Hi all,

Being relatively new to this great and interesting city, the house and rental prices are somewhat unwelcome

Can I pick your brains on a few things please

1. OH likes mountains so we are considering living on the North shore, possibly close to Lower Lonsdale or further up.

When I put bus times onto Translink it might calculate 1/2 hour to 40 minutes to downtown (where I work). Would this estimate be accurate?

I have heard horror stories about the LG Bridge and assume the buses go via this route. Does this mean the buses might also be held up in traffic during peak hours?

2. There are other areas like around Renfrew, Kits, Oakridge or Langara. I didn't like the area around Commercial so much,

Are these all OK?

If so, will the buses face a similar problem to question 1, or, are buses not an ideal transport method? (Many of the places are not so close to a Skytrain)

3. For purchases, I have seen some jaw dropping prices such as 10 mil! Someone here suggested Port Moody or Coquitlam Centre as affordable yet nice places to buy. Does anyone have any views on this? Our main requirements are a decent family home, safe area, good schools nearby, able to travel to downtown reasonably well, and nature for my OH.

Thanks,
Dish

Hello and welcome to BE!

You might find some of these threads of use:

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=809251
http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=820139
http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=819297
http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=823183
http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=827877

If you are thinking of buying, a good realtor will be able to offer advice on all your questions.

The beauty of Vancouver is that the mountains and nature are so accessible, you don't have to literally live in North Vancouver to appreciate them, especially if you're going to be commuting to downtown every day. Most people live elsewhere, and then venture that 20 minute drive to the mountains on those days after work, or on weekends, to avoid an unnecessary daily commute. However, Lower Lonsdale would be more convenient for commuting to downtown via public transit. Note that the Seabus (the direct link to downtown) stops running relatively early compared to the bus routes.

There are some bus lines that are convenient for commuting. The B-line along Broadway, for example. Any bus route that has a direct link to downtown without having to transfer, is another. For a first time resident to Vancouver, I would recommend making your commute easier at first so that you can really learn about the different parts of Vancouver before settling on just one.

Renfrew, Kits, Oakridge, and Langara are all fine in my books. Oakridge and Langara have the Canada Line. Kits has the beaches. Renfrew is probably cheaper.

WE live near the Coquitlam Centre. We bought a nice house at a reasonable price. My daughter enjoys the local elementary school and the husband hasn't complained about the commute to downtown. He says it is much better than the commute he had in the UK, much cheaper and more reliable. The Skytrain is being built as we speak so will improve the commute even more by 2016.Worth considering! Any questions about the local area feel free to ask. I can also recommend a good realtor!

Renfrew is ok. It is changing fast.

If your OH wants access to nature you should look at Burke Mountain, Westwood Plateau and Heritage Mountain in Port Moody/Coquitlam, Forest Hills, Capitol Hill and Simon Fraser University area in Burnaby. Burnaby is closer to DT than Coquitlam/PM but unfortunately this also means the prices are higher.

Yes, it can be a pain getting off the north shore at times. We go to the north shore regularly - it's a lovely place to live but the bridges can be a real pain.

Have to go - will be back later.

Thanks, all. ExKiwi - look forward to more thoughts.

I don't understand why rentals in Vancouver are looking at least 1500 for a decent one with a laundry in the suite. Plus, it seems highly competitive. Wish it were easier

Where are you looking?

House buying wise, COquitlam seems to be where it's at these days, as you can get a decent size house for under a million in some parts. We have friends looking in the Como Lake area - that's pretty, also around Coq centre as Tootle mentioned. IF you are willing to look a bit further afield, Port Coquitlam might be worth considering too. IT's not as nice as Port Moody or Coquitlam, but it's also cheaper and changing and with the new skytrain, I think it change even more.

I'd recommend Burnaby more but honestly house prices here are crazy too.

Kiwi is right. Coquitlam is the place to be!
What sort of property are you looking for? There are some nice townhouses around the $500,000 mark, with catchment to good schools. Close to lakes, mountains and downtown, and best of all, no bridges!

At the areas I mentioned above with decent square footage and preferably in suite laundry. I saw a dump of a place today in the West End for 1800 - was beautiful in the photos. Don't want the really old buildings as I'm terrified of bed bugs.

Today we ventured out to a Kits basement suite but it was pretty and the bus ride was quite long from Downtown. When we caught the bus back towards Granville, it was so tight, lots of students. I don't think I would enjoy that commute to work like that.

Is Burnaby nice? Yes I will look around Coq centre and Como Lake then. With the rental situation, I feel like buying a house immediately, but it'd require a lot more time. My shipment arrives soon and I need a place quite soon

Tootle, are you the Coquit ambassador? Because you're a very fine one

Hmm.. 500, that's tempting. Would it be near the new line?

Do you think it's worth forking out a bit more and getting a house?

Maybe I do need your realtor recommendation sooner!

I'm happy to chat through our process, we moved quite quickly and got a great mortgage deal. If you would to send a private message I'd be happy to chat mor!

Ok

Please allow me to do so in the next day. Exhausted tonight from all the flat hunting!

Thanks for being willing to share.

We have only been here 10 months but have had a very positive experience. Happy to share the good news! Sleep well!

Am I the only one left in Vancouver that thinks these prices are mental?!

Only bit of Renfrew I see changing is along Kingsway. I know literally every street, back street and short cut right across Vancouver and traffic gets worse by the day. The city is being ruined.

The only reason I wouldn't recommend Burnaby more is the price of housing. You may be able to find a decent rental though.

I agree about the commute to/from Kits...very crowded.

Renfrew is changing as the house buyers who would have bought in Main/Commercial five years ago are priced out and forced further east...demographically, it's changing and hipsterfying slowly but surely.



Just be prepared to compete in Coquitlam for a single family house...