12 Best Places to Buy a Lake House in Canada
Canada has the world’s most beautiful lake houses and lakefront properties. If you’re looking for a vacation home or lake house rental, there are some amazing properties to be seen from the Pacific to the Atlantic. When searching for a lake house, location still matters. There are several other factors to consider. You should also be mindful ofthe proximity to resources and the property affordability.
Here are some of the best places to buy a lake house.
1. Muskoka Lakes, Ontario
Muskoka Lakes has consistently received high marks as a place to live and visit. Its scenic lake houses match nicely with the lush forests that surround it. Some amazing waterfront properties are private and tranquil, luxurious in their scope and design. This is one of Ontario’s strongest real estate investment areas for residential lake house homes.
2. Halifax, Nova Scotia
The Maritime provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island got much attention through the COVID pandemic as more people sought to move to rural, secluded, and affordable areas. Halifax gets our pick as the best place to buy a lake house because of the waterfront properties and the access to a major city right there for the taking.
3. Prince Edward County, Ontario
Prince Edward Country sits on Lake Ontario. It’s an idyllic lakehouse destination with many wineries, vineyards, and craft breweries. Here, you have more than 450 miles of shoreline, sandy beaches, and gorgeousness to appreciate from the Sandbanks Provincial Park contained within it. Prince Edward Country has lots to love about it, including a nice mix of lakefront homes and luxury homes for sale.
4. Thousand Islands, Ontario
Thousand Islands is your best bet at buying a lake house in Canada and having your private island. Thousand Islands comprise nearly 2,000 islands on the border with the United States, nestled between the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario. The region has always had strong property values, with a range in lake house designs and setups. It’s as close as you can to a Canadian Caribbean island property.
5. Sylvan Lake, Alberta
There is no better place in Alberta to buy a lake house than the town of Sylvan Lake. Halfway between Edmonton and Calgary, it’s a major destination for many Albertans looking to get away. Just west of Red Deer, the lake brings about a million visitors annually. It’s a tourist location through and through, swimming, water-skiing, and more.
6. South Bruce Peninsula, Ontario
South Bruce Peninsula sits at the base of the Bruce Peninsula, known for its cottage rentals, boardwalks, campsites, golf courses, and marinas. It’s a real treat with beautiful lakehouse properties from South Bruce Peninsula to Kincardine, Port Elgin, Southampton, and Sauble Beach. See various real estate options, with many luxury waterfront homes available.
7. Kelowna, British Columbia
Kelowna sits on the eastern shore of Okanagan Lake in BC. It’s the center of wine-making in British Columbia. Kelowna is a true paradise with many biking and hiking trails, recreational water activities, and lakefront properties, including those in nearby communities. Luxury lake homes are found throughout the Kelowna region, often among the most highly valued in Canada.
8. Haliburton County, Ontario
Haliburton County has a collection of waterfront properties in the scenery of Algonquin Provincial Park, which borders it to the north. This is a popular tourist and cottage area for many, only 215 km north of Toronto. As more people from the big city in Ontario have sought out rural, quiet properties out in the country, Haliburton County has received a lot of attention.
9. Parry Sound, Ontario
Parry Sound is a township with affordable cabin rentals, affordable vacation rental properties, and top-quality Ontario lake house properties for sale. The average cost of a Parry Sound lake house is slightly lower than what you’ll find in other Ontario waterfront communities. Parry Sound is the place to be if you enjoy the atmosphere of a small town that’s rural in design and quiet.
10. Hillside Beach, Manitoba
Lake Winnipeg has some pretty lake house properties, including in beach communities like Hillside Beach. This community sits on the east side of the lake and has a summer resort-like economy. Hillside Beach is only 95 kilometres from Winnipeg, Manitoba and sits just across from Victoria Beach, another area where you can buy a property right on the lake.
11. Beaverton, Ontario
Located in Brock Township, Beaverton sits only 100 km north of Ontario, with lake houses on the edge of Lake Simcoe and the Trent-Severn Waterway. The beauty of Beaverton is that its waterfront property values are about 15% lower on average compared to other Ontario lake homes.
12. Windsor-Essex, Ontario
Windsor-Essex sits on Belle River and along Lake St. Clair. The Windsor-Essex region refers to not only Windsor but also the properties spread across Essex, Amherstburg, Kingsville, Tacumseh, and LaSalle. The lake houses in this part of the country are affordable, luxurious, and a nice getaway far from the hustle and bustle of the city.