So, you want to know about the pros and cons of living in Vancouver?
Well, in this video I'm gonna tell you about the five things that I love about Vancouver and
As I said, this video is about the five things that I love about Vancouver and the five
things I don't like about Vancouver and I'm also going to include five
things that kind of fall right in the middle for me. So, let's jump into it.
The first thing I love about Vancouver are the endless amount of activities that
you can do in this city. Vancouver is known for its active and outdoorsy
lifestyle for good reason. The downtown core of Vancouver is incredibly walkable.
You know, for a big city we're actually a small city geographically so it's very
easy to walk from one end of the city to the other. It also has a ton of bike
lanes and bike paths for you to enjoy not to mention the world-famous Stanley Park and its seawall.
You know, this is one of the few cities in the world where
you can go skiing in the morning, jump into your kayak or onto your mountain
bike mid-afternoon and still get in a round of golf later that same day.
Everything in this city is so close and accessible. It's why we love to spend so
much time outdoors. Now, we're also incredibly close to
places like world-famous Whistler known for its skiing on both Blackcomb and
Whistler mountains. Not to mention all of the activities that you can do there year.
We're also very close to Kelowna which
is known for its world-famous wine and the wineries available to tour there.
Not to mention Vancouver Island and all of the beautiful islands in between and
we're just a stone's throw away from the Canada-U.S. border.
Now with all those people moving around the city wanting to take advantage of the amazing activities
it has to offer, it leads me to the first con that I don't like about Vancouver
and that is the traffic. I know every major city has its traffic issues and
from what I know of the traffic in Toronto, I really don't think we have it
so bad. But, traffic here in Vancouver can definitely be a pain in the butt if you
have to do a lot of commuting. Now if you live here for a while you will get to
know the the various shortcuts and routes that you can take to move around
the city and if your job allows you to be flexible with when you drive, there
are certainly are better times to be moving around the city than others.
And, if you are stuck in traffic, just focus on the second thing that I love about
Vancouver which is the scenery and natural beauty of this city.
Vancouver is gorgeous. I mean it's a beautiful city with stunning natural beauty
to look at in nearly every direction. If you aren't busy staring at the ocean, it's the
mountains, or the trees, or the flowers, and all of the lush greenery.
Now our cityscape is gorgeous to look at as well as is the iconic Lions Gate Bridge. Right there!
And in the wintertime when the North Shore mountains are covered in snow,
it's a stunning sight!
Now the flip side to all this lushness and greenery brings me to the second con for me about Vancouver
which is all the rain.
Yes, it does rain a lot here in Vancouver.
and in the wintertime when we turn the clocks back it does get dark here around 4:30 pm.
So, the days tend to feel a lot shorter. So, if you're one of those people
who happens to be going to work early in the morning, when it's dark, and you don't
get home till 5:00 or 6:00 p.m., when it's dark, it can feel like a drag being
in the dark all the time. Now, hopefully you have an office with a window or you
are able to get outside on your lunch break.
Here's a look at the rainfall in Vancouver for the past year now as you can see November December and
January were our wettest months.
But, look. We live amongst rainforests which is really freaking cool.
Did you know that BC is home to almost half of North America's coastal rainforests and close to 25% of the
world's temperate rainforests?
Now that's amazing. The towering coastal temperate
rainforests of Vancouver Island are globally rare covering less than 1% of
the Earth's surface.
Now that's pretty cool so yes we have to put up with the rain here in Vancouver but at least we don't
have to put up with minus 40 degree winters and endless amounts of snow.
So, just deal with it get out and enjoy the rain you're not made of sugar.
You're not going to melt.
The third thing I love about Vancouver is its food and beverage scene.
Now I've traveled a decent amount of my lifetime and I've
eaten some amazing food around the world but my god are we spoiled here in Vancouver.
The food in Vancouver is world-class and you can pretty much get
anything and everything you want. Simply pick a culinary ethnicity and we have
some of the best in the world right here.
That goes for the beer wine and spirits scene as well.
B.C. is renowned for its wine. The various micro climates in B.C.
produce some phenomenal wines. The Okanagan is only four hours away and is
home to some amazing wineries for you to visit.
Our craft brewery scene is incredible as well & we're also home to award-winning vodkas gin and other spirits.
Now the flip side to all of this and the third con for me about Vancouver,
is its cost of living. It's expensive to live in this city. I recently made a
terrific video about the cost of living in Vancouver and you can watch that here.
Yes, food is expensive, gas is expensive, and clothing is expensive.
After all we are a world-class city and rated as one of the most livable cities in the world.
So, naturally we're going to attract people from all over the world wanting
to come live here as well that tends to make things more expensive but that
leads me to the fourth thing that I love about Vancouver and that is its diversity.
I think the people in Vancouver are awesome.
and we have such a beautifully diverse culture here. Now I know Vancouver has a rep for being
unfriendly and honestly I don't know where that comes from.
I've lived here for over 40 years and I still meet new people on the
street nearly every day who are incredibly warm and friendly.
I think if you're a friendly and outgoing person then you're going to attract the same
kind of people to you and with all of the local Facebook groups here in Vancouver,
you're bound to find people and meet new people with similar
interests and values as yourself Vancouver's cultural diversity is
definitely one of its strengths, in my opinion. Living here allows you to get
out and meet people from all over the world and I love that. I love meeting
people from other cultures and finding out their stories and thankfully my job
as a real estate agent allows me to do that every day.
as I said this is a world-class city that attracts people from all over the world who want to live here
but one of the cons of that is that it does have an effect on real-estate prices here in Vancouver.
Real estate is definitely expensive here in Vancouver
and some xenophobic media outlets would love for you to believe it's because of foreign ownership.
Now sure it does have some effect on real-estate prices here in the city
as it does in any city around the world but it is not the sole
or root cause of our lofty real estate prices.
Now trying to explain why real-estate prices are what they are in Vancouver is a complex discussion and
would take way too long for this video so I'm not gonna go there.
as you do move outside of the city center to the neighbouring cities and communities,
home and rental prices do get a little cheaper.
Emphasis on little.
The fifth thing I love about Vancouver is its water and air quality. The air is fresh
here people and the water is amazing. It comes out of the tap crisp, cold, and clean.
We actually should be a no bottled water city because there really is no
need for bottled water in Vancouver. And the fifth con about Vancouver would
definitely have to be the price of gas. We have the highest gas prices in Canada
and for some reason nobody can tell us why.
Okay now here are five things which
for me fall right in the middle. Meaning I could go either way on them.
Number one is transit. I know some people are gonna complain about the transit in this city.
Personally, I think it's pretty good. We have the Sea Bus the Skytrain and all
the regular bus systems and I actually think they're very good.
Now I live in North Vancouver and when I have to go to the airport with my family we don't drive.
We take the Sea Bus with our carry-on luggage and then we hop on the
Millennium Skytrain line straight out to the airport.
It only takes 40 minutes for us door-to-door.
Now you can't drive there that fast it's fantastic.
Number two is that marijuana is legal here in Vancouver.
Now I know some people are ecstatic about the fact that it's legal.
I don't partake personally so it really doesn't matter to me and I also don't
think that it being legal is a bad thing. I certainly don't agree with how the
government has handled the whole thing but that's another matter.
Number three. The amount of bike lanes in the city. Now I know some people hate the
bike lanes in Vancouver but for someone who lived on his bike for three years
while he attended college, I personally think there is a need for them.
We are simply following the lead of other world-class cities around the world and
if it's working for them I don't see why it shouldn't work for us as well.
I think every city needs to offer its citizens as many different modes of transportation as possible.
Number four is the weather. Now, I know we talked
about how much it can rain in Vancouver in certain months but the other thing
about the weather in Vancouver is that it will change if you give it five minutes.
it can be dark in pouring rain one minute and brilliantly sunny the next.
You really have to be prepared for anything. The other thing about the
weather in Vancouver is that when it is sunny here Vancouver can't be beat.
It is simply stunning. Particularly in the summer months.
Okay the fifth thing that's right in the middle for me is the casual dress code
here in Vancouver. Now some people hate the ubiquitous Lululemon apparel and
polar fleece. And it is also a fact that no matter what time of the year it is in
Vancouver you can always find someone wearing shorts.
It's a fact. It's hilarious. Now, look I'm an active outdoorsy guy
myself so I have a lot of active wear but I also like to dress up frequently
and the terrific thing about Vancouver is that you can just do you!
So, there you have it. 5 things I love about Vancouver.
5 Things I don't like about Vancouver and also 5 things that fall right in the middle for me.
As I said, I'm a local real estate agent here in Vancouver.
So, if you have any questions, or if you're thinking of moving to Vancouver, or your job has
you relocating here, give me a call. I know Vancouver and its surrounding
areas incredibly well. I've lived here for over 40 years and I would love to
help you find a home here as well.
I hope you've enjoyed this video and if so,
please, hit that thumbs up button, give it a like don't forget to leave a comment
down in the comment section below. I'd love to hear what your pros and cons are
about Vancouver. And, as I said, I shoot a ton of videos about what it's like to
live here in Vancouver so if you haven't yet hit that subscribe button and don't
forget to hit the bell so you've been notified the moment that I have a new video out.
Thank you so much for watching. Have a fantastic day and remember
this is where you Live. Love. Own. Vancouver!