Any place ppl wish to live and where jobs are plentiful, the price of real estate will reflect those realities.
Kelowna is not a Calgary, out population is about 165k, and our lot prices for a standard lot is $100k in most places. That is an ordinary lot with no view and certainly no lake exposure at all. Lot prices tend to mirror the prices of the services that go into the ground (water, sewer, roads, sidewalks, gas, phone, etc, etc). These items cost about the same whether you are here, in Calgary or Halifax. Raw land reflects a whole lot of things (supply & demand, agricultural restrictions, rock, marsh, clay soils, etc,etc) and then the premiums come into play for water fronts, water views, golf courses, backing on reserves, etc, etc).
We briefly considered selling our place here and getting something a bit smaller to try to put some serious cash in our pockets. Not going to happen as anything we looked at that we wished to live in, although smaller, was going to be as much as we would get for our place here (almost). We have 1/3 acre, lake view, and about 3400sqft finished. Can't replace it in this market. We would have to leave here and go the (say) Grand Forks or Trail to find cheaper housing where you could cash out and have a chunk left over.
Houses are expensive everywhere but, usually, over time and not always, you do get your value plus out. I think the r/e market is getting pretty heated up and is due for some cooling off and, in same cases, maybe some downward pressure on prices. We all start somewhere. I bought my first house in Silver Springs in NW in 1972 for $33,100 all in.
Although I know Calgary quite well, your phrase "COP" has me scratching my head? What is it? Thanks, guys.
