Homeowners' Jackpot
If you moved to B.C.'s Okanagan Valley five years ago and bought a home -- guess what? You won the jackpot when it comes to the biggest gains on your real estate investment.
So says a new housing report by Century 21, which shows the price of homes in Vernon, B.C. jumped an unbelievable 129% from spring 2001 to this spring, with the value of a typical home there (1,200 sq. ft., three-bedroom bungalow, with two bathroom) rising from $155,000 to $355,000.
Not far away, Kelowna holds the fourth spot for the biggest housing gains. There, the price of a typical house (a 2,600 sq. ft. home with four bedrooms and three baths) jumped from $185,000 to $350,000 -- up 89%.
Overall, 38 cities were surveyed and the biggest gains were found in both B.C. and Alberta, where the Great Oil Rush has boosted fortunes.
"In British Columbia and Alberta, the same economic factors plus booming energy and construction sectors have produced dramatic house price increases," said Don Lawby, Century 21 president.
The list of the top five hot spots is:
- Vernon -- up 129%.
- Calgary (north-east), up 121%
- Fort McMurray, up 105%
- Kelowna, up 89%.
- Quebec City, up 67%.
Other areas with decent gains include the Winnipeg's suburb of St. Vital South, where home prices gained 64%. Next is Peterborough, which tops the list in Ontario, with price gains of 54%, with the value of a typical home of 1,050 sq. ft. with three bedrooms and one-and-a-half bathrooms, rising from $131,000 to $202,000.
Kitchener-Waterloo had gains of 51% for a typical 1,200 sq. ft. home with three bedrooom sand two bathrooms, with the value rising from $163,000 to $245,500.
Toronto's market also saw impressive gains, with a typical Beaches home up from $404,000 to $582,750, for a 44% gain. But that still didn't beat the stock market, with the S&P TSX composite index up 46% during the same five-year period.
Linda Leatherdale - Business Editor