It's probably the question a Realtor gets asked more times in a day than anything else- "Where is the market going?".  Always a tough one to answer as there are so many factors that come into play.  The World is a much smaller place than it was, and make no mistake about it, Vancouver is now a global market, so much of what determines our market is outside of our control, and our government's for that matter!

 In 1986, Expo showed the rest of Canada how beautiful the West Coast was...and they came.  We did the same for the rest of the world in 2010...and they are still coming.  And why wouldn't they?  We are consistently voted in the top 3 of the best cities in the world to live (Canada itself just got voted the best country to visit by Fodors).  We have mountains, fresh air, and a stable government- well somewhat stable. (investors don't like it too much when government sticks their nose into a free market economy- something that they are currently letting us know- sort of like a "time-out")  Do you know which city is usually in the top 3 most dangerous cities in which to live?  Beijing.  The air is so bad there all the time that you can never see the mountains and the government, at any time, can seize all your hard-earned money.  That's right- where would you want to live?

 Also, what is even more interesting, is that at the same time the provincial government brought in the foreign buyers' tax, the Federal government increased it's immigration policy. So, we are not really trying to stop foreign investment, we are just going to make the foreigners Canadian.  

Vancouver may be on a "time-out" at the moment but the rest of the Province is booming.  The Okanagan prices are through the roof once again, and Prince George is booming.  Most of this is being driven by a flood of migrants back from Alberta with pockets full of money, as well as by those Canadians who were shrewd enough to invest in Palm Springs when the market was down- selling and making a few hundred thousand. That US market has recovered about 80% of what it lost in the crash of 2008.

Yes, we may be in a lull right now, but we have 4000 new people coming to the lower mainland every month and they all need a place to live.  Our climate, our air and our proximity to China, India and the Phillipines has not changed. Our dollar still trades at 75 cents to the US dollar (the currency of choice for all foreigners), and that makes us still a bargain.  So sit back, relax, and enjoy the calm - it will not last!