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Larger suites becoming more popular with buyers

Downsizers looking for larger homes after selling single-family homes.

When you're considering downsizing from a family home, the thought of living in a cramped apartment may turn you off of the idea. But recently developments like Waterstone in Langley have offered larger condominium homes for sale, and baby boomers are flocking to it.

"They want the floorplan to feel like a single-family house," says Scott Brown of Colliers International. "Baby boomers have difficulty seeing anything under 1,000 square feet as large enough for them. They still want the bells and whistles of a house as well."

But it's more than larger floorplans that attract downsizers to a multi-family project.

"They want the things that you would typically see in a house," Brown says, adding that among those things are popular amenities such as a fitness centre, pool and full-size appliances.

Location is also a big thing for baby boomers.

"They always say 'go west young man' but in this case it's 'go east baby boomer!" Brown laughs, saying that many downsizers tend to leave their home in more expensive areas such as UBC and Richmond, and head east into the Granville area or Langley, respectively.

"They don't want to lose their social circle," Brown says," but they are looking for something a little more affordable. When their life isn't so dependent on work, they will often move closer to their kids, who can't usually afford a single-family home when they're starting out."