Lillooet is experiencing a sudden real estate boom driven by Lower Mainlanders seeking affordable recreational land and a mortgage-free lifestyle, says a local real estate agent.
On June 30, Re/Max Real Estate Lillooet broker Mark Rawson sold two homes in Lillooet, a 3.5-hour drive north of Vancouver. He sold another on July 1.
This constitutes a boom in the town of 2,400. The housing market has been dormant since 2008.
“After quite a few lean, dry years, we’re seeing some happy faces around town,” said Rawson. “This is a mini-Okanagan, but without Okanagan prices.”
Rawson attributes the active market to low prices, the booming Lower Mainland market and an influx of people – particularly from the Squamish area – looking for a small-town atmosphere and lifestyle.
Rawson asked one Vancouver-area couple what they planned to do now that they’ve bought a Lillooet home.
“They replied, ‘We don’t care as long as we’re mortgage-free. We’ll address that question when we get here,”’ he said.
Lillooet last real estate boom was in 2006-08, when sales peaked at 120 homes a year before plunging below 40 by 2014. This year, Rawson expects 80 to 100 residential property sales.
Rawson is not yet seeing prices rise substantially.
“When the supply dries up and if demand keeps coming, then the prices will inevitably go up.”
A search on realtor.ca found Lillooet-area houses on riverfront from $219,000 and lakefront homes for less than $300,000. This compares with the central Okanagan, where waterfront cottages can top $1.6 million, according to a recent Royal LePage survey.
