O Canada
03/01/2005
During the last decade, Hollywood producers have regarded Canada as an enormous back lot. “You see Vancouver double as Los Angeles, Toronto as Chicago and Montreal as anything from Paris to London to SoHo,” says Nicholas Barker, who works with the Montreal Film and Television Commission. “American moviemakers come here because it has all of the convenience of the States, but for a lot less money.” While the film industry initially came because of the budget-priced production costs, many of its members realized Canada offers another superb value: real estate. And even though the loss of tax incentives has caused a slight downturn in movie production north of the border, Americans in the entertainment industry continue to snap up primary and vacation residences with enthusiasm. They aren’t alone. Viable commuting distances for those who do not need to be in an office daily, plenty of space and a still-favorable exchange rate have made Canadian metropolises prime destinations for U.S. citizens, a trend reinforced by security concerns and political tension at home.; function voidFunc() { } voidFunc();)
A view of Toronto’s skyline at dusk.
(Click image to enlarge)Vancouver, sharing a time zone with Los Angeles and only three hours away by plane, reels in the greatest number of Americans. “They tend to see us as a safe haven,” says Irv Ridd, co-owner of Premier Canadian Properties Ltd., a Sotheby’s International Realty in Vancouver. “Although we’re a major hub, we’re not really a terrorist target. And we have all of the advantages of a big city, but without all of the crime.” The third largest city in Canada, with a population of about 2.5 million, Vancouver offers Americans a moderate climate with a diverse range of properties. As little as $1 million Canadian (CAD)—about $822,000 in U.S. dollars (USD)—buys an exceptional oceanfront home, and New York–style high-rise condominiums are far more affordable than their Park Avenue counterparts; high-end hobby farms outside the city sell for around $7.5 million CAD (about $6.2 million USD). “The largest buying sector we deal with is Americans,” says Ridd. “I just sold a house to a couple of lawyers in Atlanta who wanted something oceanfront, but couldn’t find anything that they liked on the eastern seaboard. It was a quick decision for them to buy. Even though we’re technically a foreign country, it’s an easy transaction, and it’s the kind of property you simply can’t buy anywhere else anymore—especially when you compare it to what you might acquire in Cape Cod or the Florida Keys.” The Canadian dollar may be growing stronger against American currency—at press time, $1 U.S. is roughly equal to $1.22 Canadian—but it hasn’t discouraged buying. “The volume of business has actually increased,” says Ridd. “Americans are comfortable dealing with a strong, well-managed country.”Also attracting a large amount of attention from across the border is Montreal and its surrounding areas. With the largest film production studio in the world recently built just 45 minutes north of the city, and Technicolor’s most advanced film lab not far from it, Montreal is clearly on American radar. “Over 30 percent of our buyers are from the U.S.,” says Michael Clark of Mont Tremblant Real Estate. “The French immersion is a huge factor. Where else can you go in North America and experience another culture this easily?” An island city, Montreal’s most prestigious addresses are closest to the city’s central mountain, Mont-Royal. “On one side is Westmount and on the other is Outremont, with the property values rising along with the elevation,” explains Clark. “However, the trendiest place to buy right now is in Vieux Montreal along the water, where the canals are being reopened.
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A 37th-floor Vancouver condominium, left, is
available through Sotheby’s for
$1.198 million CAD. Right, a
summertime view of Mont Tremblant’s village. (Click image to
enlarge)A lot of Americans are buying the old historical buildings as investments and converting them to condos.” Full of cobblestone streets and French charm, the city appeals especially to baby boomers who enjoy Europe but don’t want to cross the Atlantic to visit a second home. “People oftentimes buy a condo in the city, but as their children get older and they start to have grandchildren, they want something more family oriented as well,” says Clark. “So they end up buying an additional home at Mont Tremblant.” Just over an hour from Montreal, Mont Tremblant is a 3,000-acre ski resort community at the edge of a national park with over 400 lakes, boasting its own airport, seven golf courses, 29 restaurants and thousands of condos ranging from $150,000 to $2 million CAD (about $123,000–$1.6 million USD) and homes from $500,000 to $6 million CAD (about $411,000–$4.9 million USD). “There are 55 million Americans within just a couple of hours from here, yet it’s an entirely different atmosphere for them,” says Clark. “We’re a top-ranked ski resort, but we’re actually more popular during the summer months, since our lakes get warm.”Used as an American city stand-in for movies like Chicago, Toronto is particularly appealing to those looking for a primary residence. “To start out with, you’re already getting a 20 percent discount, just with the exchange rate,” says Harvey Kalles of Harvey Kalles Real Estate, an affiliate of Christie’s Great Estates based in Toronto. “Then you add the safety factor, the natural beauty and the educational and health systems, and many people begin to see how it can be superior to the U.S.” While not quite as popular with Americans as Vancouver or Montreal, that may soon change. “For one thing, Donald Trump is constructing a 75-story condominium tower in the heart of downtown,” says Kalles. “And, once the tax incentives for American filming have been put back into place, the city is going to start to get a lot more attention.” Top neighborhoods such as Rosedale can see high-end properties sell for $7 million CAD ($5.8 million USD), while just 15 minutes from the city, rural areas like the Bridle Path, where lots are at least two acres, can sell for around $3 million CAD ($2.5 million USD) for the land or between $5 million and $12 million CAD ($4.1 million–$9.9 million USD) for completed homes. Known for its superior schools and proximity to downtown, homes in the Forest Hill Village area can cost as much as $25 million CAD ($20.6 million USD).
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Sotheby’s has the listing for this $18.5 million
CAD villa, top, on Vancouver’s
Victoria Island. Above, the rowing
club’s boathouse in Vancouver’s Stanley
Park. (Click image to enlarge)Naturally, purchasing property in Canada has advantages and drawbacks from an American perspective. Welcome is the general absence of capital gains tax on profits of up to $500,000 CAD made from the sale of a primary residence, with a top rate of 15 percent on gains in excess of $500,000 CAD. Mortgage interest, however, is not tax deductible, and while property taxes tend to be lower than in the United States, homes are reassessed every year—as home values rapidly increase, so do taxes. You won’t need a passport to enter the country, but with myriad tax and residency issues to go over, bring your favorite lawyer along. Irv Ridd, Premier Canadian Properties Ltd., 877.236.8800,
www.premiercanadian.com
Michael Clark, Mont Tremblant Real Estate Inc., 888.925.9324, www.monttremblantrealestate.com
Harvey Kalles, Harvey Kalles Real Estate Ltd., 888.452.5537, www.harveykalles.com
Tourism Vancouver, 604.682.2222, www.tourismvancouver.com
Toronto Convention & Visitors Association, 416.203.2600,
www.torontotourism.com
Tourisme Montreal, www.tourisme-montreal.org
Canadian Tourism Commission, www.travelcanada.ca