Quote:
Originally Posted by BIMBAM
What they don't realize is that by not allowing anything but gorgeous, short condos that are only viable when they cost an arm and a leg to be approved, they're the ones responsible for driving up the prices, not the mythical hordes of Chinese investors who are in reality only a small and not very imporant piece of the equation.
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I don't think Vancouverites in general are confused or ignorant, I think you are talking about two different groups of people. Property owners
want their housing prices to go up and want their neighbourhood to stay as it is so they love development restrictions. Those who wish to buy but do not own, on the other hand, stand to lose from development restrictions and high prices.
Unfortunately I think the development process in many cities is slanted heavily toward current residents. In some areas it's even worse because on top of the development restrictions some cities and provinces have added assessment caps -- so the old owners get hundreds of thousands of dollars in housing appreciation but new buyers
paying the inflated prices also pay more in taxes. It's a totally perverse system driven by the myth of "grandma" getting pushed out of her home. Nobody points out that grandma's a millionaire.
