HOTTEST GLOBAL PROPERTY INVESTMENT OPS

CANADA: THE ALTERNATIVE NORTH AMERICAN DREAM

Irish explorers discovered Canada centuries ago and now Irish buyers are doing so all over again, reports Shane McGinley.

The multi award winning resort of Humber Valley Resort.

Historians believe that in the 5th Century exploring Irish medieval monks, lead by St Brendan the Abbot sailed across the Atlantic and landed in North America.

Moving forward five centuries the Viking Leif Erickson headed out across the Atlantic in search of a new lands to conquer. They both landed on the island of Newfoundland, off the Canadian coast and stood on North American soil long before the upstart Christopher Columbus claimed to have "discovered" the continent a few centuries later.

Since then many Irish investors have followed in the footsteps of these early explorers and have rediscovered the appeal of the Canadian wilderness. A prime example of this is Newfound Developers' $500m multi award winning resort at Humber Valley, Newfoundland, located on the island's West coast.

HUGE INCREASE IN VALUE

The inside of one of the chalets at Humber Valley Resort, Newfoundland.

In less than two years all of the initial 321 properties in Humber Valley Resort were sold before it was officially opened in late 2004. Of those sold 54% were bought by British buyers, 33% by Irish buyers and the remaining 12% by buyers from the rest of the world. In less than a year a property bought for $300,000 CDN has increased in value to over $500,000 CDN, in more mature Canadian resorts similar properties would command figures in excess of $1 million CDN.

The Canadian resort industry has experienced outstanding growth in terms of property appreciation in recent years and in western and central Canada resorts such as Whistler and Blackcomb have seen annual increases of more than 10% over the last decade.

Only a couple of years ago the Canadian tourism industry was experiencing a slump and in 2003 reported a decline in foreign visitors, however the World Tourism Organisation ranks Canada as the 10th most popular tourist destination in the world.

LUXURIOUS

One of the different chalet designs available at Humber Valley Resort.

Property in Humber Valley, like many Canadian resorts, is alpine chalet style accommodation, with 2,000 to 5,000 sq. feet of living space, 3-6 bedrooms, 4-6 bathrooms and lots ranging from one to three acres in size. No two chalets on the Humber Valley Resort are identical as plot sizes, locations and views vary, there are 17 different designs available which can all be amended, extended and individualised according to personal taste and there are a variety of furnishing packages available.

As a general guide three bedroom chalets start from approximately €456,105. Buyers have to pay for the site upfront and further payments are phased over the construction period. Canadian banks offer mortgages of up to 65% of the sale price.

When buying in Canada there is a harmonised sales tax [HST] of 15% that must be paid on all Canadian properties, but this may be avoided if the buyer only wishes to use the property for 36 days or less. Canada has no annual property taxes or estate duties; however buyers are required to pay a management fee on most Canadian resort properties.

POTENTIAL INCOME

For rental income the average nightly rental rate for a standard water view chalet, accommodating 6 six people is $475 CDN in mid season, rising to $630 CDN in the high season during the Winter ski months. There is a 30% management fee charged on rental income earned by chalets in the rental pool.

Area: 9,984,670 sq km Coastline: 202,080 km Population: 33,098,932 GDP growth rate: 2.9% Unemployment rate: 6.8% Inflation rate: 2.2% Tourist Arrivals: 17,636,000 BEST QUALITY OF LIFE Canada is the second largest country in the world and covers the entire northern section of the North American continent. The Economic Intelligence Unit [EIU] Report 2005 states that the Canadian economy is the eighth largest in the world and unlike many of its partners in the group its budget is in surplus. The World Competitiveness Yearbook 2005 found that among the G8 group Canada has the best overall quality of life and the lowest cost of living.

ROYAL OAKS ESTATES & GOLF CLUB IF YOU LIKE GOLFING AND HOLIDAY, THIS IS FOR YOU! Townhouses at the edge of the Royal Oaks Estates & Golf Club The golf course at Royal Oaks Estates & Golf Club The first exclusive residential golf community in New Brunswick, Canada, Royal Oaks Estates & Golf Club is an award winning golf development, situated just outside of Moncton. Comprised of an apart-hotel, condominiums and private plots situated around the award winning championship 18-hole par 72 Links style golf course designed by Rees Jones in 2000, Royal Oaks will also offer a spa, swimming pool and a gym. INVESTORS DREAM Construction is due to be completed in 2007. One and two bedroom homes start at €91,000, the apart-hotel one bedroom ensuite units start from €133,000, bespoke three and four bedroom two storey townhouses start from €168,000, luxury four-bed two storey townhouses start from €245,000 and private plots can be purchased from €35,000.

THREE SISTERS MOUNTAIN VILLAGE A WORLD CLASS LOCATION AT AN AFFORDABLE PRICE Luxury homes at the Three Sisters Mountain Village Accommodation at the Three Sisters Mountain Village Named after the three adjacent mountain peaks, known as Faith, Hope and Charity, this is a worldclass, four-season alpine resort community, covering approximately 2,000 acres of land, within the Town of Canmore, Alberta. The developers creating this community are offering a wide range of properties, including detached family homes, golf courseside townhouses, 'lock up and leave' apartments, and mountain chalets. THE HIGH LIFE Residents and visitors can enjoy golf, hiking, biking, fishing and climbing, as well as downhill, heli and Nordic skiing and two public villages are also being built to provide a range of cafes, restaurants, galleries, shopping, recreational outfitters and luxury spa facilities. Prices for three-bed townhouses start from €385,000 and two-bed apartments start from €322,000.   STORIED PLACE FRACTIONAL OWNERSHIP SCHEME GOING LAVISH WITH TOWNHOUSES Enjoying the view downtown at the Three Sisters Mountain Village A lavish development of town houses overlooking the picturesque valley and lake of Tremblant the developers are offering a fractional ownership option where owners may enjoy a large prestigious mountain home with top quality services and facilities at a modest price. Owners can also trade their planned weeks with other Storied Places homeowners in other locations such as Whistler, Lake Tahoe, Aspen and Sandestin. FRACTIONAL OWNERSHIP Yet the fractional ownership offers the same benefits of any other type real estate ownership with excellent potential for capital growth and freedom to re-sell when desired.10% fractional ownership schemes of townhouses of approximately 3,000 sq. feet in size start from €180,000.