Valemount's Investment Potential

The area is not without its unique charms. Not only is Valemount a Rocky Mountain community, it sits in the valley of two other mountain ranges: the Monashee and the Cariboo. The vistas are fabulous. And when it comes to selling vacation property, a good view never hurts the asking price. (Just ask all the people who are still investing in Canmore.)

Being next door to Mount Robson Provincial Park is a definite plus, as is the close proximity to Jasper National Park on the Alberta side. The big advantage is that, whatever you can't do in the parks due to various park restrictions, you'll probably be able to do in Valemount. Think of Valemount as having Jasper's amenities – same sparkling snow, blue lakes, rushing streams, majestic mountains, curious wildlife, and scenic campgrounds – but you're accorded greater freedom in how you access them.

Go ATV-ing near Kinbasket Lake, just minutes outside Valemount

Valemount: An Economy Set to Boom

In terms of economic drivers, for the longest time, there were two obvious ones to consider: "the resort" and "the mill".

Construction of a four season resort* – Canoe Mountain Resorts – began a few kilometers down the road in the summer of 2006. While this project is currently a no-go, its concept gave life to other plans to promote Valemount as a resort destination. So whether or not some future version of the original resort ever gets out of the ground at Canoe Mountain, its impact and potential has been felt and has paved the way for more ambitious thinking in Valemount.

And what of the mill? Carrier Lumber bought the local mill in June of 2006, with plans to expand and re-open. However, with the lumber market being what it is and the surprising performance of the Canadian dollar in the past couple of years, reopening a mill just wasn't economically feasible. While the resulting loss of jobs was keenly felt in the area, the fact that Valemount is looking beyond its past is a sign of maturity and readiness for bigger and better things.

Just take a drive through Valemount and the locals will tell you that a boom has already started, even without the resort and the mill. Since mid-2006, an A&W has opened up, and a newly constructed Fields department store was unveiled in the fall of 2007. A large condo project is being planned for the downtown area. Land and housing prices have made significant strides upwards. In the spring of 2006, town lots were being listed for $21,000 to $27,000 each; that isn't the case anymore.

Perhaps most significantly, all levels of government are seeing the potential of Valemount. Recent funding announcements (check out this link for recent news about increased funding and marketing towards tourism in Valemount) will ensure that Valemount is well-positioned to grow as a resort community and as an investment opportunity. As British Columbia receives greater exposure via the upcoming 2010 Winter Olympics, the desire to invest in the province will surely increase as well. But you can forget Whistler because the most recent reports indicate that it's already climbed well out of your price range, just like so many other British Columbia vacation properties. Will you be kicking yourself for not having invested in an area like Valemount?

Valemount Tourism, Anyone?

The tourist attractions of the Valemount area are so obvious that it should be a snap to market the area for tourism purposes. If anyone is interested in doing so via this site's sister domain at TourismValemount.com, please inquire to the email address above.

Valemount's Visitor Demographic

Who comes to Valemount? If you're ever in town during a summer weekend, you'll see that bus tours converge on the village on a regular basis, flooding the normally peaceful streets with tourists. Granted, the people on these bus tours are usually on their way to Jasper and Banff, but they typically stay overnight to avoid the outrageous accommodation rates in the national parks. Others travelling the Edmonton to Vancouver route plan a stop in Valemount as an approximate "halfway" driving break. According to a tourism study released in 2000, a surprising one-third of Valemount's visitors come from Europe. Approximately one-quarter are locals (BC residents and other Canadians), with the remainder mostly from the United States.

For more information on Valemount's investment potential from a "statistics" point of view, check out this link from Invest British Columbia.