Picture: Victoria
A walk on the wild side The wide open spaces of British Columbia attract buyers looking to connect with nature at its finest as Ginetta Vedrickas discovers
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tretching along the Pacific coastline, rugged British Columbia is Canada’s most westerly province, attracting walkers and skiers to its stunning mountain range. Home to Whistler where the 2010 Winter Olympics were co-hosted, there’s plenty more to discover in this wild and wonderful destination which abounds with reserves and parks such as the Glacier National Park and the Pacific Rim National Park. British Columbia may best be known for its wide open spaces but it also boasts vibrant
cities such as Vancouver which lies on its southern border. According to Knight Frank’s Prime International Residential Index (PIRI) this exciting city came top out of 100 markets analysed with prime residential property prices in Vancouver rising by 25% in 2015, outpacing other markets by some margin. The report pinpointed several factors for the steep increase such as a lack of supply coupled with foreign demand, spurred on by a weaker Canadian dollar to explain Vancouver’s outstanding performance. Online trading platform easyMarkets has been watching both the Canadian dollar and the British pound under pressure in the face of Brexit and Brent crude falling again below the $40 a barrel mark. Speaking about Chancellor Osborne’s budget announcement and Canada’s Finance Minister, Bull Morneau’s federal budget,
easyMarket’s head of risk management Nikolas Xenofontos explains, “Both met with mixed reaction, not giving any clear direction for either currency. However, the pound has seen significant declines against the Canadian dollar since the start of the year where it traded around the 2.0419 mark, whereas of today, one pound will only get you 1.8797 dollars. That’s almost a massive 8% decrease for the first quarter. Pound volatility until the vote is offering great opportunities for traders but is making it tricky for those investing abroad right now.” Picking the best time to invest may be challenging but there are plenty of other reasons to buy a high-end home in British Columbia. Canadian cities in general regularly top the ‘Quality of Life indices’ with cities such as Victoria and Vancouver scoring highly. The Global Residential Cities Index which tracks the mainstream market - ranks Vancouver 10th of 165 cities around the world and, according to the Knight Frank Wealth Report 2016, Vancouver has more than its fair share of wealthy buyers. Statistics reveal the city has 25,300 millionaires, 720 multimillionaires and 262 UHNWIs. Between 2005 and 2015 there was an increase of 68% in the UHNWI population and the report predicts that there will be 36% increase in UHNWIs by 2025. International Property & Travel
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