In British Columbia, there are now over 20,500 real estate agents – that’s one for every 226 people.

Since 2001, the median house price in Vancouver has increased nearly 200%; the median family income, 30%.

And in 2010, the price of a detached family home in Vancouver eclipsed $1-million.

Here, the insanity that gripped North American housing markets before the 2008 financial meltdown is still alive and well. Fueled by low interest rates, foreign investment, and the belief that Vancouver is fundamentally different, housing prices in the Big Smoke have nearly doubled over the last decade. And even after the market collapse of 2008, which saw housing prices in North America plummet, March prices here have set another new record.

Full article by Matt Chambers http://thedependent.ca/news-and-opinion/news/ransack-the-toolbox/