The dream for aspiring homeowners may look like scoring $1 worth of land amid rising housing prices and inflation.
The good news is that this dream has come true in some Canadian provinces and territories, which have offered eye-catching relocation incentives to address population decline, housing crises and affordability.
Here’s a look at Canadian properties and lands over the years that have been offered for low prices or with other incentives too good to pass on. Note that some of these deals may have expired or sold out.
Cochrane, Ont.
A northern Ontario town is offering land for $10 in an eye-catching sales pitch to get development companies to build housing and grow the town.
With up to 1,500 eligible lots, Cochrane said buyers will be responsible for developing the infrastructure on unserviced lots and committing to such development.
Eager buyers spilled in with more than 3,000 calls from individuals and companies interested in the discounted land.
An additional bonus for buyers is property tax relief.
In an interview with CTV News Northern Ontario last week, Cochrane Mayor Peter Politis said the town needs housing for seniors and people who are on low incomes or are homeless.
Politis said the incentive program, which launches in May, will eventually help drive costs down by providing enough housing and boosting competition.
According to Politis, employers are also developing incentive programs to get workers from various industries to fill housing and recast the dream that Gen Zs in southern Ontario can own a home.
As northern communities feel the pressure to build more housing to attract families and skilled workers, the Town of Cochrane is working on an incentive program that it hopes will turn some heads: land for as little as $10. (Cochrane)
Brandon, Man.
A property in southwestern Manitoba is being offered for just $1 to help the city with its affordable housing and homelessness needs.
The listing, 215 12th St. N., will be sold to a non-profit, government agency or partnering agency to turn the site into an affordable housing unit for people experiencing homelessness or precarious housing situations.
Amid rising homelessness, the city’s plan for the property includes 55 units, each between 150 and 200 square feet. Property buyers do not have to build a development plan identical to the city’s proposed renderings.
The property is listed on the city’s website and potential buyers must submit a letter of intent to the city by April 1.
A map showing the location of the $1 property
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is offering post-secondary graduates a rebate of up to $20,000 to cover tuition fees paid for those living in the province or considering moving there and filing an income tax return.
The rebate amount depends on the tuition paid, ranging from $3,000 to $20,000 for a one- to four-year program.
Eligible individuals must graduate from an approved post-secondary program and apply within seven years of graduation. Students in master’s and PhD programs are not eligible.
Reston, Man.
A rural community in southwest Manitoba offered $10 housing lots — a program that started more than 10 years ago with a 24-lot division and was down to two lots left as of 2020.
The program, which was said to be an opportunity to create affordable recreation for its communities, opened the door for individuals and families who might not have been able to buy elsewhere.
House in the RM of Pipestone (submitted photo Tanis Chalmers)
Pipestone, Man.
A southwestern town in Manitoba is offering $10 municipally owned residential properties.
Buyers must deposit $1,000 per lot in Pipestone, and will lose the deposit if the offer is not acted upon within 90 days.
If the building starts within 90 days of the offer and is completed a year later, the town will return $990 to the buyer.
Buyers had to obtain development permits, begin construction within one year and then complete the project within one year after that.
According to the town, the goal was to allow commercial development for the town’s downtown business district.
According to the town’s official website, all available lots have been sold. A waiting list is maintained for people interested in purchasing the land if previous buyers choose not to proceed.
The town also outlined what was not permitted for the lot’s use on its website.
Vancouver
A Vancouver entrepreneur in 2018 offered to build laneway houses free of charge for homeowners with space in their backyards, in the hopes of collecting rent from the tenants for 12 years.
Duane Laird told CTV News Vancouver at the time that each unit would rent for between $1,200 and $1,500 per month and be ready after four months of construction.
Laird claimed he would find the tenants, collect rent and maintain the area. After 12 years, the home would be inspected, painted, and handed over to the property owner — with a potential buy-out option for those who didn’t want to wait the entire 12 years.
Cape Breton Island, N.S.
In 2016, a local business in Whycocomagh, a town on Cape Breton Island, offered people two acres of woodland if they would work for the business for five years.
In a Facebook ad, The Farmer’s Daughter Country Store said the successful applicant(s) could set up a “tiny house” or “quaint cabin” on the land.
The ad said free land would be given for the cost of “migrating it out and putting it in your name.”
A free local orthotics business was also up for grabs in Sydney on Cape Breton Island in 2018, after the clinic owner announced plans to move out of town.
McAdam, N.B.
In 2019, a small village in New Brunswick was offering 16 plots of land for $1 in an effort to revive its then-1,250-person population.
Five lots were available in McAdam that year, and the village said it received more than 600 calls from as far as Egypt, Dubai and Pakistan.
The buyers were a mix of young families and retirees, but mostly from other provinces.
McAdam offers cheap land to anyone who will relocate and build a home.
Saint-Louis-de-Blandford, Que.
A small population community, about an hour southwest of Quebec City decided to take a creative approach to increasing its population.
The town purchased a large tract of land and subdivided it into 40 lots, which it gave away for free, beginning in 2013, to anyone willing to move there and build a house.
The town’s policy required buyers to put a $1,000 down payment on a lot and commit to building a house worth $125,000 within a year. The municipality then refunded the down payment.
Crown Lands, Yukon
Through the territory’s Agricultural Lands Program, land in the Arctic was free in 2015 for agricultural purposes for people tough enough to develop in cold temperatures.
International offers
Italy
In 2021, Calabria, a region in Italy, offered up to $33,000 over a maximum of three years to people willing to relocate to quiet villages with fewer than 2,000 people, located near the sea and on mountainsides.
A network of villages in the southern Italian region of Calabria wants to pay people up to US$33,000 to move there. Among them is Santa Severina, perched atop a hill. (Borghi Piu Belli d’Italia/CNN)
New residents were to commit to starting a small business, be 40 years or younger, and relocate to their new home within 90 days of a successful application.
Santa Fiora, in Tuscany, and Rieti, in Lazio, offered to pay up to 50 per cent of the rent for anyone who decided to move and work remotely long-term. Applicants were to have an “active” job and be tech-savvy enough to work from anywhere.
Life at Sea cruise
In March 2023, Miray launched its Life at Sea concept: 1,095 days sailing worldwide in a floating apartment block.
Fares started at $30,000 per person per year, including accommodation, food, drinks, laundry and even health care.
The cruise was abruptly cancelled two weeks before its delayed departure date of Nov. 1, 2023.
Australia
In 2021, the town of Quilpie, Australia, offered free residential land to anyone willing to move to the remote community of 800.
To overcome a housing shortage and fill jobs in the cattle and sheep ranching industry, the town offered people the option of buying a block of land and building a house for less than US$560,000. Those who lived in it for six months would be eligible for a US$9,400 grant.
With fully serviced, 1,000-square-metre (about a quarter acre) blocks selling for the same amount as the grant, the council effectively gave the land away.
With files from The Canadian Press, The Associated Press and CNN
EDMONTON – Jake Allen made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season and 26th of his career as the New Jersey Devils closed out their Western Canadian road trip with a 3-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Monday.
Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist and Stefan Noesen and Timo Meier also scored for the Devils (8-5-2) who have won three of their last four on the heels on a four-game losing skid.
The Oilers (6-6-1) had their modest two-game winning streak snapped.
Calvin Pickard made 13 stops between the pipes for Edmonton.
TAKEAWAYS
Devils: In addition to his goal, Bratt picked up his 12th assist of the young season to give him nine points in his last eight games and now 15 points overall. Nico Hischier remains in the team lead, picking up an assist of his own to give him 16 points for the campaign. He has a point in all but four games this season.
Oilers: Forward Leon Draisaitl was held pointless after recording six points in his previous two games and nine points in his previous four. Draisaitl usually has strong showings against the Devils, coming into the contest with an eight-game point streak against New Jersey and 11 goals in 17 games.
KEY MOMENT
New Jersey took a 2-0 lead on the power play with 3:26 remaining in the second period as Hischier made a nice feed into the slot to Bratt, who wired his third of the season past Pickard.
KEY RETURN?
Oilers star forward and captain Connor McDavid took part in the optional morning skate for the Oilers, leading to hopes that he may be back sooner rather than later. McDavid has been expected to be out for two to three weeks with an ankle injury suffered during the first shift of last Monday’s loss in Columbus.
OILERS DEAL FOR D-MAN
The Oilers have acquired defenceman Ronnie Attard from the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for defenceman Ben Gleason.
The 6-foot-3 Attard has spent the past three season in the Flyers organization seeing action in 29 career games. The 25-year-old right-shot defender and Western Michigan University grad was originally selected by Philadelphia in the third round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. Attard will report to the Oilers’ AHL affiliate in Bakersfield.
UP NEXT
Devils: Host the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday.
Oilers: Host the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 4, 2024.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns, and Kareem Hunt pounded into the end zone from two yards out in overtime to give the unbeaten Kansas City Chiefs a 30-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night.
DeAndre Hopkins had two touchdown receptions for the Chiefs (8-0), who drove through the rain for two fourth-quarter scores to take a 24-17 lead with 4:17 left. But then Kansas City watched as Baker Mayfield led the Bucs the other way in the final minute, hitting Ryan Miller in the end zone with 27 seconds to go in regulation time.
Tampa Bay (4-5) elected to kick the extra point and force overtime, rather than go for a two-point conversion and the win. And it cost the Buccaneers when Mayfield called tails and the coin flip was heads. Mahomes and the Chiefs took the ball, he was 5-for-5 passing on their drive in overtime, and Hunt finished his 106-yard rushing day with the deciding TD plunge.
Travis Kelce had 14 catches for 100 yards with girlfriend Taylor Swift watching from a suite, and Hopkins finished with eight catches for 86 yards as the Chiefs ran their winning streak to 14 dating to last season. They became the sixth Super Bowl champion to start 8-0 the following season.
Mayfield finished with 200 yards and two TDs passing for the Bucs, who have lost four of their last five.
It was a memorable first half for two players who had been waiting to play in Arrowhead Stadium.
The Bucs’ Rachaad White grew up about 10 minutes away in a tough part of Kansas City, but his family could never afford a ticket for him to see a game. He wound up on a circuitous path through Division II Nebraska-Kearney and a California junior college to Arizona State, where he eventually became of a third-round pick of Tampa Bay in the 2022 draft.
Two year later, White finally got into Arrowhead — and the end zone. He punctuated his seven-yard scoring run in the second quarter, which gave the Bucs a 7-3 lead, by nearly tossing the football into the second deck.
Then it was Hopkins’ turn in his first home game since arriving in Kansas City from a trade with the Titans.
The three-time All-Pro, who already had caught four passes, reeled in a third-down heave from Mahomes amid triple coverage for a 35-yard gain inside the Tampa Bay five-yard line. Three plays later, Mahomes found him in the back of the end zone, and Hopkins celebrated his first TD with the Chiefs with a dance from “Remember the Titans.”
Tampa Bay tried to seize control with consecutive scoring drives to start the second half. The first ended with a TD pass to Cade Otton, the latest tight end to shred the Chiefs, and Chase McLaughlin’s 47-yard field goal gave the Bucs a 17-10 lead.
The Chiefs answered in the fourth quarter. Mahomes marched them through the rain 70 yards for a tying touchdown pass, which he delivered to Samaje Perine while landing awkwardly and tweaking his left ankle, and then threw a laser to Hopkins on third-and-goal from the Buccaneers’ five-yard line to give Kansas City the lead.
Tampa Bay promptly went three-and-out, but its defence got the ball right back, and this time Mayfield calmly led his team down field. His capped the drive with a touchdown throw to Miller — his first career TD catch — with 27 seconds to go, and Tampa Bay elected to play for overtime.
UP NEXT
Buccaneers: Host the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Darcy Kuemper made 16 saves for his first shutout of the season and 32nd overall, helping the Los Angeles Kings beat the Nashville Predators 3-0 on Monday night.
Adrian Kempe had a goal and an assist and Anze Kopitar and Kevin Fiala also scored. The Kings have won two of their last three.
Juuse Saros made 24 saves for the Predators. They are 1-2-1 in their last four.
Kopitar opened the scoring with 6:36 remaining in the opening period. Saros denied the Kings captain’s first shot, but Kopitar collected the rebound below the goal line and banked it off the netminder’s skate.
Fiala, a former Predator, made it 2-0 35 seconds into the third.
The Kings held Nashville to just three third-period shots on goal, the first coming with 3:55 remaining and Saros pulled for an extra attacker.
Elsewhere in the NHL on Monday:
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DEVILS 3 OILERS 0
EDMONTON, Alta. (AP) — Jake Allen made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season and 26th of his NHL career, helping the New Jersey Devils close their western Canadian road trip with a 3-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers.
Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist and Stefan Noesen and Timo Meier also scored. The Devils improved to 8-5-2. They have won three of their last four after a four-game skid.
Calvin Pickard made 13 saves for Edmonton. The Oilers had won two straight.
