Believe it or not, a new report argues that Victoria is about to experience a real estate boom.

B次元官网网址淭he boom has yet to hit Victoria,B次元官网网址� said Jennifer Hunt, vice-president of the Real Estate Investment Network (REIN), a Vancouver-based company that offers education, analysis, and research among other resources to real estate investors. B次元官网网址淭here is still runway to enter the market.B次元官网网址�

Hunt made those comments after the company released a report that surveyed the Top 10 cities in British Columbia for real estate investors, with Victoria finishing fourth behind the leading trio of Surrey, Abbotsford, and New Westminster. Kamloops, Kelowna, Chilliwack, the Tri-Cities, Burnaby, and Vancouver follow Victoria to round out the Top 10.

Drawing on 17 criteria, the report categorizes surveyed cities across three conditions: boom, recovery and slump. Each of those conditions in turn requires different investment techniques during different phases of each cycle. Overall, the report identifies three investment techniques: B次元官网网址榖uy and hold,B次元官网网址� B次元官网网址榬ent to own,B次元官网网址� and B次元官网网址榝ix and flip.B次元官网网址�

Vancouver, for example, currently finds itself at the end of a boom on REINB次元官网网址檚 real estate cycle clock, a visual representation of this concept. Accordingly, investors should avoid buying and holding properties, because prices have hit a peak.

Victoria, according to the report, finds itself in the B次元官网网址渕iddle to end of [a] recovery.B次元官网网址� Accordingly, the report identifies B次元官网网址榬ent to ownB次元官网网址� as the ideal investment technique. It also identifies B次元官网网址榖uy and holdB次元官网网址� as a good technique, because prices still have room for upward mobility.

This assessment raises an obvious question: how can Victoria be in recovery, when prices, have been heading in only one direction, namely up. According to House Victoria, a blog tracking local real estate figures, the median price of a detached home in Victoria now approaches $750,000. Four years ago, it was just over $500,000.

Hunt and her co-author Don R. Campbell address this question early in the report when they acknowledge that readers might be surprised to learn that many markets including Victoria find themselves in a B次元官网网址榬ecoveryB次元官网网址� phase.

B次元官网网址淭he label of B次元官网网址渞ecoveryB次元官网网址� doesnB次元官网网址檛 just mean it is coming out of a slump; it is a technical term describing the combination of the underlying fundamentals and comparing them to how the market could perform in the future,B次元官网网址� they write. B次元官网网址淪trategic investors understand that the label is not what matters; it is the underlying structure. ThereB次元官网网址檚 so much noise built into the statistics in B.C. after such a strong run upwards, itB次元官网网址檚 hard to believe that the real B次元官网网址榖oomB次元官网网址� statistics havenB次元官网网址檛 hit yet.B次元官网网址�

So what accounts for VictoriaB次元官网网址檚 attractiveness for investors?

First, it has a strong, diverse economy. B次元官网网址淎ccording to the most recent data, Victoria surpasses the national median income, and boasts one of the highest median incomes in British Columbia at $89,640 compared to the provincial median income of $79,750,B次元官网网址� the report reads. B次元官网网址淭his, combined with affordability, attracts people from Metro Vancouver and beyond.B次元官网网址�

Second, it has a growing population. Greater VictoriaB次元官网网址� regional population grew by 6.7 per cent between 2011 and 2016 to 367,770, almost two per cent faster than the national average of five per cent. B次元官网网址淎nd this is the real reason behind the strong housing demand and price increases. Greater VictoriaB次元官网网址檚 population is projected to grow by four to five per cent every five years between 2015 and 2025,B次元官网网址� it reads.

The report also points to VictoriaB次元官网网址檚 low rental rates as an incentive for investors.

B次元官网网址淚n conclusion, a strong rental market, a diverse economy, inherent seat-of-government stability, location, relative affordability, and high median income, are key factors that give Victoria an edge over other top towns and cities in British Columbia,B次元官网网址� it reads.