Those looking to secure a piece of Muskoka’s pristine paradise have more options this year. According to the most recent stats for the Lakelands North cottage country region from the Canadian Real Estate Association , the number of active listings in the region increased by over 50%, year-over-year , in May.
The year-to-date figures are perhaps most indicative of the current market conditions, which suggest an emerging buyer’s market in Muskoka, according to Maryrose Coleman of, Sotheby's International Realty Canada. Coleman, who specializes in cottage country, says the region is seeing a gradual shift into a buyer’s market territory this year.
In addition to higher levels of property inventory, sales prices are dropping. Average sales price of $1,583,529 in May of 2024 was down slightly from last year. The median price for a waterfront property was also down compared to May of 2023. “Property inventory and days on market increases, combined with average and median sales prices dropping, seem to confirm what we all suspected over the last six months, which is that the seller's market is over for the time being,” Coleman says. “We have now moved from a balanced market in the last two quarters of 2023 to a buyer's market over the first five months of 2024, with 8.6 months of inventory available.