Port Moody Real Estate News

Port Moody has changed a lot in the last few years. We've seen new housing developments and high-rise condo towers change the skyline of Port Moody, and the Evergreen Line will no doubt make the city grow at an even faster pace. For a city to grow successfully, a complex and detailed plan is needed so that every aspect of the growth is anticipated, and problems are averted.

According to the City of Port Moody website section on housing, the sustainability plan's goal for real estate in Port Moody is to ensure a full spectrum of housing options including single family, condos, townhouses, and assisted seniors’ housing. The objective of the city's sustainability plan is to increase the prevalence of mixed housing in Port Moody.

Action items on the plan include: encourage a mix of housing options within new developments, and explore alternative housing options within established neighbourhoods and in consultation with neighbouring residents.

The City of Port Moody's sustainability model is based on four pillars: Environmental, Economic, Social and Cultural. These are defined on the City of Port Moody website as follows:

Environmental Sustainability involves planning for the enjoyment of our natural environment, while minimizing our impact, and preserving environmentally sensitive areas and supporting the efforts of our stewardship groups.

Economic Sustainability involves planning for long-term economic stability for Port Moody through efficient human resource and facility management, through sound purchasing policies and full life cycle cost accounting while maintaining tax levels at affordable rates for all members of the community. This also involves creating positive business opportunities for local employment and supporting local business activities.

Social Sustainability involves people living and growing in their neighbourhoods, and fulfilling spiritual, creative and physical needs throughout their lives, while adapting to the desires of different age groups, ethnicity and beliefs in a single community. It says that this involves planning neighbourhoods to encourage and foster social interaction.

Cultural Sustainability involves recognizing history, traditions, social values and community culture in planning for the future here in Port Moody--the City of the Arts. It also involves supporting cultural groups and their activities, while developing a range of spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features characterizing a society or social group.

Another goal in the City of Port Moody's sustainability plan for housing is to explore social housing and affordable housing initiatives, while increasing the number of social and affordable housing units in the city. It's great to see in times where luxury Port Moody condos get most of the limelight, that affordable housing is not forgotten about. You can read the full details of the City of Port Moody's Community Sustainability Plan here. 

According to the monthly press release and stats package released by the the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) the area's property market saw typical spring activity in April after the busy period at the start of the year. April's sales were described as "typical" and "solid" in the press release. Despite slight decreases in numbers across most sectors, the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reported that residential property sales of detached, attached and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver reached 3,225 in April, which are still very impressive numbers.

While monthly numbers declined for many areas in Greater Vancouver, the property market in Port Moody posted great numbers and increases for every property type, in terms of benchmark prices. The benchmark price is the estimated sale price of a benchmark property. Benchmarks represent a typical property within each market. The benchmark price for a detached property in Port Moody is now $725,113--this is higher than the average price of the same type of property in the Greater Vancouver area an and increase of 11.5% on the three month average benchmark price. The benchmark price for an attached property is now $415,747--an increase of 3.5% on the three month average benchmark price. The benchmark price for a condo or apartment in Port Moody is now $304,180--an increase of 2.9% on the three month average benchmark price.

There is also lots of availability in terms of Port Moody real estate, with lots of new listings coming on the market in April. According to the REBGV MLS Listings Facts, there were 39 detached property listings, 41 attached property listings, and 50 condo or apartment listings--all up on March numbers. In terms of percentage of sales to listings, detached property listings were at 59%, attached property listings were also at 59%, and condo or apartment listings were at 52%.

You can read the full text of the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver press release and stats package on the REBGV website. We also issue a summary of the previous month's stats, so check back here next month for our take on the May real estate stats for Port Moody.

The Globe and Mail had an interesting article last month titled 'Home in the suburbs, heart in the city' in which it mentioned the changes in Greater Vancouver's suburbs. It said that Vancouver stands out as the city where more of its suburban residents live in dense developments of condos, apartments, townhouses and highrise towers than anywhere else in North America. It mentioned Port Moody, where it says more than 90% of new housing is condos, apartments or townhouses.

People who live in these new developments like the mix of being close to nature, yet have all the amenities of an urban centre close--they want to have shops, cafes, restaurants and schools within walking distance. The recent developments in Suter Brook, such as Onni’s Room located at 121 Brew Street, between Aria 1 and Aria 2, combines the style of downtown loft condos with modern sophistication in a beautiful scenic setting. For those, not familiar with Port Moody, Suter Brook is the development right in the heart of Port Moody, located at the corner of Murray St. and Ioco Rd.

Onni's Room development was completed in late 2008 and brought something new and different to the Tri Cities. Room brought the style of warehouse conversion living in a new, contemporary brick-faced seven-storey building. Room is composed of studio, one bedroom and two-bedroom homes that range from approximately 590 sq.ft. to 1,020 square feet. You can check for current listings by clicking on this link: current listings in the Room. Other real estate options in Suter Brook include the Aria 1 and Aria 2 buildings. These have some excellent opportunities to buy a Port Moody condo or townhouse. These types of developments fit in with Port Moody's vision for housing: According to the Port Moody Council Strategic Plan, Port Moody’s Council's vision is that Port Moody, (City of the Arts), is a unique, safe, vibrant waterfront city of strong neighbourhoods; a complete community that is sustainable and values its natural environment and heritage character. So far, that vision has become a reality, and Port Moody remains a great place to live.