Location, Location, Location

No matter how experienced we are at searching for a new home, in the heat of the moment, we so often forget that old real estate mantra: Location, location, location.

When I first moved to Vancouver from Toronto, I knew next to nothing about the West Coast. Because I needed somewhere to live with easy access to downtown, I elected to rent an apartment in Vancouver’s West End. Apartment living was a bit of a change for me but it made sense until I found the five non-negotiable items about the style and interior features of the home I needed. In my anxious search, I forgot to pay attention to certain aspects of the location. The south facing light in the suite was there but so was the traffic. The first night I moved in I heard a nearby fire engine starting up. It sounded as if it were driving straight through my living room. I had neglected to notice that the fire station was a mere two blocks away. My building was on a corner and so every time the traffic lights changed I could hear them cheep, like a budgie in distress. I spent three wakeful weeks with my windows closed until sleep deprivation and a need for oxygen took over. Eventually, my system adjusted to the white noise of the city and in the end, my Taurus allergy to change kept me there for quite a few years. In today’s escalating market, finding a new home that you can afford in a great location is often a challenge, so it is important that the pundits’ advice on a great location be individually evaluated. So what makes for a great location? The first thing I recommend is to make a profile list of your personal priorities. It is a wish list of sorts and it is unlikely that all your criteria will be met.

Here are some things to consider.

• If you are a couple, does the location suit you both or is one of you forcing the issue because you are sick of losing three hours a day commuting?
• Since time is so precious, ask yourself - how long will it take you to get to work?
• If you don’t have a car, how close and efficient is the public transportation?
• If you have a family, how will the location suit your kids? This can be obvious such as schools, parks and a community centre or be more global such as access to grandparents, existing friendships, sporting commitments, or the arts.
• What is important to you in terms of a neighborhood? The tapestry of life that makes for a great neighborhood is made of many things. I look for walkability, access to the necessities of life, community events, support groups, churches, medical facilities, safety and security.
• Now we come to the big one. What is the likelihood that your chosen location will be a good investment? Some communities have little to offer except a great price and the opportunity to gain a foothold in the market. This kind of compromise is not necessarily a bad thing but recognize it going in. Other locations may be in transition, so you are smart to buy early into an emerging neighborhood, but must be patient about the time it takes to grow and prosper.

Established residential neighbourhoods tend to be more costly, but they aren’t showing any signs of eroding values and exponentially their growth could be more in actual dollars. After all, a 10 per cent increase on $700,000 is considerably more than 10 per cent of $250,000.

Diana McMeekin, president of Artemis Marketing Group Inc. Vancouver Sun