway, Chapters, Best Buy, Future Shop, London Drugs, Save On Foods, etc.

Condo amenities

Aqua is designed with on-site amenities for use by its residents. the amenities include a swimming pool, professionally landscaped sunning patio, steam room, sauna, whirlpool and fully equipped fitness training facility. The Acqua condominiums located near to No. 3 Road and Lansdowne Road in Richmond are very close to major transportation hubs going into the city.

Each Condo suite is fitted with contemporary features. Some of these features include porcelain tiled entry, gourmet kitchen, full height wood cabinet, granite counter-top imported fixtures, etc. the higher levels condos have great views of Richmond.

Sales History

The resale price per sq ft for the Aqua condos in 2006 and 2007 were between $410 to $497. The lowest price 1 bedroom as per MLS record was a small 609 sq ft unit - sold at $250,000 inclusive GST. A large 1,241 sq ft 2 bedroom + den unit on a higher floor was sold at $615,000 for a cost per sq ft of $495.

There were 11 sales todate for 2008, and the cost per sq ft worked out to between $448 to $479.

Prospect for Condos Listed For Sale

Acqua condo sellers are well positioned to compete for condo buyers who are looking for centrally located new condos. Similar new condos competing for buyers are Versante', Lotus Living, Ocean Walk , Mandalay, Garden City Residences On A Park, etc.