Canada’s cottage country could see boost in prices, report finds
Spring is officially underway in Canada, and for some it may mean deciding whether this could be the year to buy a cottage or cabin.
But a new report from Royal LePage says people may need to budget properly before that purchase.
The report, released Wednesday, found the recreational real estate market could be in line for a revival with the national median house price forecast to increase by about five per cent.
Royal LePage president and CEO Phil Soper said demand has been building amid inflation.
“There’s no place we see across the country that doesn’t have growing demand and therefore some upward pressure on prices,” Soper said.
Inflation is dropping, decreasing overall to 2.8 per cent in February, surprising economists and bringing the possibility that both the housing market and recreational homes could see a boost.
In 2020, a Royal LePage report found the prices of recreational homes rose about 11.5 per cent to about $453,046 in the first nine months of that year, in part due to dwindling supply due to increase demand.
Almost four years later, the market appears to be in a similar situation.
A survey of 150 Royal LePage recreational real estate professionals earlier this year found 41 per cent reporting less inventory compared to the same time in 2023. However, 64 per cent noted they were having similar or even more demand.
“As the economy has revived, and in particular, as people have felt more certainty about economic conditions going forward and the end of the … very high interest rate environment coming to an end, there is more confidence in recreational markets,” Soper said.
Low inventory with high demand could prompt a rise in prices, the report notes, with Atlantic Canada, B.C. and Ontario likely to see the
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