B.C. real estate: Here's what $2 million can buy

A composite image of four properties currently listed for sale in B.C. for approximately $2 million. Clockwise from the top left, they are: a seven-bedroom home in Kamloops, a small Vancouver house with a basement suite, a duplex in Victoria's James Bay neighbourhood, and 90 acres of undeveloped land on Quatsino Sound on northern Vancouver Island.

In northeastern B.C., $2 million can buy you an 11,000-square-foot lodge that sleeps 28 and boasts more than 100 acres of land. On Vancouver's west side, it can buy you a teardown or a townhouse, but not much else. 

Inspired by the lakefront lodge for sale near Hudson's Hope for $1,980,000, CTV News is taking a look at what's available at that price point elsewhere in the province.

This is not an exhaustive list of properties on the market currently, nor are the listings selected necessarily representative of the overall market in a given region. Properties listed here have been chosen, in part, because they have unique or distinguishing characteristics.

VANCOUVER, WEST SIDE

Starting in Metro Vancouver, where the benchmark price for a detached home was more than $1.8 million in March, there are hundreds of properties currently listed at or near the $2 million mark.

Within the city proper, however, offerings west of Main Street are overwhelmingly limited to condos and townhouses. The only detached homes available are either teardowns or properties located on leasehold land that isn't technically part of Vancouver at all.

This seven-bedroom, five-bathroom, 4,200-square-foot home on Musqueam Drive is located – as the street name suggests – on Musqueam First Nation land.

Leasehold home on Musqueam Drive listed for $1,825,000

The $1,825,000 listing boasts of the property's "park-like" landscaped yard with a pond, and the bedroom and bathroom totals listed include a basement suite. 

Musqueam Drive home

The only detached home on the west side for less than $2 million that wasn't a leasehold lot when CTV News looked Wednesday afternoon was this five-bedroom, two-bathroom house on West 62nd Avenue in Marpole, which is being offered for $1,890,000. 

Like the Musqueam Drive property, this one is also divided into two suites, with three bedrooms upstairs and two downstairs. No images of the building's interior were included in the listing.

Home on West 62nd Avenue in Vancouver

VANCOUVER, EAST SIDE

In East Vancouver, $2 million goes a little further. CTV News found 96 listings for detached homes between $1.5 million and $2 million on Wednesday afternoon, with many of them pitched as investment properties ahead of potential future redevelopment.

This property on Windermere Street two blocks west of Highway 1 has 13 bedrooms and seven bathrooms spread across two suites in the main building and a laneway house. 

Multi-unit property on Windermere Street.

Investors still seem to be the target market for the $1,999,999 listing, even if redevelopment isn't imminent. The listing indicates that the property generates $6,000 per month in rental income.

Multi-unit property on Windemere Street.

SURREY

Outside the City of Vancouver, detached homes at the $2 million price point get more lavish.

This one on 141A Street has nine bedrooms and six bathrooms for $1,980,000, though some of those are again located in the "mortgage helper" basement suite. 

House on 141A Street in Surrey.

Described in the listing as "perfect for growing families," the property abuts McLeod Park and is a short walk from multiple elementary schools.

House on 141A Street in Surrey.

ABBOTSFORD

Outside Metro Vancouver, $2 million can be enough to buy a large family home, a substantial amount of land, or both.

Currently available in Abbotsford for $1,750,000 is a five-acre parcel of land on Sumas Prairie that is zoned for agricultural use. 

"Whether you're looking to start your own farm or simply want to enjoy the wide-open spaces that come with living in the country, this property offers plenty of possibilities," the listing boasts.

An undeveloped five-acre parcel zoned for agriculture in Abbotsford.

Alternatively, $1,899,800 could buy a nine-bedroom, seven-bathroom home on Terminal Court in west Abbotsford, near the community of Aldergrove in Langley. 

House on Terminal Court in Abbotsford.

The home features "over 4,700 square feet of luxurious living space," according to the listing, which makes no mention of a secondary suite or "mortgage helper." Instead, the home features "tons of room for the whole family," including a rooftop patio.

Home on Terminal Court in Abbotsford.

KAMLOOPS

Luxury is similarly on offer in the Interior. In Kamloops, $1,995,000 is the current asking price for a seven-bedroom, six-bathroom home on Crosshill Drive in the Aberdeen neighbourhood, southwest of downtown. 

Home on Crosshill Drive in Kamloops

The "breathtaking, custom-built dream home" has "spectacular mountain, river, and city views," according to the listing, which also boasts of ceiling speakers and "smart toilets in every bathroom."

Home on Crosshill Drive in Kamloops.

KELOWNA

In Kelowna, this luxury home listed for $1,980,000 has five bedrooms and five bathrooms, plus a gym on the lower level and "a self-contained nanny suite." 

Kelowna luxury home

Located in a subdivision called Iron Horse Estates in the Southwest Mission neighbourhood, the home also features "a king-sized primary suite with private patio," from which residents can view Okanagan Lake.

Kelowna luxury home

Interestingly, Kelowna also sees a few listings in the $2 million price range that qualify as teardowns, including this "development opportunity" on Belaire Avenue in the Central City neighbourhood for $1,998,000. 

KOOTENAYS

In Nelson, $1,919,000 could buy seven acres of currently undeveloped lakefront property on Kootenay Lake. The lot features 700 feet of waterfront, and could be developed as an RV park or a residential subdivision, according to the listing. 

Land for sale on Kootenay Lake.

For those who prefer their lakefront property already developed, there's this five-bedroom, five-bathroom home on Sproat Drive, which is currently available for $1,980,000. 

Home on Sproat Drive in Nelson.

"The unique layout includes a tucked-away one-bedroom legal suite on the main floor, a double attached garage, and a beach-accessible bathroom," the listing reads, adding that the property has its own beach.

View from the home for sale on Sproat Drive in Nelson.

PRINCE GEORGE

In northern B.C.'s largest city, there aren't many properties currently listed for between $1.5 million and $2 million. A CTV News search on Wednesday afternoon yielded just six, the most expensive of which was a 12-unit apartment building on Upland Street for $1,799,000.

Apartment building for sale in Prince George.

The 12,000-square-foot complex has a new roof and brought in more than $144,000 in revenue last year, according to the listing. 

The single-family home closest to our $2 million target price is located several kilometres south of the city along Highway 97. The asking price is $1,795,000.

With just three bedrooms and three bathrooms, the house is modest in comparison to the Okanagan offerings, but it comes with more than 37 acres of land, some of which is zoned for "small holdings" use. 

Home south of Prince George.

The property also includes a three-bedroom, one-bathroom mobile home with a basement, "a detached double garage, a pole barn and a massive shop," according to the listing.

The home south of Prince George is located on roughly 37 acres, some of which is zoned for "small holdings" use.

VICTORIA

While B.C.'s capital has a housing market nearly as expensive as Metro Vancouver's, there are still detached homes to be had here for roughly $2 million, though many of them have secondary suites.

Such is the case with this listing on Cornwall Street in Fairfield for $1,800,000, which has five bedrooms and four bathrooms spread across a main living area and a garden level suite. 

Home on Cornwall Street in Victoria.

In a similar vein, interested buyers with $2 million could own both sides of this duplex in James Bay, which the listing says rents for a combined $9,000 per month. 

Duplex in James Bay.

NANAIMO

Listings in the Harbour City include a land assembly of three adjacent lots on Bowen Road west of the Departure Bay ferry terminal for $1,980,000. 

Together, the three homes occupy more than 22,000 square feet and could be redeveloped into a multi-family residential or commercial building, according to the listing.

Those looking for a home rather than an investment opportunity may prefer this nearly five-acre property in the Regional District of Nanaimo outside the city.

Regional District of Nanaimo house

On the grounds surrounding the three-bedroom, three-bathroom home are "a large gravel space for a riding ring," an 810-square-foot shop and horse stalls, according to the listing. The asking price is $1,950,000.

The home includes horse stalls and a riding ring.

NORTH ISLAND

Properties in the neighbourhood of $2 million are harder to find on the North Island, but there were a few intriguing options when CTV News searched Wednesday afternoon, including this property featuring both a house and a waterfront cabin on Quadra Island. 

Quadra Island property

The $1,900,000 property is a little more than an acre in size and located "right across from Rebecca Spit Provincial Park and close to all the services in Heriot Bay," according to the listing.

View from the Quadra Island property.

Elsewhere on the North Island, $1,800,000 can buy 90 acres of land on Quatsino Sound that has frontage on both Hecate Cove and on Colony Lake. 

"There are many layers of value including possible subdivision potential, timber, and significant conservancy values," the listing reads.

90 acres for sale on northern Vancouver Island.