Welcome to the Money Pit

A stunningly honest article. The hopeless tone smacks of capitulation, however. No mention of simply doing the sane thing and staying the heck out of the market. Insanity is the new normal.

Buying a house in Vancouver? Welcome to the money pit

And then there's this: Even if you manage to come up with a down payment, you'll likely be a single-digit interest rate hike away from bankruptcy, and someone you don't know will be renting the basement suite you had to build in order to quality for the mortgage in the first place.

Many are found on the edges of Vancouver, to the east and south, small postwar stucco bungalows and turn-of-the-century wood-frame piles that are short on bathrooms and bedrooms and need insulation and sometimes foundations because they've been long listing to starboard.

If you've overextended to buy a "pile" then you certainly can't afford a renovation to it. If you can afford the renovation, you should have qualified for a mortgage equal to a house not in need of so much immediate attention.