Property Watch: Tricky-to-categorize ‘bare land strata’ home overlooking Marine Drive Golf Club
Is it a house? A townhouse? A duplex? Is it detached? Semi-detached? These are the head-scratching questions that interested buyers ask when they tour Yewbrook Place, a unique development overlooking the Marine Drive Golf Club in Vancouver.
The answer, essentially, is yes. It is a house. It looks like a townhouse. It is semi-detached. It is a duplex, kind of. As Crystal Hung of Icon & Co. Boutique Inc. real estate marketing and sales agency puts it, “There isn’t even a category on MLS to categorize it, it’s so unique. It’s called a ‘bare land strata’, a big parcel of land that 13 homeowners share in a subdivision. They look like townhomes but they’re all individual single lots, with unobstructed views of the 105-acre golf course.
“There’s a lot more to it behind the structure when you enter the home .”
What’s inside
Hung says each structure is designed and built a bit differently. This particular home comprises two-and-a-half bathrooms, three bedrooms plus an open office over two levels connected by stairs and a private elevator. Four new terraces comprise almost 2,000 square feet with heaters above two of them.
The property was renovated twice since it was built in 1982, the last time, in 2023, cost more than $1 million.
The current homeowner, a construction executive, undertook an extensive overhaul, says Hung. “Everything was taken out — roofing, decks, drainage, mechanical, pipes, plumbing, electrical wiring, a lot of insulation, all window systems, the entire flooring was re-levelled, the rooftop deck was rebuilt and waterproofed, and interior and exterior finishes were upgraded. It’s basically a brand-new build.”
She says the homeowner spent $180,000 on the hardwood, tiles, and carpeted flooring alone. Roughly $20,000 of that was just on levelling and waterproofing, from the rooftop deck all the way downstairs. She also invested more than $100,000 on custom-made EuroLine Windows and patio doors.
“Because she’s a construction expert, she didn’t do it just for cosmetic reasons,” says Hung of the extensive renovations. “It was to be her forever home, and it was that long-term thinking she had in mind when she was renovating. She spent all the money and did the work (so it would be) very low maintenance. It’s like a house without the house problem. But she was being drawn too often to grandkids in Richmond …”
There are two gas fireplaces, and extensive skylights span the top of the main entrance, above the staircase and into the kitchen.
All three bedrooms are on the main floor, one of which is being used as a gym (and could also be converted to a home theatre). One features a Murphy bed, and another could be reconfigured to accommodate a live-in caretaker for a downsizer who wants to age in place. The primary bedroom is en suite with a jetted soaker tub and walk-in shower.
There’s also an open office space by the kitchen. “Being a female executive, she’s always in her kitchen and office,” says Hung. “It didn’t make sense to have a third seating room, so she turned it into an office.”
Kitchen appliances include a Wolf range and Sub-Zero refrigerator. There is also a wine fridge next to the wall stoves and a backup fridge by the elevator. Cabinetry, including in the library/TV room, was designed and crafted in B.C. by Nicole Mah Design. Customized Emtek hardware was also incorporated throughout the home.
The elevator was installed by Cambridge Cambrian Elevator from Western Elevator Ltd at a cost of $40,000.
The owner also had a Hydropool AquaSport self-cleaning, energy-efficient jetted swim spa installed for $35,000. “The coolest thing I learned about this pool is that you can swim stationary laps for a full-body workout, use the rowing system to work the upper body, and run or jog underwater for a cardiovascular workout,” says Hung. “The insulation layer inside of the system uses the same technology as NASA for protecting its astronauts from minus 273 degrees in outer space.”
The homeowner also enlisted Repel Technologies to integrate smart home technology, including a brand-new, top-of-the-line security system with the latest alarm sensors on all openings, glass break detectors on windows, CCTV cameras, as well as automatic blinds, temperature, AC, and lighting that can all be controlled with a smartphone or iPad.
The home comes with a two-car garage and an EV charging station, plus extra visitor parking.
“I think the bare land strata is an interesting topic that’s misunderstood,” says Hung, who notes that owners can undertake any renovations, additions or adjustments as long as they obtain the appropriate permits and follow architectural standards and strata guidelines to protect the integrity and esthetic of the complex. Each homeowner pays $900 in monthly strata fees for landscaping in public areas.
“It’s a great model because it’s gentle, it’s respectful, it’s clean, there are lots of benefits that, unless you live there, are not well-known. I think it’s a much better option than building six homes on one tiny lot.”
In the neighbourhood
Hung says she envisions the next homeowner as a downsizer who is looking for something safe and quiet, close to public and private schools, including UBC 10 minutes away, YVR 15 minutes away, and several top golf courses, including the private Marine Drive Golf Club, close by.
Stairs leading outside connect with a walkway that links to the Fraser River trail system and the Pacific Spirit Regional Park and beyond.
Grocery stores, shops and restaurants are a walk, bike or drive up West 57th Avenue, or seven minutes over to Dunbar Village and Kerrisdale Village on W. 41st Avenue.
Location:2236 Yewbrook Place , Vancouver
Listed for: $4,788,000
Year built: 1982
Type: Three bedrooms, two-and-a-half bathrooms
Size: 4,330 square feet
Realtor: Listed by Crystal Hung, Icon&Co. Boutique Inc., Vancouver
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Source: vancouversun.com