B.C.’s Interior is not a wise choice to invest in real estate because the forestry sector is set to suffer huge job losses, which will then reduce house prices, Real Estate Investment Network (REIN) president Don Campbell told Business in Vancouver Thursday.
He pointed to the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations report that was leaked to media April 18 – which said the province is running out of healthy timber because of the pine beetle infestation.
The report examined the Prince George, Burns Lake, Williams Lake and Quesnel regions and suggested that 12,000 jobs could be lost within five years if no action is taken because of the “drastic decrease in timber supply.”
Campbell believes that an investment property should pay for itself with cash flow from rent. He focuses on buying properties in regions where there is job and GDP growth.
“The thing I learned a long time ago is don’t drink your own Kool Aid without continually fact checking your premise,” Campbell told BIV over lunch.
“Facts change. You can’t keep saying over and over that Prince George is the place to invest and not pay attention to that report that was leaked yesterday and said that over 50% of forestry jobs in the Quesnel area are going to be disappearing over the next three to five years because of the age of the lumber.”
