VANCOUVER - As the United States economy spirals downward, Canada`s economy cannot help but follow suit. But British Columbia and its western neighbours will weather the storm much better than their eastern counterparts, according to a report by the Toronto-Dominion Bank.
Growth in Canada`s gross domestic product will drop to 1.1 per cent in 2008, the same growth predicted in the U.S. for the same period, the March issue of the TD Quarterly Economic Forecast reported. But the effects won`t be evenly distributed across the country.
Metro Vancouver`s transportation authority is launching a real estate division that could produce up to $1.5 billion in revenue over the next 10 years, modelled on an agency that has reshaped Hong Kong.
Under the plan, enabled by 10-week-old provincial legislation, TransLink will purchase land along new rapid transit routes and around stations and ramp up the value of the land through denser zoning and partnerships with land developers to create high-density commercial and residential developments.
The Sun Tower, one of Vancouver`s premiere heritage buildings, has been sold to new owners who promise to restore it as "one of the most beautiful architectural jewels in the city."
"When I saw it was for sale, I was ready to jump for it," said Phil Kim, owner of Sun Capital Corp.
Before becoming a developer, Kim was one of six men charged, along with Peter Gill and Bindy Johal, in the murders of criminal gang members Ron and Jimmy Dosanjh.
Rising house prices, and increasing employment rates among the young, are having a spinoff effect on rental apartments, according to an economic forecast by Credit Union Central B.C.
"Rental demand is growing owing to higher employment in the young prime renter-age group, more in-migration, and fewer renters opting for home-ownership," the Credit Union Central`s B.C. Housing Market Forecast 2008-2009 said.
B.C. baby boomers want to live near young people when they retire but they hope those young people aren`t their own kids.
Those are among the findings of an RBC/Ipsos Reid poll of Canadian baby boomers` retirement housing plans.
The online poll of Canadians born between 1946 and 1965 found that 80 per cent of B.C. residents want to retire where there is a mix of younger and older residents -- the highest level in Canada.
CN Rail will spend $450 million on rail infrastructure projects this year in Western Canada as part of a $1.5-billion North American capital program, the railway announced on Tuesday.
"The big envelope here is $1.5 billion, of which more than $1.1 billion will be focused on track infrastructure," CN communications director Mark Hallman said in a telephone interview.
"Of the three regions, the Western region is getting the larger amount here. Clearly this is an area where there is significant rail operations for us and also significant opportunity for growth going forward."
Quick, can you think of any purchase you made five years ago that has doubled in price?
Most likely you can`t, because if consumer purchases doubled in price in such a short period of time, the marketplace would so limit potential sales that either the business and product would fail or have to be reduced in price significantly.
The one area where we have seen a literal 100 per cent increase in prices is our own unrealistic and unsustainable residential real estate market.
Review panel ruling could affect B.C. municipalities
In a ruling that has the potential to affect municipalities across B.C., a review panel has slashed property values -- and thus the property taxes -- of houses in the vicinity of a home-based business that the city of Langford failed to shut down.
Homeowner George Manning argued before an Assessment Review Panel that a drywall business was operating out of a neighbour`s house in contravention of city bylaws, that the business involved the loading and unloading of vehicles on the street and that Langford had failed to deal with the issue despite repeated complaints.
Vancouver website hopes to bring neighbours closer
The creators of a Vancouver-based online social networking site want to make the World Wide Web work for neighbourhoods.
Fuzgo.com (the name plays on an acronym for Free Urban Zone) started last summer as a website for people with home businesses, but its creators found that limited their potential. So they came up with the idea of a social networking website where members could connect with neighbours to discuss events and issues that concern them, and for businesses to reach people in their area.
Canada`s dominance in global mining stood unchallenged for another year as the industry entered a record-setting era of "super-consolidation" in 2007, PricewaterhouseCoopers noted in a new mergers and acquisitions report.
The total transaction value of global mining deals reached $158.9 billion US in 2007, up 18 per cent over 2006, while the total number of deals shot up by nearly three-quarters. Perhaps most notably, the number of billion-dollar-plus deals has tripled in two years, largely thanks to the lift in mining share prices provided by the global run on commodities.
British Columbia`s unprecedented housing market expansion will continue into 2009, as economic fundamentals and market conditions remain conducive to high sales volumes and rising prices, according to Credit Union Central of British Columbia`s latest forecast.
"Lower mortgage rates, high income growth and rising in-migration through to 2009 are favourable trends supporting sales demand," said Central`s Chief Economist, Helmut Pastrick. "Poor affordability for low-equity buyers due to high housing prices is the main restraint to even higher sales levels."
TransLink revs up real-estate deals in bid to bankroll transit projects
TransLink owns four properties worth $100 million that it could sell to generate seed money to start its new real-estate division.
TransLink plans to use the division to purchase prime real estate around future rapid transit stations and then partner with developers and local municipalities to create denser zoning and develop the properties as a way to finance SkyTrain construction.
There may be a magic bullet for solving some of our society`s most difficult problems, such as affordable housing, immigration, productivity declines, an aging workforce or the near-crippling demands on the pension system.
Make it easier for women to get into the paid workforce.
Here`s the magic. Not only would that increase family incomes, making homes more attainable, it`s been shown to boost gross domestic product and decrease dependency on imported labour.
Vancouver`s Millennium Development Corp. signed a $3-million sponsorship agreement with Vancouver`s Olympic organizing committee Thursday which will allow it to promote itself as builder of the 2010 Olympic athletes village.
Although Millennium is building the housing -- called Millennium Water -- that will serve as the 2010 athletes` village, it couldn`t market itself as the Olympic builder. Only official Olympic sponsors can tag along with the Olympic brand.
Transportation Minister Kevin Falcon is expected to announce his route choice for the Evergreen Line at a Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce luncheon on April 18, but local politicians believe he`s already chosen the northwest route through Port Moody.
Falcon spoke at an Urban Development Institute (UDI) luncheon last Friday, and Coquitlam Mayor Maxine Wilson was there.
It`s business as usual for three companies located on the bottom floor of a Brookswood complex, while recently evacuated tenants from the upstairs apartments are left hunting for new digs.
Armed with an order from the fire commissioner, Township firefighters, RCMP and bylaw officers descended on the Civic Centre Place Apartments at 4177 208th St. last Thursday, giving tenants in the second-floor residences only one hour to get out.
As cities become more complex, our taxes keep rising
Soon your property tax bill will arrive in the mail. If you`re like me, you`ll pause and take a deep breath before opening it, delaying the inevitable bad news for a few seconds. There`s bad news in that envelope, if only because there`s next to no chance that the total on the bill will be less than last year`s tax amount.
My tax bill has averaged more than a five-per-cent annual increase over the last six years. That increase outpaces the rate of inflation, if you believe in the way the consumer price index is calculated. Some don`t.
Pam Anderson plans condos in her tiny B.C. home town
VANCOUVER - Ladysmith`s most famous native lady is planning to inject development dollars into her tiny Vancouver Island town with a proposed two-hectare waterfront property development.
Hollywood bombshell Pamela Anderson is collaborating with Geoff Courtnall, ex-NHL player-turned property developer, to build high-end residences on the plot of land once owned by Anderson`s grandparents.
A Maple Ridge resident was sentenced March 13 in Port Coquitlam Provincial Court after pleading guilty to four counts of failure to file personal income tax returns. Piotr Bednarek was fined $4,000. The outstanding returns for tax years 1997, 2000, 2003 and 2005 have since been filed.
After years of discussion and debate, West Vancouver golfers have something to look forward to -- a revitalized golf course by next spring.
West Vancouver council gave the green light Monday to begin renovation of the Great Hall at the Gleneagles golf course, and construction of a golf services building, despite concerns of not having the funds available to do both projects simultaneously.
