Polygon?s low-rise homes offer buyers a cosy haven from stresses of city life

Mary Frances Hill
The Province

Juniper at Timber Court

What: 68 homes in a low-rise wood-frame development, the first of four planned residential buildings by Polygon in Lynn Valley to be collectively called Timber Court

Where: 2632 Library Lane, North Vancouver

Residence sizes and prices: One to three bedrooms, between 638 and 1,147 square feet; one-bedrooms priced from $479,900, two-bedrooms priced from $659,900

Developer and builder: Polygon Juniper Homes Ltd.

Sales centre: 2517 Mountain Highway

Hours: noon — 6 p.m., Sat — Thurs

At Juniper at Timber Court, Celia Dawson and her team of designers marry urban sensibilities with the lush appeal of North Vancouver’s outdoors.

“We were asked to design to an outdoors mindset, but to bring in an urban lifestyle and connection,” says Dawson, the senior vice-president of Design at Polygon, who heads the developer’s design team.
They crafted a home that feels like a cosy haven, an escape from the everyday stresses of the city, and a reminder of the surrounding beauty of Lynn Valley. Those reflections of North Vancouver’s surroundings come in the form of well-designed pieces like the dining room chandelier, its shape resembling that of a gently drooping willow tree, or a fragile Lily of the Valley.

 “This choice, and the choices of accessories, were all in keeping with the outdoors and the one-with-nature feeling, while still giving the home an urban direction,” Dawson says.
On either side of the television, mounted in dark millwork, stands a bright tower-like, sculptural touch — a harder, more contemporary contrast to the gentler, natural theme. Though two full walls have expansive windows, that contrast offers a coziness, a sense of enclosure to the living room.

“Given the mountainous, treed setting, we definitely aimed to create coziness and a calm and serenity with nature.”

Furnishings and sculptural effects in the open concept living room offer a sense of airiness — and reveals Dawson’s touch for the urban – by letting the eye move in and around the décor, via the chrome legs of a coffee table and side tables; the clear  glass tabletop in the dining area adds to this feeling of weightlessness.

“We were aiming for a light, bright, and fresh take to the home, and given the proportions it seemed to lend to open base or ‘leggy’ furniture and glass tops to not weigh down the space.”
Indeed, North Vancouver homebuyers are looking for a bright airy feel to their residences: many of the two-bedroom homes are over 900 square feet; larger three-bedrooms are also available at Juniper, as Polygon’s responds to the demand from young families and downsizers who now reside in their recently built communities in North Vancouver.

The designers used wholesale sources for the furnishings in the display home, but Dawson says shoppers can easily find interesting pieces at stores around Greater Vancouver that offer unique items at reasonable prices. A careful search through Chapters’ curio and gift section, or Urban Barn and the Bay can yield some high quality conversation pieces that won’t break the bank, she adds.

© 2017 Postmedia Network Inc.

Ephraim Vecina
Canadian Real Estate Wealth

Canadians who have sold their homes last year have been mandated to report the transaction to the Canada Revenue Agency.

Income tax returns should now include basic information surrounding such a transaction, the description of the property, the year of purchase, and any proceeds of the sale.

“If you’ve always lived in your home as your principal residence and you sell it in any year, don’t worry, there’s no additional tax to be paid,” according to Brian Brophy, tax partner at Deloitte.

“All you need to do is make sure you report it on your tax return,” Brophy added, as quoted by the Hamilton Spectator.

Violations of this new provision are subject to penalties of up to $8,000, the CRA warned.

The change will make it easier for the CRA to detect illicit tax activity.

“This provides a tracking mechanism … in order for them to get a better view as to the amount of transactions that are out there,” Brophy said.

Across Canada, 536,118 homes were sold through the Multiple Listing Service in all of 2016, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association.

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Justin da Rosa
Canadian Real Estate Wealth

CEO calls on entire industry, as well as government officials, to come together to determine solutions.

“Longer term, I believe all parties need to come together — governments, developers, realtors, banks, community groups and others — to accelerate our progress in finding policies and solutions for this issue,” said RBC CEO Dave McKay.

McKay spoke Thursday at a shareholder meeting about his “increasing” concern about Toronto and Vancouver’s housing markets.

He is in favour of government intervention, saying increased housing prices are the result of an unhealthy combination of factors and that “all of these factors are mixing to push prices up to unsustainable levels, stressing household balance sheets and locking many people out of the housing market.”

The comments follow the latest housing stats releases from Toronto and Vancouver.

The average home price in Toronto jumped 33.2% year-over-year to $916,567. Vancouver’s prices, despite prices dampening over the past few months, still sit at an average of $919,000.  

While it would be admirable to see all interested parties mentioned by McKay work together to find a solution, chances of that happening are likely slim.

Government officials seem intent on implementing taxes to curb real estate speculation and foreign investment; real estate boards, meanwhile, have vehemently opposed those ideas, instead arguing in favour of increasing housing demand.

It remains to be see what, if anything, the government will do to further address affordability in Vancouver and Toronto.

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Ephraim Vecina
REP

Stronger government intervention to address outsized home price growth in Canadian cities might have minimal impact at best and undesirable consequences at worst, according to Toronto-based lawyer Ike Awgu.

In a recent contribution for The Huffington Post Canada Blog, Awgu cautioned that greater pressure from federal and provincial governments would only lead to unpredictable—and possibly counterproductive—effects on the health of the housing sector.

“There has been talk of how to solve this latest crisis and it of course revolves around government interference. The only rule I’ve thus far been able to deduce as ubiquitous about government interference is that it always creates an unintended result,” Awgu said.

In particular, government removal of existing restrictions on rent control (as advocated by various lobby groups) will prove disastrous.

“The unintended consequence of any such action would be that fewer investors and builders would create new housing. Further decreasing the supply of rental units in an environment where demand is increasing,” Awgu wrote. “This would be a recipe for a shortage in overall supply and an explosion in the number of low-quality units and landlords willing to create new housing (but only if they cut every corner possible in its construction and management).”

“An ubiquitous price freeze on rents (and that is what a one to three per cent increase per year is tantamount to) would paradoxically lead to less housing and decreased housing quality.”

Improving supply is the only reliable solution to the crisis.

“In time, so long as there is no government interference designed to spare the market from bubbles that grow too large and pop on their own, the system will re-balance and recover. Purchasers will realize that not all homes are worth $100,000 above asking price.”

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Steve Randall
REP

The housing markets in Toronto and Vancouver require government intervention the chief executive of RBC said Thursday.

Dave McKay said that he is “increasingly concerned” about the two hottest Canadian housing markets citing high demand, low supply and low interest rates among the “unhealthy combination of factors” that are concerning.

He told shareholders that he is confident in the strength of the lender’s mortgage book but warned that the economy could be damaged if consumer spending decreases due to higher housing costs.

As for a solution, McKay said that it will need several measures from all levels of government.

Copyright © 2017 Key Media Pty Ltd

Alberta judge, husband sued over sale of B.C. home

Keith Fraser
The Province

A top Alberta judge and her husband are being sued over an allegation that they breached a multiple listing contract involving the sale of a home in West Vancouver and owe a commission of $111,000 to a local real estate brokerage firm.

On April 13, 2016, Chief Justice Catherine Fraser of the Albert Court of Appeal and her husband, Richard Clarence Fraser, entered into the contract with Clara Hartree Realty Ltd., doing business as RE/MAX Clara Hartree, for the purpose of selling their home in the 4200-block Rockend Place in West Vancouver, according to a lawsuit filed by the real estate firm in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver.

Eleven days later the couple entered into a contract of purchase and sale with two other people, with the buyers agreeing to purchase the four-bedroom home for $3.4 million, the suit claims. 

In May of that year the buyers paid a deposit of $165,000 in trust to their broker and in June the parties agreed to change the completion date on the purchase contract to July 13 and to change the possession date to July 14, it claims.

The sale did not go through but because there was a binding contract for the sale during the term of the listing, the real estate brokerage firm is claiming that they are entitled to a commission worth $111,300.

Scott Twining, a lawyer for the real estate firm, said there are a number of instances in which a commission can be payable.

One instance when a commission is payable is when a sale goes through but another is if there is a binding contract of sale entered into during the term of the multiple listing agreement, said Twining, adding that such a term is “standard” in such agreements.

The suit says the defendants breached the contract in failing to pay the commission to the plaintiffs despite being asked to do so.

The plaintiffs claim they’ve suffered loss, damage and expense including the loss of the commission, costs thrown away in listing and marketing the property for sale and additional costs including legal costs.

Twining said that although the lawsuit had been filed it had not yet been served on the Frasers.

“So they’re probably not aware that there is a lawsuit at this point. I do intend to serve it in the future but it has not yet been served.”

Vancouver lawyer Bill Knutson, who is representing the Frasers, said in an email that in B.C., anyone is entitled to file a notice of civil claim.

“This notice of civil claim will be met with a response and this disputed claim will be resolved through the courts.”

The couple have a permanent residence in Edmonton, according to the lawsuit. It’s not clear what use they make of the West Vancouver home.

The lawsuit contains allegations that have not been tested in court.

© 2017 Postmedia Network Inc.

Steve Randall
REP

The heat in the Greater Toronto Area’s housing market shows no signs of slowing with sales increasing year-over-year by 17.7 per cent in March to 12,077.

Toronto Real Estate Board reports that listings were up 15.2 per cent year-over-year to 17,051 with detached homes seeing the biggest gains.

However, the added supply did not soften prices as high demand and competition between buyers saw the HPI benchmark price rise 28.6 per cent and the average sales price across the TREB area up 33.2 per cent to $916,567.

“Annual rates of price growth continued to accelerate in March as growth in sales outstripped growth in listings. A substantial period of months in which listings growth is greater than sales growth will be required to bring the GTA housing market back into balance. As policy makers seek to achieve this balance, it is important that an evidence-based approach is followed,” said Jason Mercer, TREB’s Director of Market Analysis.

Copyright © 2017 Key Media Pty Ltd

Mortgage Broker News

The cost of Toronto area real estate soared again in March, with the average price jumping 33.2 per cent from the same month last year and nearly five per cent from February.

The Toronto Real Estate Board reported Wednesday that the average price in the area rose to $916,567 last month, up from $688,011 in March 2016 and up 4.6 per cent from $875,983 in February 2017.

TREB said that demand for housing in Canada’s most populated area continues to exceed supply, one of the underlying causes of the huge price increases.

The real estate board reported that the number of properties listed for sale was up by 15.2 per cent from the same time last year _ but the number of sales rose by 17.7 per cent.

Jason Mercer, TREB’s director of market analysis, said that rate of price increases accelerated in March because demand continued to grow faster than supply. He also suggested the trend will likely continue.

“A substantial period of months in which listings growth is greater than sales growth will be required to bring the GTA housing market back into balance,” Mercer said in a statement.

TREB has argued against government intervention, such as a tax on foreign home buyers that Ontario’s finance minister said last month is under consideration, and repeated in Wednesday’s report that politicians need to tread cautiously.

“Policy makers must remember that it is the interplay between the demand for and supply of listings that influences price growth,” TREB president Larry Cerqua said.

At the high end of the range provided by TREB, the average price for detached houses in the Greater Toronto Area was $1.2 million in March _ up 33.4 per cent from last year but about the same as in February.

The average price for semi-detached homes in the GTA was up 34.4 per cent at $858,202, the average townhouse price was up 32.9 per cent at $705.078 and the average condo apartment price was up 33.1 per cent at $518,879.

For each type of housing, average prices were higher in the 416 area code area covering the City of Toronto itself than in the surrounding 905 area code.

The MLS home price index, which adjusts for the various types of properties sold, was up 28.6 per cent from a year ago.

Copyright © 2017 Key Media

Steve Randall
REP

Sales of homes in the Greater Vancouver market rebounded in March following a week previous month but supply issues remain restrictive.

Although March sales (3,579) reported by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver were 30 per cent below the record-breaking sales of a year earlier, they were 46 per cent up from February and almost 8 per cent above the 10-year average for the month.

“While demand in March was below the record high of last year, we saw demand increase month-to-month for condos and townhomes,” Jill Oudil, Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver president said. “Sellers still seem reluctant to put their homes on the market, making for stiff competition among home buyers.”

New listings were down 24.1 per cent from a year earlier and 29.9 per cent from February, at 4,762; the lowest number of new listings since March 2009.

Prices were up 1.4 per cent month-over-month and down 0.8 per cent compared to 6-months’ earlier with the benchmark price at $913,300.

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