Someone purchased a piece of Coquitlam history recently when they acquired an 84-year-old house on what is now a busy street.
The three-bedroom, one-bathroom home at 763 Como Lake Ave. sold on April 4 for $1.26 million after 61 days on the market.
Fixer-upper with a large lot
Houses like this one built in 1939 are not to everyone's taste, being small at just over 2,000 sq. ft., and needing a lot of work.
However, it sits on a large 6,360 sq-ft. lot, which is part of its charm, according to the listing in Zealty.ca.
"This building lot is a rare find for the savvy buyer. The property is currently occupied by a house that is in need of a complete rebuild. However, the true value of this property lies in the lot itself. It is spacious and offers plenty of potential for a new build or redevelopment," the listing states.
However, the area has a lengthy history, even as its first people were the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (Kwikwetlem) First Nation.
According to local history writer — and former Belcarra mayor Ralph Drew — the area was mostly wilderness in the early days of the city.
Como Lake Avenue is known for the lovely lake, and park, just a few blocks away on Gatensbury Street.
A piece of Coquitlam History
"In the early 1880s, the future 'Como Lake Road' was just a forest path (a surveyor's “cut-line”) and the whole area in central Coquitlam was mostly wilderness.
The small lake in central Coquitlam was originally shown as 'Welcome Lake' on maps as early as 1887 and subsequently changed to 'Como Lake' in 1912," Drew writes in Como Lake Settlers and Kelly's Trail to Port Moody.
Drew speculates that the name of the lake was likely changed to Como Lake as part of a marketing plan for a speculative land boom in 1912.
Back to the present day and according to BC Assessment, the house was assessed in 2022 at $1.177 million.
Are Coquitlam sales rebounding?
The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) stated in its most recent analysis that prices rose slightly in June as the Bank of Canada put the breaks on interest rate hikes.
"The fact we are seeing prices rising and sales rebounding this spring tells us home buyers are returning with confidence after a challenging year for our market, with mortgage rates roughly doubling," stated REBGV spokesperson Andrew Lis in a release published recently in the Tri-City News.
"The latest MLS HPI data show home prices have increased about five per cent year-to-date, which already outpaces our forecast of one to two per cent by year-end," Lis added.
"The year is far from over, however, and it remains to be seen if these price increases will be sustained into 2024."
