Canadian Realtor Accepts Bitcoin Deposits for Residential Properties

Yet another real estate firm has begun accepting bitcoin downpayments on its property, this time in British Columbia, Canada.

Abbotsford-based Quantum Properties began accepting bitcoin deposits on Wednesday for properties it sells in the area. The firm, formed in 2000, builds multi-family residential and commercial/retail buildings.

"For accepting deposits, bitcoin payments actually works very fast for us. We can be assured of the deposit within an hour while we finish our customer’s paperwork," said president and CEO Diane Delves, who added that traditional fiat deposits took a few days to clear. "Bitcoin also carries no to very low transaction fees which is a nice bonus."

The firm is bucking what seems to be a growing trend among merchants such as Overstock.com to immediately convert bitcoin back to fiat currency. Its costs are in Canadian dollars, so the firm will need to convert most of the coins to dollars in order to cover them, said Delves. "However, we do believe in the future of bitcoin and plan to hold some as an investment."

Quantum will price its deposits based on the Canadian dollar equivalent at the time. Delves said:

"We think any fluctuations will eventually even out on our transactions so we’re not too worried about the currency exchange rate risk in the short-term."

She joins a growing number of people offering real estate priced – at least partly – in bitcoin. In August, Saskatoon realtor Paul Chavady announced he would take bitcoin downpayments.

Greater public awareness around bitcoin seems to have ignited realtors in the last month, though. In December, The largest Canadian real estate offering yet, a $1m acreage in the prairie province of Alberta, went on the market with a bitcoin price tag.

Manhattan, NY-based realtor Bond New York also took the plunge, offering bitcoin pricing on residential properties there. Also, Julian Tosh, a consultant and owner of bitcoinsinvegas.com, offered his $7.85m Vegas mansion in the digital currency a few weeks ago.

Quantum would be focusing on residential projects for its bitcoin deposits, Delves said. "As a business, we need to adapt quickly to the future and we believe there is a future for Bitcoin as a payment transaction service."

The 156-unit Mahogany at Mill Lake project in Abbotsford is the firm's largest project on sale at the moment, with prices from $259,900. Sales launched about a year ago, and it still has 78 units to sell.

Real estate image via Shutterstock