Why this rundown Vancouver bungalow is listed for $11 million
JOANNE LEE-YOUNG
VANCOUVER
VANCOUVER SUN
JANUARY 18, 2022
A new real estate listing for a rundown Vancouver bungalow has some observers chattering over its dizzying asking price of $11 million.
The four-bedroom, two-bathroom old-timer is currently assessed at $3.866 million.
The property is not on a busy arterial, but is just one block from the corner of West 41st Avenue and Cambie Street, across from the Oakridge Centre redevelopment.
These “inner streets” are a new frontier of sorts, and there may be more of these asking prices as sellers target developers who have long-term plans to build condos, say experts.
“Developers are looking to land bank,” or buy and hold properties for future use in prime areas, said real estate agent Abraham Yung, who has the $11-million listing on West 40th.
A potential buyer could also later purchase the two adjacent single-family lots with the goal of applying to rezone and use the entire site for a low-rise or even taller apartment building.
Investors did the same in previous phases of developing the Cambie Corridor, when single-family homes along Cambie Street and King Edward were sometimes sold for more than double their assessed value.
“For anyone in the real estate industry, it’s not surprising,” said Jacky Chan, president of BakerWest Real Estate, which markets pre-construction property developments.
The 2018 Cambie Corridor Phase 3 Plan indicates that “the overall concept plan” includes building heights of 13-storeys or higher for this location. Another more detailed document that was described as a proposed plan in March 2018 gave specific housing options, showing that 15-storey and 18-storey towers could be possible for the area if they are 100-per-cent secured rental with 20 per cent below market rental units.
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Chan said there is currently an active development on Manson Street, west of Cambie, that is also on an “inner street” north of West 41st Avenue where there had been six single-family lots.
A rezoning application was submitted last November, proposing two 18-storey buildings with 392 rental units where 20 per cent of them are below market, plus a childcare facility.
“That is what this ($11 million) listing is fishing for,” said Chan. “That would be the best comparison.”
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