I never have to look very far to find someone who wants to talk about real estate. Truth is, I don’t have to look at all if I don’t want to because people find me. At times it seems as though almost everyone has a real estate story to tell me or is interested in talking about what’s going on in the market.

Now, I don’t know about you and I know that everyone’s different, but when I’m doing something like getting a haircut or having my teeth cleaned, I’m hoping for some peace and quiet. My days are generally very busy so I tend to think of those times as my own personal, mini-vacations that last about half an hour because I can’t really answer my phone or reply to email. I’ve even been known to nod off briefly in the barber’s or dentist’s chair.

Of course, because I like to be polite, I don’t ever ask anyone to not speak to me so there are times when my reverie is interrupted. It doesn’t bother me when that happens because it often gives me the opportunity to engage in some interesting conversations. Take the other day, for example. I’ve had a laundry list of injuries this Summer – knee, back, hip, shoulder….you name it. Nothing traumatic, but enough so that instead of running, playing golf and doing yoga, which are the things I love to do, I’ve had to spend my Summer getting active release treatment and massage therapy and doing rehab/physio. Once again, not that any of these things are terrible. There are many worse things I could be forced to do, but they’re not my first choices for leisure activities.

The other day I decided to see if acupuncture would help me heal more quickly. I visited a doctor of Chinese medicine who was trained in China and who worked there for about 20 years before he moved here in the 1990s. I was looking forward to a little “quiet time” after he stuck the needles in me, but that’s when he asked me what I do. When I told him I’m a Realtor, his face lit up and he started to tell me about his buying and selling experiences both here and in China. Turns out that he’s a bit of an investor.

In a nutshell, here’s what he told me:

-Prices in Shanghai are about twice what they are here. He could buy two condos in a prime location here for the same price he could buy one condo in a comparable location in Shanghai. My takeaway: our market is attractive to foreign investors because it’s still undervalued relative to many other markets across the world.

-His brother was smarter than him because he bought more condos than him in Shanghai and those condos have increased in value by about five times their original value over the past 5-10 years. My takeaway: I should’ve bought condos in Shanghai five years ago.

-He’s made money every time he’s bought and sold real estate since coming to Canada. My takeaway: this isn’t surprising given that he arrived after our last major real estate crash in 1989.

-There are a lot of people in China with a lot of money who want to invest in Canadian real estate because it’s relatively cheap and safe and there are ways for them to get as much money into and out of Canada as they please. My takeaway: I’m not at all surprised. There are people from other countries in similar situations.

-He doesn’t expect prices to ever fall. Why should he? He’s seen prices increase every year since he moved here (except for an eight month blip in 2008-2009). My takeaway: sometimes the people who make the most money are the ones who aren’t aware of the risks they’re taking.

Why has our market in central Toronto been so strong for so long and why is it likely to remain so? Well, people like this doctor/acupuncturist have definitely helped our market, but there are many other types of people looking to buy real estate here, too. Some of them are investors who feel that our market is undervalued and very safe and others, probably the large majority, want to live here or are already living here and want a different home. I don’t think it’ll last forever, nothing does, but we’re on a good run and there doesn’t appear to be anything on the horizon likely to derail this train. At least not yet.

As always, if you know of anyone who’s looking for an honest realtor who really knows his stuff and won’t pressure them, Please Don’t Keep Me a Secret. I really appreciate your referrals. Thanks for reading and don’t be shy if you have any questions or comments!