When it comes to buying and selling property there are literally hundreds of things to think about. Some of these things might not be so obvious, but a good REALTOR will make sure you are aware of things as trivial as numbers in an address.

An article in the Province newspaper a while back talked about how having certain numbers in your address could increase the value of your property--by thousands of dollars potentially. How so you might ask?

Numbers have certain meanings and associated superstitions, especially in certain Asian communities. Having a number eight in the address can be worth an average of about $10,000 or more if you are selling your home, according to the article. 

This article was based on a report published by researchers at the University of B.C. economics department. The UBC report was based on 115,000 residential Greater Vancouver real estate sales from 2000 to 2005.

Back to that lucky No. 8--the Chinese superstition that eight is lucky relates to the fact that it is phonetically similar to the Chinese word for prosperity or wealth. Superstitions and beliefs come into play more often than we might expect; the No. 4 on the other hand is considered unlucky. This is why many residential towers in Metro Vancouver have no 4th, 14th or 24th floors.

Apparently this is a big issue when it comes to Richmond real estate, where a high percentage of the city’s population is of Chinese background. So many people have requested a change in their house number that the Richmond City planning department had to create a brochure on the matter. Needless to say there is a lot of bureaucracy and fees to to discourage people from changing their numbers.

All the same, it's just another thing to think about, and ask your REALTOR about when it comes to buying and selling real estate in Greater Vancouver.

Read the full report titled Superstition in the Housing Market. It is an interesting read for anyone interested in the real estate market.