If you like the idea of calling your vacation spot home, you’re not alone.
According to findings released from Statistics Canada’s 2021 Census, resort destinations are among the fastest growing communities in all of Canada, and Ontario is no exception. Data on the population growth rate of census agglomerations (CAs) across Canada saw Wasaga Beach and Collingwood placing high on the list, along with Ontario CAs Tillsonburg and Woodstock also registering chart-topping growth within the top 10.
The Wasaga Beach CA showed an increase of 20.3 per cent from 2016 to 2021 in the number two spot, and Collingwood jumped by 13.8 per cent in the number five spot. Tillsonburg showed 17.3 per cent population growth, number three on the list, and Woodstock was number six with 13.6 per cent growth.
The report from Statistics Canada noted that Wasaga Beach and Collingwood, along with Squamish, B.C. at the top of the list and Canmore, Alberta coming in at number four, are known for being tourist destinations or resort cities. “All four of these resort CAs attracted migrants from other areas in their respective provinces, a factor that explains practically all the population growth in Wasaga Beach and Collingwood,” the report notes.
Yvonne Brockman, a Realtor operating in Wasaga, Collingwood, Stayner, Meaford and Thornbury, is seeing a similar trend in person, with many buyers coming from the GTA.
“They’re selling their homes and cashing out, and then looking for land to build on. Land is really in demand right now.” she says, adding that Collingwood specifically is in the midst of a one-year moratorium on new builds, put into effect by the town council last April. Nonetheless, the housing demand there is strong. “Collingwood’s getting really over-saturated… The locals aren’t buying as much. It’s really GTA [buyers] coming from Brampton, Guelph, Kitchener, and Toronto, and the surrounding areas.”
It’s all very indicative of lifestyle trends hatched during the pandemic. Homeowners want more space and better value than what large urban centres can offer. Meanwhile, the appeal of somewhere like Wasaga or Collingwood is compounded by the fact that these towns are in the thick of epic nature, with proximity to Canada’s most marketable outdoor facilities, such as ski hills, skate trails, parks and beaches.
Even so, Brockman says that Lakelands-based realtors have been surprised by the rush of interest in the outskirt real estate markets. “We didn’t expect to see such a spiralling out of control here at this time of the year,” she says.
At one point, Wasaga Beach was down to a two-week supply of houses; eight homes for sale, and about 800 buyers. “And I think that’s because of all of the talk about inflation and interest rates going up, and people just want to lock in to their new mortgage for the next three to five years.”
As housing demand continues to boil over in high-desire areas like Wasaga and Collingwood, the market is itching for inventory. “Now, there are more listings coming out, so it’s giving me hope that it might balance the market. [And] if more and more buyers come out, typically as they do in the spring, [demand] might be tempered by the rising interest rates,” says Brockman.
Nonetheless, she’s anticipating a hot spring market.
