More than $16 million worth of real estate that hasn't even been built yet changed hands last week in Squamish.
Townline Developments sold all 36 single-family lots in the first phase of its Thunderbird Creek development off Pia Road in the Garibaldi Highlands in its first two days, last week. At the same time, Timber-haven Developments Ltd. sold all 12 first-phase townhouses and another six townhouses in the second phase of its Arbour Woods development in the North Yards in its first night of pre-sales, last Thursday (June 23).
At an average of $270,000 per lot for the lots and $365,000 per townhouse the two projects represent approximately $16,270,000 in sales.
Arbour Woods received rezoning and development approvals June 3 and have started construction on the first phase of 12 townhouses on Government Road, with occupancy set for March 31, 2006. All 36 units in the three-acre complex are scheduled for completion by the end of August 2006.
Keith Borg, vice-president of Timberhaven, said they weren't expecting to sell out so quickly.
"We didn't really know what to expect," he said Wednesday (June 29). "But it's clear that people really are ready to upgrade."
Also surprising was the more than 90 per cent of the buyers were locals rather than Vancouver or Whistler-area buyers, he said.
Kyle Shurry, development manager of Townline Homes, was also "pleasantly surprised" by the rush on the Thunderbird Creek lots.
"We knew there was a demand for single-family lots," he said Thursday (June 30). "I would have anticipated that would have taken a few weeks to a month to generate that level of interest."
About two-thirds of the buyers were from the Lower Mainland, primarily the North Shore, while the other third were local, he said.
Thunderbird Creek has approval from the District of Squamish for up to 82 single-family lots in its first two phases, with the first 36 ready for construction this fall and the remaining 46 early next year.
The entire 127-acre parcel, which extends from Garibaldi Springs Golf Course up to Pia Road in the Highlands, is designed as a master-planned community to be built over the next five to seven years with up to 700 housing units, including about 250 single-family and about 350 multi-family units.
It will be the first project in Squamish to institute design guidelines, with purchasers required to conform to one of three different building styles.
