Real Estate Talks

Lol, how about "debased currency creates illusion of RE prices increases"

Which is even worse, Silverman. You don't even get the benefit of those barriers, rather it's the industry as a whole which has put up barriers. As realtors, you shouldn't even care. Anyways, we both know your stats are a misdirection. The lionshare of commissions go to some crazy top % of realtors.

Nobody said realtors don't deserve the paycheck. What they don't deserve are economic barriers to competition.

In a bizarre twist, the value increase was not all land - my 1950's era Burnaby bungalow also managed to increase in value by about 20%, go figure.

it's not a bizarre twist at all. It's inflation caused by currency debasement. Land has not really appreciated.

Another prediction, ETB won't be feeling as rich if he tries to do any traveling.

Vancouver RE will continue and in fact accelerate it's decline in USD

... in USD.

Just saying. Hope you're all enjoying re-arranging deck chairs on the titanic.

Yeah, well, in time! First the CB has to deal with the TREB. Once we open up things to people not controlled by realtors, the technology will improve and we can get listings in places other than realtor.ca

"There are discount and smaller brokerages around. Sellers have a choice, and seem to like the branding given the significant market share of the top 5 brokerages. No surprise there's a markup: the tribe has spoken. Sales info isn't going to change that." Except that it will. You only have to look a...

Well, it depends, the listing form requires you to disclose things like oil tanks on your property. Maybe you could sell to some over eager / naive buyer.

Realtors, on average, are paid fairly. The problem is not their income. I don't begrudge anyone a fair income. What pisses me off is that the whole industry is insanely inefficient. real competition would force them to re-evaluate how they do things. Maybe they'd start by actually requiring all real...

I dont' know of any couples that have moved down to the US. Most couples I know have common friends and family which keep them up here. I do not a lot of single guys who have moved south, though, before getting hitched.

Yeah, welcome to the global economy.

Sorry, but there is an obligation. It's why the Competition Bureau exists. It's called "Anti-Trust laws". Realtors benefit from Anti trust laws as much as all of us do. But the rules apply to them as much as they do to the next guy. Realtors, i'm sure, would be squawking like hell if someone came al...

The fundamental problem is we're stuck with a hyper sucky website called 'realtor.ca'. Why? Because there is no *****ing competition. If there was, realtors would get their ass off the couch and actually create a much better website - or a private company would do it for them and shift control of th...