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Commentary on the article: Asian looking again at
Commercial real estate
In the beginning of the last year, Taiwanese and Singaporeans came to Vancouver with a lot of money
looking for prospects in the real estate market. These business people were looking for
rental building, which were the "hot ticket" in real estate according to Vancouver relater John Gee
The part of the city, which is attracting these buyers, is the West End of Vancouver,
where the vacancy rate is about 1%. Even though some people feel real estate is really strong, others are
trying to sell their buildings citing that the real estate market is stagnant.
After reading this through I think that the Asians are doing the wrong thing by
getting in to the real estate business because it is slow. It may take along time to recover their investment
off the rental buildings. I also that the property value could decrease in price because most of the
properties in Vancouver, especially commercial real estate, are overpriced.
However, factors attracting overseas investors include low vacancy rate, low interest rates, and a
future increase in the cost of rent. For investors who want security and a modest return the commercial real
estate market offers great opportunities. On the other hand Asian investors can receive larger returns in
their homeland.
In summary, the real estate market in Vancouver provides a secure investment climate for Asian
investors, however they should be wary of the market stabilizing over the short term.