Maribelle Ski Resort

Canada's Most Expensive Homes

Though the country is a latecomer to the multimillion-dollar housing market, and property remains relatively inexpensive when compared with cities like London, New York and San Francisco, Canada's real estate market is on the rise. And while the American dollar might buy you a slightly larger McMansion there than in the U.S., the asking prices are no bargain. “The housing market has been robust and is related to the overall good health of the economy,” says Phil Soper, the president and CEO of Royal LePage Real Estate Services--one of the country's largest brokerages--referring to low unemployment, strong consumer confidence and modest interest rates. “In particular, there is a lot of wealth in the Baby Boomer demographic, which drives a lot of the high-end transactions and pushes up the values of luxury homes.” According to Royal LePage's Carriage Trade Luxury Properties Report, the number of homes in Calgary, Alberta, costing $1 million Canadian increased 160.4% from third-quarter 2005 to third-quarter 2006. Greater Vancouver saw a 57.2% increase while Greater Toronto, Montreal and Victoria all saw the numbers of $1 million homes rise 20%.  Such statistics may elicit a chuckle from Americans, where $1 million buys a large one-bedroom Manhattan apartment. But in a country where, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), the average home cost $280,816 Canadian (about $238,810) in November 2006, multimillion-dollar properties make headlines. The CREA represents 88,000 of Canada's real estate brokers and agents, and also regularly analyzes and disseminates data on significant Canadian housing conditions. Properties like this fall into a category of what Soper calls “legacy homes.” These are primary residences that are often 100 years old and situated in ritzy neighborhoods.

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