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For March 2013, a total of 25 units of strata properties, i.e. condos and townhouses, were sold in UBC.  This is an increase from the 17 units that sold in February.

 

Of the 25 units that sold last month, 3 were 1-bedroom homes, 15 were 2-bedroom homes, and 7 units were 3-or-more bedroom homes.

 

For a free private consultation to sell your home, please call me, Len Diaz, at 604-551-1323.

 

Sold units does not include single detached homes, pre-sale, under construction, and private (FSBO) sales.  All figures are taken from MLS.

 

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Be Active, Stay Active & Have Fun On Campus

Did you know?

UNA residents receive discounted rates on select UBC Athletics and Recreation program and rentals. These discounted rates can be claimed by displaying your valid UNA Community Services Card (CSC) to the facility staff upon registration or rental.


What is available?

 

Discounts are available on public swimming, drop-in skating, tennis court bookings, fitness passes, summer camps, lessons, varsity game tickets and much, much more! Free drop-in sports at the Student Recreation Centre.

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For February 2013, a total of 17 units of strata homes, i.e. condos and townhomes, were sold in UBC.  This is an increase from the 15 units that sold in January.

 

Of the 17 units that sold last month, 4 were 1-bedroom homes, 8 were 2-bedroom homes, and 5 units were 3-or-more bedroom homes.

 

For a free private consultation to sell your home, please call me, Len Diaz, at 604-551-1323.

 

Sold units does not include single detached homes, pre-sale, under construction, and private (FSBO) sales.  All figures are taken from MLS.

 

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For January 2013, a total of 15 units of strata properties, i.e. condos and townhouses, were sold in UBC.  This is an increase from the 8 units that sold in December.

 

Of the 15 units that sold last month, 10 were 2-bedroom homes, 5 units were 3-or-more bedroom homes, and no 1-bedroom homes were sold.

 

For a free private consultation to sell your home, please call me, Len Diaz, at 604-551-1323.

 

Sold units does not include single detached homes, pre-sale, under construction, and private (FSBO) sales.  All figures are taken from MLS.

 

 

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Here's a very interesting article on the history of the UBC Pt Grey campus by Chris Gordon for REW.ca published January 30, 2013.


The University of BC might have begun its life as an academic institution in the middle of the forest, but it’s grown beyond its roots into a desirable neighbourhood for all comers. Through the UBC Properties Trust, profits from land development are reinvested to fund the university. With more development planned and an aim to be a net-zero energy consumer, its future can still be linked to the historical campaign that helped shape it…


Few of those who organized and took part in the Build the University Campaign in 1922 could have predicted the scale of development that would take place decades later.

 

When the student population outgrew the existing university— in the Fairview district, where Vancouver General Hospital now stands—they used Varsity Week in October 1922 to raise awareness of their need to move to a bigger, permanent home. Their efforts culminated in The Great Trek, when 1,200 students walked and waved banners from downtown Vancouver to the Point Grey campus.

 

A week later they handed in the 56,000-signature petition they’d amassed over the summer and fall to the legislature in Victoria. This, combined with the presentation and public support, persuaded the Province to finish what it had stopped due, largely, to the advent of The First World War.

 

On September 22, 1925 UBC as we know it held its inaugural assembly.

 

There is more to the backstory of UBC, which you can read about here and also in this article by Emma Spenner Norman, which details how UBC’s idyllic setting was considered a place of inspiration, and how the area had long been used for education by the Musqueam people.

 

The initial 175 acres of Crown land at Point Grey was set aside for a university by the University Site Act of 1912, and in 1920 the British Columbia University Loan Act increased the amount of land for residential development to 3,000 acres.

 

Former BC Premier and then Lands Minister Duff Patullo drew up the first subdivision plan for Point Grey in 1926. Only the first phase was completed as the Great Depression and later the Second World War came and halted the development of all the UEL.

 

This loss of momentum, combined with later opposition to numerous development attempts rolled on into the modern era and the undeveloped land, almost 2,000 acres, became Pacific Spirit Park in 1988.

 

The park and the private properties on the original 175 acres are not part of UBC and have their services provided by the Provincial government. The remaining 1,000 acres is the university’s and is what UBC is developing to endow the university.The UBC Properties Trust develops and manages land. Its function is to reinvest in the future of the university, with UBC and the UBC Foundation being its sole beneficiaries.

 

And as the UBC Campus and Community Planning Department states on its website: “The land is being used to transform UBC from what was historically a commuter campus into a vibrant, sustainable, live-work-learn community of scholars.” Five UBC neighbourhoods embody that transformation.


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By Vancouver Sun


A campaign by the University of B.C. to raise $1.5 billion by 2015 for aspects of university life not funded by the government is getting close to its goal.

 

The Start an Evolution campaign, the largest of its kind in Canada, has been targeting philanthropists and UBC alumni to help raise money for the university and has crossed the $1 billion mark, according to a UBC news release Friday.

 

“I am deeply grateful to our alumni and donor community for their overwhelming support in this campaign,” said UBC president Stephen Toope, in the release.

 

“Their generosity and involvement is providing more student aid, improving learning environments, and extending the impact of research and community engagement. With their help, UBC can really be a catalyst for change and transformation.”

 

The campaign also aims to double its active connections with alumni to 50,000 former students.

 

Robert Lee, who earned a bachelor of commerce and a doctor of law from UBC and chairs the Prospero Group of Companies, is honorary chair of the Start an Evolution Campaign.

 

“I am thankful to the donors, alumni and everyone who has helped move the campaign forward,” said Lee.

The campaign features hundreds of specific opportunities for involvement and investment at http://www.startanevolution.ubc.ca


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The Canadian Press

Published: September 22, 2012

 

VANCOUVER — Cobi Falconer single-handedly paid down the mortgage on her Vancouver condo while also paying tuition for four university degrees and working numerous jobs simultaneously.

Some 17 years after she bought the studio space in the trendy Kitsilano neighbourhood at the age of 23 — with some down-payment help from her father — Falconer is proudly mortgage-free.

“It was a very rewarding experience, it’s all part of growing and learning and maturing,” says the 39-year-old archivist, who took on two full-time serving jobs during the summer and added co-operative and teaching assistant gigs during her grad school years.

“As a young person investing early it just made so much sense to not have to put money towards rent, it’s like investing in yourself.”

Census data released last week by Statistics Canada show that, for the first time, there are more people living alone in Canada than there are couples with children. One-person households now make up 27.6 per cent of all homes, a three-fold increase since 1961.

Many Canadians are getting into the market on their own as low mortgage rates make ownership easier to finance and young people stay in school longer, get married later in life — or not at all — while baby boomers settle down on their own after a split.

But experts say singles should be extra diligent about some choices that come with buying a home.

“There is something about being on your own — the individuality, and you don’t answer to anybody — but if something goes wrong, you don’t have a backup,” says Mark Weisleder, a Toronto-based real estate lawyer.

When deciding whether it’s time to buy or keep renting, one of the most important factors is how “rooted” you are, says Farhaneh Haque, director of mortgage advice at TD Canada Trust.

If you have a stable job and know you’re going to be in the same city for the foreseeable future, buying is a better investment opportunity than renting, she says.

But you have to be able to commit for at least three to five years. It’s not wise to buy if you may sell in one or two years because the expenses associated with selling — including the five-per-cent commission paid to a realtor, plus legal fees, land transfer fees, etc. — can erode any investment gains made.

Also decide whether you’re willing to give up some of the perks, like travelling, dinners and nights out, of not being tied down to commit more of your income to a property.

For her part, Falconer decided against owning a car, rents out her parking space for extra income and eliminated frivolous purchases.

Being single makes it a little more difficult to save up a sizable down payment, so you may have to choose a condo or a property you can rent out to help pay some of your mortgage.

“When you’re buying by yourself, as opposed to buying as a couple, you sort of have to do double the work in terms of thinking about how you’re going to afford this,” says Haque.

Save up the biggest down payment you can — you don’t have to pay mortgage insurance if you’ve got 20 per cent — to make monthly payments more affordable and to pay less interest. In addition, you have to have an adequate nest egg set aside to cover costs associated with the initial purchase.

Your priorities as a single likely differ from those of a couple, so make sure you choose a property that aligns with your lifestyle as well as what you can afford. Falconer’s small studio space by the beach works because she can walk everywhere she needs to go.

For a single person, going with a condo may better fit your lifestyle because its requires a lot less maintenance. It could be harder to do things like just leave on a trip on a whim due to security concerns or financial burdens associated with upkeep of a non-condo property, Weisleder says.

Meanwhile condos usually include amenities, security and some upkeep on the building.

If you’re unsure about whether buying is right for you, create a budget that includes your rent as well as living expenses and see how much you have left over to determine if you could comfortably carry a mortgage.

Owning costs about $500 to $600 more per month on average than renting, so you need to have that cushion, in addition to saving for a down payment, Weisleder says, adding that housing costs should ideally not eat up more than 30 per cent of your monthly income.

And remember that lenders can be harder on a single person because they are deciding based on only one credit report and one income — so you may qualify for less house or have to get a co-signer.

Weisleder says singles should be very careful before agreeing to waive financing conditions because he’s seen lenders make a deal that the home buyer thinks is ready to go, then receive a call later saying a co-signer is required.

This happens more often to single people than couples because lenders are more nervous about factors such as net worth and income.

Even if it’s not your dream home, ownership is an exercise in self-discipline that can provide a sense of individuality and accomplishment.

Buying as a single doesn’t mean you’ll never live with a partner — it just helps you to build equity on your own and start saving for the future, says Haque.

“You’re getting a start, you’re sort of conditioning yourself to live within your means, you’re conditioning yourself to start saving and the interest rate is currently in your favour, so you can get ahead by building equity.”

 

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