Cottage prices outpace housing market

The average national price for a waterfront cottage or cabin, jumped 12 per cent to $427,589 this spring while the average national price of an existing home climbed a smaller 9.3 per cent to $305,542.

Phil Soper, president and chief executive officer of Royal LePage Real Estate Services, said tight market conditions, particularly in Western Canada, are sending prices skyward. The survey found that more than 60 per cent of existing cottage owners plan to will their property to their family.

“This is unadulterated supply and demand,” he said. “We have a booming economy, lots of disposable income, a growing population and very limited waterfront supply.”

In light of the tight market conditions, Mr. Soper does not expect to see a slowdown - or a reprieve in prices - in the recreational property market. “Even a modest slowdown in the economy won't bring it down. It is very much a sellers' market.”

In the longer term, a scarcity of land along with demographic factors will ensure that recreational properties maintain their high value. The number of Canadian senior citizens - an age group with a large disposable income - will surge by 65 per cent, or 1.5 million, in the next decade. The powerful demographic cohort will downsize from their primary homes and could put that money towards condos, second homes and vacation properties.

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