British Columbia is mouth-wateringly beautiful. Clear skies, beautiful scenery and a low population density (1,434 per square mile) are combining to make the Kelowna real estate market hot, hot, hot, with a huge lack of inventory. For people toying with putting their homes up for sale, now would be a good time to take the plunge.
What is driving the explosive demand for homes in Kelowna? It doesn't hurt that the town has a lake, Okanagan, running through it. Orchard City, or K-town, is on the same line of latitude as Vancouver Island on the pacific coast. Kelowna is right in the middle of the province.
The first Europeans to settle here were from France. They came in the middle of the 19th century. It was nearly half a century before the city was incorporated, in 1905. The area has cold, cloudy winters and dry, sunny summers and enjoys four obvious seasons. This is described by weather experts as humid continental climate. Famous figures from here include cyclist Axel Merck, Olympic rower, Scott Frandsen, and Josh Gorges, professional hockey player.
The tourism industry provides most of the jobs here. Visitors flock here for biking, golf, hiking and boating in the summer time. Popular winter sports include Nordic and Alpine skiing at nearby Silver Star and Big White resorts. There is loads to see and do here and no shortage of nice places to stay. Among the attractions are historic sites such as Father Pandosy Mission, Guisachan Heritage Park and Myra Canyon Trestles. Various festivals are held throughout the year, including Parks Alive!, Arts Alive! and Celebrate Canada Day. There are also a number of major social gatherings geared around the town's successful wine industry.
Kelowna is seriously saturated with oxygen, boasting major parks and protected areas at all four corners. North and South of the city lie Fintry and Myra-Bellevue provincial parks, whereas the east-west axis is marked by Trepanier and Greystone protected areas.
Wine production is another major industry in Kelowna. Most of the vineyards are south of the town, where the climate is most favorable for vineyards. A fire that started in Okanagan Mountain Park demolished two of them in 2003, but they have since been resurrected. In 2014, the area was named one of the ten best wine regions to visit by USA today.
A major manufacturer of a popular range of fruit juices is also located here. This is handy to the 13,000 students of higher education who are based here between the University of British Columbia (8,000) and Okanagan College (5,000). The Okanagan campus of UBC offers degrees in Management, Medicine, Health and Social Development, Applied Science, Education, as well as Creative and Critical Studies.
The quality of life in Kelowna is considered to be very high by organizations who monitor a variety of factors and publish quantitative data. Purchasing power, safety and health care are rated moderate to high, while negative QOL indicators, such as consumer price index, pollution, traffic and the property price to income ratio are all low.
The town has been immortalized on the silver screen. Both Shed and Shed 2, snowboarding films, were both shot at Big White ski resort, as was the cult thriller/horror/comedy/zombie film, Fido. The latter film was set in the 1950s and involved a cloud of cosmic radiation that turned the dead into the nearly dead.
Public transportation is limited, probably owing to the local devotion to the automobile, which is responsible for two-thirds of the total greenhouse emissions in Kelowna. What bus services there are are overseen by the Kelowna Regional Transit System (KRTS).
Kelowna is idyllic by anyone's estimation. Wherever you look, there is nature. There is plenty of room to move and an obviously high quality of life. Crime rates are low. They seem to be associated with misbehavior at events where alcohol is served and even these are few and far between. The high demand for homes is hardly surprising and this is a good time to sell. However, the place is bound to increase in popularity, making it also a good time to invest, either as a first or second home or as an investment.
What is driving the explosive demand for homes in Kelowna? It doesn't hurt that the town has a lake, Okanagan, running through it. Orchard City, or K-town, is on the same line of latitude as Vancouver Island on the pacific coast. Kelowna is right in the middle of the province.
The first Europeans to settle here were from France. They came in the middle of the 19th century. It was nearly half a century before the city was incorporated, in 1905. The area has cold, cloudy winters and dry, sunny summers and enjoys four obvious seasons. This is described by weather experts as humid continental climate. Famous figures from here include cyclist Axel Merck, Olympic rower, Scott Frandsen, and Josh Gorges, professional hockey player.
The tourism industry provides most of the jobs here. Visitors flock here for biking, golf, hiking and boating in the summer time. Popular winter sports include Nordic and Alpine skiing at nearby Silver Star and Big White resorts. There is loads to see and do here and no shortage of nice places to stay. Among the attractions are historic sites such as Father Pandosy Mission, Guisachan Heritage Park and Myra Canyon Trestles. Various festivals are held throughout the year, including Parks Alive!, Arts Alive! and Celebrate Canada Day. There are also a number of major social gatherings geared around the town's successful wine industry.
Kelowna is seriously saturated with oxygen, boasting major parks and protected areas at all four corners. North and South of the city lie Fintry and Myra-Bellevue provincial parks, whereas the east-west axis is marked by Trepanier and Greystone protected areas.
Wine production is another major industry in Kelowna. Most of the vineyards are south of the town, where the climate is most favorable for vineyards. A fire that started in Okanagan Mountain Park demolished two of them in 2003, but they have since been resurrected. In 2014, the area was named one of the ten best wine regions to visit by USA today.
A major manufacturer of a popular range of fruit juices is also located here. This is handy to the 13,000 students of higher education who are based here between the University of British Columbia (8,000) and Okanagan College (5,000). The Okanagan campus of UBC offers degrees in Management, Medicine, Health and Social Development, Applied Science, Education, as well as Creative and Critical Studies.
The quality of life in Kelowna is considered to be very high by organizations who monitor a variety of factors and publish quantitative data. Purchasing power, safety and health care are rated moderate to high, while negative QOL indicators, such as consumer price index, pollution, traffic and the property price to income ratio are all low.
The town has been immortalized on the silver screen. Both Shed and Shed 2, snowboarding films, were both shot at Big White ski resort, as was the cult thriller/horror/comedy/zombie film, Fido. The latter film was set in the 1950s and involved a cloud of cosmic radiation that turned the dead into the nearly dead.
Public transportation is limited, probably owing to the local devotion to the automobile, which is responsible for two-thirds of the total greenhouse emissions in Kelowna. What bus services there are are overseen by the Kelowna Regional Transit System (KRTS).
Kelowna is idyllic by anyone's estimation. Wherever you look, there is nature. There is plenty of room to move and an obviously high quality of life. Crime rates are low. They seem to be associated with misbehavior at events where alcohol is served and even these are few and far between. The high demand for homes is hardly surprising and this is a good time to sell. However, the place is bound to increase in popularity, making it also a good time to invest, either as a first or second home or as an investment.
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