Pretty significant changes on King West since the early 20th century…

While our primary passion is real estate, the BuzzHomies are no slouches when it comes to food.

A new restaurant in town? We’re there on opening night trying every dish on the menu…

So you know where we’ll be in June and then again in August when two new restaurants open on the trendiest of the trendy King West strip.

The first to open will be Weslodge in June. Described as a fresh take on the Old West saloon, Weslodge will serve “modern saloon fare”. We’re strapping on our cowboy boots as we write this, so sign us up!

The second to open with be Patria, where guests will be served tapas and pinchos with authentic Spanish ingredients. This resto will be opening in early August so mark it on your calendar.

We can’t decide what we like better — the fact that Weslodge and Patria will be located side by side in Victory‘s retail space (478 King Street West) or that the team behind Storys is also the vision behind both of these awesome new spots.

While we’re pretty thrilled about this foodie-news, the folks who should be really thrilled are the purchasers at Victory. They’ll be
enjoying this amazing food whenever they please.

Very well played on the part of BLVD Developments and Lifetime Developments. Looking forward to dining there shortly…

Find out more about these amazing restaurants by following Patria and Weslodge on Twitter.

If you answered “yes” and you  live in the Greater Vancouver Area, then you’ll want to clear your calendar for the next four Thursdays. In North Vancouver, The Prescott by Wesgroup Properties is hosting The Prescott Idea Series. With presentations ranging from changing housing markets to making smart decisions about living space, there’s a real estate topic for everyone.

And, just by attending, you get entered to win an awesome prize!

While we’re always attracted to great prizes, we’d attend this presentation series without the incentive. The opportunity to listen to local experts in a casual and interactive format isn’t the kind of opportunity that comes along every day. The impressive list of presenters includes renowned economist David Baxter, architects Walter Francl and Wesgroup’s John Conciella, the North Short Credit Untion, Director and Curator of the Presentation House Gallery Reid Shier, and a panel of experts from the Interior Design institute.

That’s a lot of knowledgeable people!

The first presentation titled “Changing People + Places” is hosted by economist David Baxter and takes place Thursday May 31, at 6pm at The Prescott preview centre. Baxter will be discussing how housing markets are changing in response to underlying economic, demographic and social drivers.

All of the Prescott Idea Series’ events are from 6pm -8pm at the preview centre. To sign up for a presentation and get yourself entered in the draw for the chance to win a West Coast getaway to Tofino, visit their official website, here.

Or,  for more info on the Prescott call the sales centre at 604 969 3333 or email live@theprescott.ca. Visit the project’s website by clicking here!

We didn’t think life could get any swankier, but at that point, we hadn’t read about the Mansouri Living development’s partnership with Quintessentially. Each Perry purchaser will receive a one year membership to the global concierge services of Quintessentially. Quite a deal considering the service has a global presence and is available 24 hours a day, 365 days of year.

Lifestyle management, personalized service, stress alleviation — there’s no doubt that Quintessentially the real deal. You can learn all about their services by checking out the “Our Service” section on their site.

It only makes sense that this classy Yorkville development would be offering such an enviable treat for purchasers. We wouldn’t mind getting the Quintessentially treatment, if only for a day…

Once complete, The Perry will rise 11 storeys above Pears Avenue. Young and Wright and IBI Group Architects are on architecture duty while The Design Agency is handling the interiors.

We’ll have more buzz on the project soon, so stay tuned and stay classy.

For more info email info@theperry.com or call 416 837 8689. Visit the website by clicking here.

May 9th, 2012 was a sunny day in the beautiful False Creek Neighbourhood in Vancouver. The weather was fitting. Not only did the event feature LIDO by Bosa Properties‘ ground breaking, it also included the launch of a very cool foundation. The Bosa Properties Foundation has the mandate to direct funding equal to 1, 000 per home back into local communities where their developments are located.

For more information call 604 872 2672, email lido@bosaproperties.com, or visit their website here.

But as with most things in New York, we quickly realized that we hadn’t heard. Not by a long shot.

Today we caught wind of a duplex penthouse in One57 selling for over $90 million — a record setter for the city. As is often the case, the high rolling buyer was not disclosed and we were left with not even an allusion to his or her country of origin.

The building is currently under construction at 157 West 57th Street. The epically priced penthouse sits on the 89th and 90th floors of the Extell Development.

According to the New York Times:

“The building, which features a Park Hyatt below the condominium units, will offer striking views of the southern end of Central Park and will be among New York’s tallest residential structures when it is completed next year.”

That sounds pretty wonderful to us. You’ve got to wonder if Dmitry Rybolovlev, who paid $88 million for a penthouse at 15 Central Park West is kicking himself. He’s no longer the buyer of New York’s most expensive penthouse and that’s too auspicious a title to lose.

If you’re interested in purchasing a home in Langley, Outlook by Royale Properties Ltd. offers even more reasons to look to the future.

The project is over 85% sold with only 15 homes remaining. These two bedroom, two bedroom + den, and three bedroom townhomes start from $305,900. But, what gets us most excited about this development is the future of the surrounding neighbourhood.

A new elementary school, Lynn Fripps Elementary, is being constructed next to Outlook and is scheduled to open this year. This means you can move in this summer and have the kids start at a brand new school in September.

And, that isn’t the only good thing coming to the Outlook neighbourhood. Just a ten minute walk from the site is the future Willoughby town market, rumoured to be the future home of Loblaws. Who doesn’t like having a grocery store nearby?

Not only that but three major organizations – TransLink, the Provincial Government and the Township of Langley – are working together to provide a new transit exchange at the park and ride in Walnut Grove. This will increase both transit and park and ride services significantly in the Langley area.

Only two of Outlook’s sought after park side homes remain, don’t miss out on this final opportunity.

For more information, call 604 888 8778, email info@outlookliving.com, or visit their website.

Touring the model suite is one thing, but we always try to add another dimension to the experience by interviewing the designer behind the interiors on display.

Often times, the interior designer will pack the model suite with so many flourishes and innovative ideas that you don’t fully grasp the scope until you get the goods directly from the designer him/herself.

That’s why we were thrilled to chat with Tania Richardson, principal partner at Tomas Pearce Interior Design Consulting. Tomas Pearce shaped the aesthetic of Jade and, after taking a look at the 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom model suite, you’ll agree that it’s a unique vision indeed.

Enjoy our interview with Tania and some model suite pics below!

BuzzBuzzHome: Where did you take inspiration when developing the design for Jade?

Tania Richardson: For the first time ever in doing a project down by the water, there was no direct inspiration from the water. Whenever we do something by the water, the design usually relates to the water. This time we ignored the fact that the water’s there. It’s a given that the project is on the water. We ignored any resort or water-type elements.

Instead, we infused the condo with lifestyle, using beautiful materials. We gave it our Tomas Pearce signature look, instead of playing off any type of theme or inspiration. We looked internally into our own design philosophy and strategy.

BBH: Tell us what’s so special about the model suite kitchen?

TR: The kitchen is a fantastic space. Generally with condos we have a formula, it’s a 12 foot run of kitchen cabinetry. But here we did some colour blocking and material blocking. Down below, we kept it nice and fresh with white cabinets and Caesarstone countertops. Often times developers are putting in these awful, unsightly exhaust ovens. We colour blocked it by having the whole upper cabinet facade in the dark black to match the microwave. This way, your eye cruises by it. You don’t notice the unsightly micro-exhaust hood jumping out at you.

We also managed to create some open shelving for some display work — nice flats slabs with high gloss-lacquered upper cabinetry. The fridge is recessed back and is stainless steel, so it’s a sleek look.

Space is at a premium when we’re in condo buildings so we have to think multi-functional living, so the island also functions as a table. It can seat up to 6 people around it. If you want a gourmet kitchen, it allows you to block off the one side with cabinetry and create a two person seating area.

BBH: Let’s turn to the bedroom. Tell us a bit about how you made the master bedroom unique.

TR: We really like to push boundaries, especially in our model suites. Canadians generally have a safe approach to design and aesthetics. Phantom are phenomenal because they allow us to push boundaries. In the past, designers have focused on creating the illusion of larger spaces. So what we’ve done is include mirrored, sliding closet doors which help reflect light and create more depth. We kept the master bedroom very light.

If you look at the head board, you’ll notice it’s like a starburst. It makes your eye go out instead of centring in, so I think the head board contributes to making the room seem larger than it is. We weren’t afraid to use a large beautiful pendant in the middle of the room. We also really play off lighting in the room. You can create a lot of different atmospheres.

BBH: Let’s move on to the master bathroom. What can you tell us about the ensuite?

TR: We used a Caesarstone countertop with a wall-mount faucet. It is a tub-shower combo, but we used a beautiful frameless glass. The fixtures and faucets are all polished chrome. You’ll also notice in the shower we actually did a feature accent with a darker 1/2 inch to 6 inch stone going up the wall with a really nice contemporary tub. We hung up a decorative mirror instead of using a flat slab mirror and then we did a custom wall finish with one of our artists and suppliers.

BBH: What’s it been like working with Phantom Developments on this project?

TR: One of the reasons I like working with Phantom so much is they come up with ingenious marketing strategies. An interesting thing that Henry Strasser from Phantom did with this particular condo is embrace the “Sky Yard”. This building has larger terraces than most. That’s one thing they’re marketing off of, the extension of your living space outdoors.

I also should mention that, generally, when developers approach a model suite, they have a tendency to pull their best suites and show them as the models. What I love about the ingenuity of Henry Strasser and Phantom Developments, is they actually pulled the most challenging plan. He said his good floorplans would definitely sell first. I think it’s brilliant that he pulled more of a challenging floorplan out and furnished that so people can see how it works in the space. I think it’s a great marketing idea.

For more info call the sales centre at 416 251 0707 or email info@jadewaterfrontcondos.com. Visit the project’s website by clicking here!

We can’t say the success surprises us. Steps from Uptown 17, UNO Mount Royal by Maple Projects offers luxury living right in the heart of one of Calgary’s most sought after areas. Not only that, but construction is on schedule. The parking lot is complete and the concrete cribbing work for the building is above surface grade. Essentially, everything is running exactly the way it’s supposed to be!

Even though UNO Mount Royal has been selling fast, there’s still a great selection of suites available. But, you’d better not dawdle. There are only 29 suites left, and for a limited time pre-construction pricing is still available.

If you want to start your week off right, swing by their their Presentation Centre at 836 Royal Ave SW. It’s open every day except Fridays!

For more info call 403 984 4518, email info@unomountroyal.com, or visit their website.

Real estate prices have soared in Beijing.

What do Canada, Norway, Colombia and Hong Kong have in common?

Each country has a place in a list of top performing real estate markets compiled by the global property consultancy, Knight Frank.

The top performers were determined by measuring the price growth over five years (Q4 2006 to Q4 2011). Canada came in at number 8, with a 28.7 per cent increase in prices over the last five years.

Not bad. However, Canada’s increase pales in comparison to those witnessed in Singapore (50.5 per cent), Israel (54.5 per cent), Hong Kong (93.7 per cent) and China (110.9 per cent). Those are some pretty incredible numbers.

With that being said, the main thrust of the report was that global house prices are in the doldrums. The Knight Frank Global HPI fell by 0.3 per cent in the final quarter of 2011 — the weakest quarterly performance since Q2 2009.

But with so many markets booming, there are still plenty of reasons to be optimistic.

Here’s the full top 10 as printed in the Knight Frank report:

1. China 110.9% (5-year % change)
2. Hong Kong 93.7%
3. Israel 54.5%
4. Singapore 50.5%
5. Colombia 39.4%
6. Taiwan 30.1%
7. Norway 28.7%
8. Canada 28.7%
9. Malaysia 28.5%
10. Switzerland 27.5%

Of course, there was a catch. The lease is part of a public-private partnership program in a handful of East Coast states and the house has been boarded up for over ten years and needs a total renovation. What’s more? It’s a publicly owned historic property, so the only option is rehabilitation.

The deal might not be for everyone, but for a small group of “resident curators”, the benefits outweigh the risks.

The public-private program leases historic properties to organizations and individuals who agree to pay for renovations and ongoing upkeep. The leases are as little as $1 and last at least twenty years.

In an article in the Financial Post, Patrice Kish, director of the state’s Office of Cultural Resources said, “We have a number of wonderful historic properties, but lack the financial means to take care of them, so they sit vacant or underutilized.” She went on to describe the project as a “preservation tool”.

It works for the state, but does it work for the buyer?

Some say, yes. While there are strict national and local building codes and the cost of renovating the house can be up to a million dollars, several curators see the chance to live on historic property as a huge opportunity.

One of the curators, Maureen Clarke says that it gives her the chance to live in a house she wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford. According to the Financial Post, Clarke said: “We anticipate our costs will end up being about the same as paying two years-worth of rent in New Jersey. Then we’ll have 23 years of living rent-free in this amazing home we might not be able to afford otherwise.”

Seems like pretty good reasoning, but we’re still not sure this is the deal for us!