Retiring boomers stoking BC recreational properties

Robert Mercier and Agathe Fillion jumped at the chance to buy a waterfront home for $1.2 million in Fanny Bay, south of Courtenay on Vancouver Island. In doing so, the Calgary couple followed in the footsteps of many Albertans, including Mercier's sister, who is leaving the booming Alberta economy behind for the quiet life on Vancouver Island.

"Calgary is very booming, and we had some business there and it was very stressful and we said 'Okay, that's enough'," Mercier said.

"Here I find it so relaxed, so peaceful. The noise is the natural noise of the sea. We have sea lions and fishing boats in front of our place.

"You can't do better than that."

Mercier said the $1.2-million price tag for the 4,300-square-foot house on three-quarters of an acre "was a deal."

The market is very strong in the area and prices are just going to go up, he said.

The stretch of waterfront from Campbell River to Fanny Bay has been developed for 40 years, Marty Douglas, managing broker at Coast Realty Group in the Comox Valley said. But the homes have only become more attractive in the past decade, especially since WestJet started flying to Comox three years ago, he said.

Darrell Paysen, president of the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board, said property values on the island have gone up significantly in the past few years, much of it pushed up by migrants to the area.

"What causes those property value increases is people finding the island," Paysen said.

Paysen sees a lot of people from Alberta. They are living in Calgary, they are set to retire and they've built up a bit of money from working, from the equity in their home and maybe from an inheritance, he said. So they hop on a plane and fly to Victoria which is just two hours away.

They are attracted by the weather, and they want to be near a city, but not necessarily in one, Paysen said. So places such as Courtenay and Duncan, just north of Victoria, are popular.

"You get that happening over and over and over again and that's what brings the prices up," Paysen said.

Americans are also heading north, he said. If somebody decides they want to move to Canada, there is a good chance they are going to end up on the West Coast because of our climate and lifestyle, he said.

And the island is still relatively affordable, compared to other places in the world and compared to Victoria and Vancouver, he said.

"Like it or not, we are living in this global economy now. So it used to be the only people who were buying real estate around here were the local people; well that's no longer the case."

(prepared by Fiona Anderson/Vancouver Sun)