A property developer in Vancouver is offering a 10 per cent discount on condominiums in the popular South Granville area in a bid to sell off unsold units.
Eighty units in the South Granville Lofts development went one sale more than a year ago, but 23 of the units have not yet sold.
The developer is offering 10 per cent of the advertised price of the units in addition to waiving strata fees for the first year of ownership.
On top of those discounts, the Bank of Montreal is offering another 1.5 per cent discount on its mortgage rate for purchasers in the building.
"Things have changed a little bit and hopefully this promotion gets more people in, and we can sell it to them," says South Granville Lofts Sales Associate Derek Kai.
Despite the apparently attractive discounts, the actual price of the units ranges from $450,000 and $850,000, which is higher than the list price when the units first went on sale last spring.
The appearance of the discount and a recent softening in the Metro Vancouver housing market has some potential buyers questioning whether they will soon have the opportunity to get into the market.
But Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation Market Analyst Robyn Adamache cautions prices may not go as low as potential buyers would like.
"I don't think buyers can expect deep, deep discounts -- but there will be more of (these) incentives coming up, we expect," she said.
Metro Vancouver retains its status as the most expensive market in Canada despite a 14 per cent drop in sales this year compared to last.
East Vancouver residents Jan Mitchell and Zoe Fisolo, both teachers, say housing prices are simply out of their reach.
"I don't even talk about it anymore. It's an unrealistic want. It will never happen, it just never will."
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Shannon Paterson
