It has been a long and cold winter, and that has many people already thinking about the sun and possibly buying property in cottage country.
Chantelle Black is considering buying a house in Muskoka.
“You always hear about the snow and all the good stuff up here,” Black says. “But until you are up here and you’re looking at houses and see it yourself, it's totally different than what you hear.”
Realtors say the winter months are traditionally slow, but this year potential buyers are eager even if most properties on the market are hard to access because of all the snow.
“It’s been such a hard long harsh winter buyers can't wait to get back to the cottage so they're anxious to get out looking so were doing everything we can to make that possible,” says realtor Heather Scott who is based in Port Carling.
Last year between January and March, twelve waterfront properties were sold on Lake Joseph, Lake Muskoka, and Lake Rosseau. So far this year, only six properties have been sold.
Steve Ramsay has been selling properties in Muskoka since 2002 and says many of his clients are ready to put their cottages on the market. Ramsay says they’re just waiting for the snow to melt.
“If you can't get into the cottage I don't want to list it,” says Ramsay. “I want to wait so people can actually walk on the ground and see what it’s like.”
Once the snow melts, realtors in Muskoka say they are expecting a flurry of activity from potential buyers and a lot more properties to be listed on the market.
