John Gower Design

  • Built Projects
  • Stock Plan Catalogue
  • About
  • Resources
  • Blog
  • Contact Us

REAL ESTATE FRENZY: Coming Soon to Your Community

May 27, 2016 By John Gower 1 Comment

Everywhere you turn these days, there’s another story about skyrocketing house prices. To succeed in today’s superheated market, buyers need the mental and financial agility to make split-second decisions, offer more than the asking price, and waive all conditions on their offers to purchase. The current market seems to be flooded with wealthy buyers, including some from offshore, who apparently will pay anything for a place to park their money. Many dwellings are selling at tens or hundreds of thousands above the asking price. Sadly, a good number of them will probably sit empty as they wait to be resold for even more.

Vancouver homeowners, many of whom already enjoy more than sufficient means, are watching the escalating bidding wars and holding out for the highest offer. In some cases, this means choosing to sell to an absentee investor instead of a family seeking a home. What are they doing with all that extra cash? Some are relocating to the (temporarily) more affordable communities on the Island, sinking their profits into spacious waterfront homes or second homes. Some even continue to commute daily or semi-weekly from Nanaimo or Victoria to their jobs in the Big Smoke, replacing the hours spent in mainland traffic gridlock with just as many hours in the air or on water. This makes no sense when the opportunity exists to embrace a simpler and more sustainable lifestyle.

Meanwhile, as prices artificially soar, Millennials find themselves sidelined right out of the market. Even young professionals in two-income households are unable to buy homes in the city where they work and want to live. They’re moving elsewhere, and that exodus is creating a skills gap that can only hurt the local economy. A year ago, the National Post reported that

“Wage growth has lagged behind real estate prices since at least the turn of the century. Average housing costs in Metro Vancouver increased by 63 per cent between 2001 and 2014, while hourly wage rates rose by just 36.2 per cent, according to the report. In Vancouver proper during the same time period, average home resale values have jumped by a whopping 211 per cent.” (May 21, 2015)

It’s no wonder that Vancouver Island looks promising to real estate refugees. Unfortunately, the same conditions are beginning to infect the market here. In this month’s bulletin, the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board reports that buyer demand is exceeding the supply of homes across the island. Here in the Comox Valley, the benchmark price of homes sold in April increased 10.34% over the same month last year, and this trend only promises to continue until the bubble inevitably bursts.

What’s to be done? It would help if wages could at least keep up with home-price inflation. At the same time, maybe sellers need to embrace the notion that enough really is enough, instead of helping to drive housing prices into the stratosphere. Realtors may find it hard to voluntarily cap their earnings, but need to recognize the consequences of abetting this goldrush. Participants in this feeding frenzy may be helping to create the very conditions that will ultimately wreck local economies and make it impossible for their children to stay in their own communities.

In our culture we have come to see our homes as an almost sure-fire vehicle to increase our personal net worth. In the process our houses are losing their sense of home, our neighbourhoods are losing their sense of community and the housing market is turning into one big Ponzi scheme that leaves the next generation holding the bag. The organization Gen Squeeze says that young Canadians have to save 2-4.5 times longer to save up for a 20% down payment than we Boomers did. This simply isn’t fair. If you agree, or would like to know more, have a look at their link: http://www.gensqueeze.ca/

Filed Under: Blog, Future-Proofing, Miscellany, Sustainable Lifestyles

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Our Clients Say…

Your building plans worked fine for us and there were no issues of any size… We moved in here in Dec.2013 and find the house well laid out and easy to live in. Our dealings with your company were straight forward and presented no problems. All in all a good choice for us.
HelmutChilliwack, BC
View all testimonials
Thank you John. It has been a pleasure working (by phone) with you! We do appreciate the manner in which you listen – we truly feel that our ideas have been incorporated.
Jed and Helen D.Nelson, BC
View all testimonials
Thank you John, for working with us on this home design.  You are so nice to work with, we truly felt important and valued…You helped us solidify our vision into a beautiful home.
Kathy & David L.Saanich, BC
View all testimonials
John was our house designer for a property on a steep site on the water. We wanted something modern and a bit unusual and he provided that. He was respectful of our needs and our wishes and designed a lovely and functional home. Working with him was a pleasure. He made several site visits and as well we met with him several times at his office. As well he took part in sourcing material that was hard to find. I would recommend him to anyone. We had no problems re deadlines or budget. The house wa… Read more
Kathryn W.Pender Harbour, BC
View all testimonials
What an amazing experience to be part of designing a home to suit our lot! We had looked at house plans for months and could find nothing that we liked. Within ten minutes you had ideas for a plan that would fit the location and not destroy the natural surroundings. You are so knowledgeable about the whole building experience, not just the designing. We liked the way you interacted with our contractors. They said they thought you were very down to earth and had obviously done some building yours… Read more
Bob & Judy P.Big Lake, BC
View all testimonials
We made our final decision to go with your plans based primarily on what we perceived as your ready accessibility and ability to understand our needs. We were not disappointed.
Jim B.New York State
View all testimonials
John Gower provided the designs for a renovation to our 70 year old house. He designed a home that is energy efficient, durable, safe and beautiful. We cherish its simplicity, the connection it allows us to maintain with our community and the heritage feel that we were able to preserve. He made the process fun, thoughtful and productive. The sustainability of the design work that he provided will allow the house to be enjoyed for many more years.
Suzanne W.Comox, BC
View all testimonials
John Gower Design has provided me with outstanding service, time after time. I have relied on his team’s ability to recognize the scope of work that I have required, and deliver exactly the level of service which I had asked for. John Gower Design has shown a high degree of experience on my projects that required design solutions. Many of the designs had high levels of difficulty and I was always impressed with the intuitive knowledge that I could tap into. A pleasure to work with!
Dave S. (Builder)Nelson, BC
View all testimonials
Bud and I wanted to thank you for the plans for our wonderful new home. It was a pleasure to work with you. I was concerned that we might have a difficult time working together with your being so far away. I must admit you made the process very easy. You seem to have a knack for taking what I saw in my mind and making it happen, even better than I could see it.
Bud and Sandy H.Idaho
View all testimonials
Alice and I really enjoy the space we’ve created together. It didn’t take any time to know that it fits like a glove. We just love it.
Alice and Jack H.Maple Bay, BC
View all testimonials

Let’s get started on your dream home.

We have the passion and the expertise
to make it a reality.

Contact Us Today!

212 - 2459 Cousins Avenue | Courtenay, British Columbia, Canada | V9N 3N6

Tel: 250.871.8765 | Toll-free: 1.877.366.2502

  • Facebook
  • Houzz

Copyright © 2025 John Gower Design