Since receiving rezoning approval from the City of Vancouver for our Mount Pleasant project, we have been busy working with our design team towards the Development Permit. As we have previously mentioned, our goal is to create a dynamic landmark that complements Mount Pleasant’s unique character.

More project details to arrive soon, but in the meantime, we’d like to showcase some of the many features of this great neighbourhood.  For this, we approached Maureen Seguin, a Vancouver REALTOR^® with Royal LePage City Centre and one of the authors of MountPleasantVancouver.ca.

Maureen sat down with us to share her expertise and offer a few of her tips for first-time homebuyers.

Why do you consider Mount Pleasant to be a good real estate investment? What are the benefits of buying here, now?

Mount Pleasant feels like home. It has lots of parks, restaurants and just a hop, skip and a jump to downtown. It’s a walkable neighbourhood that still feels small, friendly and inviting.

If you’re fortunate enough to buy in this community, good for you! This area is always high in demand and there is so much to choose from in terms of real estate: low-rise condos, mid-rise condos, townhouses, duplexes and single-family homes. Older buildings offer a larger square footage but might need a little elbow grease —go ahead and get dirty, it’ll be worth it!

In your opinion, what distinguishes Mount Pleasant from other Vancouver neighbourhoods?

Like I said, it just feels like home.  Maybe it’s the heritage, maybe it’s the restaurants and pubs or maybe it’s just the people — either way you always feel like you’re home when you’re in the area.

The Mount Pleasant neighbourhood is home to great eats and shopping. What are some of your favourites?

My favorites eats are at Burgoo, the Whip and the Casade Room. If I’m willing to hike a little further up Main, I love Chaise and the Reef.

My fave place to shop has to be Bird on a Wire; there is always something there for everyone on my list.

There’s lots of comment in the media that the market is soft. Do you think buyers should adopt a “wait and see” attitude in this market, or not?

I always tell clients that the best time to buy is when you can afford to.  If you have your down payment and are waiting for the market to crash, think of the money you’ve been wasting on rent in the meantime.  When you’re able to jump in, go for it!

Your blog post about why condos are a great choice for first-time homebuyers is informative. What else should first-time homebuyers keep in mind before making their purchase?

Have the right people working with you.  (I wrote a blog about who you need on your team when purchasing a home.) It’s crucial that you feel comfortable when making decisions because you will be the one living in the house you choose, not the realtor. You’re the boss!

Thanks Maureen for the tour of great places to visit in Mount Pleasant and for passing us all those handy house-hunting tips! To learn more about Maureen, visit her website or follow her on Twitter.

Posted by: Teresa Tso
Posted in: Mount Pleasant