LOT NO. 1 BIRCH WAY, SECHELT, B.C.

ASKING PRICE $279,000

SELLING PRICE $245,000

PREVIOUS SELLING PRICE $76,000 (2002)

TAXES $1,130 (2010)

DAYS ON THE MARKET 23

LISTING AGENTS Bruce Lasuta and Carol Hautala, Prudential Sussex Realty

The Action: Last winter, this untouched Sunshine Coast property was listed at $289,000 and reduced to $279,000 by summer. Interested buyers came from as far as Saskatchewan, but none had a sense of urgency to make an offer, so it was taken off the market. Relisted earlier this year, it sold to a buyer offering a cash deal with no subjects.

What They Got: In a small community north of Vancouver, this 459- by 557-foot property is ripe for development with its placement at the corner of two paved roads and its fairly level topography with second-growth timbers and a deep well, plus access to electricity and phone services at the lot line. Zoning allows for two houses on the lot, which is close to several parks, marinas, dining and shopping areas, and a scenic 35-minute drive and 40-minute ferry ride to more amenities in Vancouver.

The Agent’s Take: “While Vancouver has enjoyed enviable rising market values over the past five years, the Sunshine Coast market has experienced a downwards pressure on real estate prices, resulting in some enticing buys for savvy buyers,” says agent Bruce Lasuta, who has watched acres of vacant land get snatched up inexpensively. “Over half the properties there now are built on.” The new owner plans to construct two custom homes on the lot– as some neighbours have done. The ferry, a 35-minute drive south at Langdale, hasprovides scheduled sailings across the 9.7-nautical miles of Howe Sound to Horseshoe Bay in West Vancouver.