The truth is that real estate isn’t about property. It’s about people.
Milad Khavari is one of those mythical creatures you only hear about in stories - since becoming a Vancouverite, he’s spent his entire life downtown. Watching the city change and grow has given him an edge in the world of real estate - who better to help you find a home in the centre of Vancouver than someone who grew up exploring its streets?
We get to know this legendary realtor in Season One of RealTours, as he guides Stephen Tadgh through the exclusive neighbourhoods of Coal Harbour.
The lights are so much brighter here.
Khavari was nine years old when his family moved to Vancouver from Iran. His mother was considering which neighbourhoods to live in and knew she didn’t want to give up the hustle and bustle of life in Tehran. So they found a home a block off of Robson Street, right in the heart of Vancouver’s shopping district.
"It was very nice living downtown,” he remembers. “I went to high school on Denman Street. I went to elementary school in the West End. Stanley Park was my backyard.”
As any Vancouver resident will tell you, living downtown can be expensive, especially when you’re first starting out in your career. But Khavari knew he didn’t want to live anywhere else, so he came up with a plan.
“I had a lot of friends who had to move to Toronto or Calgary for jobs,” he says. “But I really wanted a job that was able to keep me here, where I could afford it, where I could build a career. So I got into real estate.”
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Vancouver’s not cheap. But you get a lot of bang for your buck if you are taking advantage of everything the city has to offer.
Milad Khavari
RE/MAX Masters Realty
Reaching new heights.
Downtown Vancouver is an ever-changing beast. Entirely new neighbourhoods have appeared since Khavari first moved to the area as a child.
"That whole first phase of Coal Harbour, I basically witnessed that as a young kid,” he says. “I got a sense of these buildings being built - I was an eyewitness to them."
This experience has helped Khavari find his clients homes in the neighbourhoods that will suit them most. He knows which areas appeal more to young professionals versus families.
"When I have clients who say 'I want to live in the city but I don't want to feel like I'm living in the city', I introduce them to Bayshore Drive," he says, as an example.
Outside of the world of real estate, you’ll likely find Khavari scaling a dramatic rock face. "About five or six years ago, I got into climbing. Indoor for training but we love to get outdoors, you know Squamish, in summer. You get lost in the multitudes of climbs and areas there.”
