Photo: James O'Brien · CC BY-SA 4.0Home values in Lake Cowichan run 34% lower than the median of British Columbia’s towns
In figures: $472,000 for the median home in 2021, $720,000 for the middle of British Columbia’s towns. The census asks owners what their home would sell for, so the values are estimates from May 2021. Statistics Canada counted 165 buyers in 2023, paying a median $578,000.
What Lake Cowichan’s homes are worth, three ways
Each source sits beside its own median for British Columbia’s towns; none compares across provinces, which value homes in their own ways.
median, owners’ estimate
- Average
- $530K
- Owners
- 1,265
- British Columbia’s towns
- $720K
- The typical Canadian town
- $406K
median sale price
- Average sale
- $640K
- ÷ buyers’ income
- 4.9×
- Buyers
- 165
- British Columbia’s towns
- $682K
all residential
- British Columbia’s towns
- $671K
Census 2021 (Statistics Canada); Canadian Housing Statistics Program, tables 46-10-0099 and 46-10-0093; Québec rôle d’évaluation foncière 2026 (MAMH).
Lake Cowichan’s detached houses are assessed 22% below the median of British Columbia’s towns
Detached houses account for 76% of the 1,570 properties on Lake Cowichan’s 2024 roll; condos for 6%.
Median assessment by type, 2024 the tick is the median of British Columbia’s towns
Canadian Housing Statistics Program, table 46-10-0093 (2024): residential properties on the assessment roll, vacant land left out. The ticks are the median of British Columbia’s towns with their own figure; assessments compare within a province only.
An older stock than most: 25% of Lake Cowichan’s homes go back before 1961 (British Columbia’s towns: 11%)
1,495 occupied homes stood in Lake Cowichan in 2021, and single-detached houses made up 78% of them.
Homes by period of construction the tick is the median of British Columbia’s towns
Homes by kind
| Lake Cowichan | British Columbia | Canada | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Condominiums | 10% | 10% | 8% |
| Needing major repairs | 6% | 6% | 6% |
| Too small for the household | 2% | 4% | 3% |
| Households in core housing need | 5% | 10% | 7% |
Census 2021 (Statistics Canada): occupied private dwellings; core housing need as Statistics Canada defines it. Ticks and columns are medians of the towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more.
Permits in Lake Cowichan ran at 13.8 homes a year per 1,000, where British Columbia’s towns ran at 18.1
Over 2018–2023, 127 homes were permitted in Lake Cowichan, close to 21 each year. Houses dominate the permits, at 78% in single-unit buildings (British Columbia’s towns: 27%).
The busiest year: 2021, with 37 new homes
New homes a year per 1,000 homes
Statistics Canada, tables 46-10-0087 (building permits by census subdivision, 2018–2023: dwelling units created, new construction and conversions) and 34-10-0292 (monthly, metro areas). Per 1,000: units a year over 2019–2023 against occupied homes in 2021.
Lake Cowichan against British Columbia’s towns: 34% under the $720,000 median
254 of British Columbia’s towns (2,500 people or more), by median value at the 2021 census, dearest first.
Census 2021, owners’ estimates; towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more, no city as a whole, no reserve.
Home values around Lake Cowichan
The places around Lake Cowichan at the 2021 census: median and average value, and how many own.
| Town | Median home value | Average | Owners | km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Cowichan | $472K | $530K | 85% | |
| Electoral Area F, Cowichan Valley | $675K | $744K | 82% | 5.3 |
| Electoral Area I, Cowichan Valley | $650K | $832K | 89% | 11.5 |
Census 2021 values; km.
Questions about property prices in Lake Cowichan
How many households in Lake Cowichan are in core housing need?
Statistics Canada puts 5% of Lake Cowichan’s households in core housing need, a smaller share than the 10% of British Columbia’s towns.
Is Lake Cowichan expensive for British Columbia?
Cheaper than the middle: British Columbia’s towns come to $720,000, Lake Cowichan to less.
What is the average house price in Lake Cowichan?
An average of $640,000 in 2023, with the median sale at 4.9 times the buyer’s income.
Can I see individual sales or prices by street?
Only in total: Statistics Canada releases each town’s median and average sale and its number of buyers, never a single sale.
Sources: Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021 · Statistics Canada, Canadian Housing Statistics Program · Statistics Canada, building permits (tables 46-10-0087 and 34-10-0292). Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).