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Originally Posted by Wookie
Agreed.
I don't see people taking huge losses to get out of second/vacation homes as those were most likely bought without large mortgages (wealth vs. debt). Some no doubt will, as people feel the pinch here and it will trickle across the border.
I can see the economy suffering as people spend less, construction slows, etc. from the less free for all spending by commodity rich out of provincers. But, a downturn in houseing prices, regardless at which level may in fact help out the real Kelowna residents as housing becomes more affordable and people will return/stay/move there if affordability improves.
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I know a few people who bought property in BC, and none of them are oil executives. I think the typical scenario was people taking a LOC out on the paper gains from their primary residence in Calgary and using that as their 25% down on their recreation property. The one guy was a tradesman who at one point was making almost $100K but got laid off in the fall and had taken a job at half the salary, then he got laid off again before Christmas. Last I talked to him, it sounded like he was banking on selling his recreational property quickly for a profit. (Didn't have the heart to say anything to him.) I think it is people like him, who are being forced to sell, that are making the collapse of the market there so spectacular.