Vancouver real estate hot spots identified

Certain neighbourhoods in Vancouver are becoming real estate hot spots, with buyers in bidding wars sometimes paying significantly over asking the asking price to settle in their dream location.

According to Ray Harris at the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver, homes listed in Vancouver East are typically selling 15 days faster than those listed in other parts of the city.

The area, he says, is the hottest it's been for three years.

Realtor Lorne Goldman identifies the Main and Fraser neighbourhoods as the most popular right now, with demand significantly outstripping supply.

He says it's not unusual for sellers to receive nine or 10 offers.

"Frequently, there are offers with hundreds of thousands over the list price," he says. "Recently one sold — on a 33 foot lot — for $1.53 million. The prices are escalating promptly in that area."

Just a few blocks west, in the Cambie area, realtor Clair Rockel says June is typically a slower month, but that's not the case this year.

She says the demand is coming from local buyers, who have wanted to live in these neighbourhoods for a long time.

"You have people approaching agents that are known to do a lot of business in certain neighbourhoods and they say, 'We need this and we are willing to pay a premium for that'," said Rockel.

"I saw it a few years ago, and I saw it before that in 2007...We have a market where the supply just cannot keep on with demand."