Volume 88, Number 11 Thursday, March 24, 2022
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$ 25 85, Number 5 day, February 6, 2019
We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada.
Box 746, 123 1st
GST included
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Nothing like playing in the snow on a Friday afternoon Students and staff at Canora Junior Elementary School took advantage of the warming late winter weather to hold their Spring Carnival on March 18. Team Wolverines followed the snow sculpture competition directions from the teachers and built their sculpture as high as they could, but it looked like they might need to do some more work on the stability of the structure.
Real estate boom hits small town Saskatchewan As Canadians navigate uncertain times and soaring inflation, pressures from the economic turmoil have become a heavy burden on the nation. Despite this, there are a few industries that seem to have dodged much of the national stress. With an array of personal reasons driving real estate sales, small town Saskatchewan realtors in particular are reporting a substantial increase in business. Jodie Kowalyshyn of Community Insurance in Canora has been a licensed realtor since 2006. She said that 2021 was the busiest season she has ever seen over the span of her 15 years in the industry. “ N o r m a l l y, w e h a v e close to 40 properties on the market,” said Kowalyshyn. “Currently we’re down to
just 15 – and the demand is showing no signs of slowing down. We’re expecting sales to take off even more once the weather changes and the snow melts.” With a focus on Canora real estate, Kowalyshyn said the fastest selling homes are definitely those listed under $100,000. “Just last week, we listed a smaller house in town. We posted a sign in the front yard, and by the next day – it was sold.” Kowalyshyn said that while her clients are looking to Canora for a variety of reasons – the most popular are affordability and proximity to Yorkton. “Many of our clients are first-time home buyers who want to live in a small town, but still enjoy all of the city amenities within a short commute,”
s a i d K o w a l y s h y n . “ We have a great little town with so many events and community development projects on the go that will serve residents – especially families with children. We are also well-known for our high rate of senior citizens, and we are seeing quite a few properties come up for sale – like estate sales, or people who want to downsize to live with family or move into senior housing. Older people often tell us they have grown tired of the work involved with maintaining a house – like cutting grass or shovelling snow. There are also a number of farmers in the area looking to retire and either sell all of their land or subdivide and sell parts they don’t want to manage anymore. Unless a property is priced way too
high, it won’t last long on our listings. It’s definitely a seller’s market right now.” Another established l o c a l r e a l t o r, G l a d y s Secondiak of RE/MAX Bridge City Realty, said her properties are selling so fast, she can hardly keep up with the paperwork. “I’ve been running s t e a d y. I w o r k s e v e n days a week. You’d think COVID-19 would have slowed things down, but actually, it has stirred buyers up. In all my years in this industry, 2021 was the busiest year yet.” Secondiak said that a good portion of her buyers are out-of-province and it’s not uncommon for properties to be purchased sight unseen. “I’ve seen a huge increase in impulse buyers,” said Secondiak. “A lot of
people are telling me that they want to escape. They are watching the news and they are frightened. They are worried about economic depression and it has put them in survival mode. They want to be self-sustaining, so they are looking for ways they can live off the land. Acreages are the most in demand. People are saying they want to plant their own vegetables and even look to buy full quarters of land so they can hunt and provide their own food.” In a strange twist, Secondiak reported that small town Saskatchewan was also affected by the Ottawa “trucker freedom convoy.” “ We l l , w h e n p e o p l e started talking about the idea of Trudeau freezing bank accounts, they really
began scrambling to put their cash and assets into real estate. When they looked across the country, they discovered the best prices were right here in Saskatchewan. These days, land is typically gone the minute it comes up – but only if it is priced right.” Secondiak added that although the demand for commercial real estate hasn’t been quite as dramatic, she has observed a new trend emerging with young professionals. “I’ve spoken with a number of real motivated and really skilled professionals who are looking to live the life of their dreams by owning their own commercial business. It seems as though the pandemic gave many people the time to reflect on their Continued on Page 2
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