Britain's second-home hunters heed Canada's call of the wild

Buying a holiday home amid the beauties of Newfoundland, or the Canadian Rockies is easier than you'd think, says Fiona Brandhurst. And you can make money, too

The remote north-east corner of Canada seems an unlikely place for a second home for a British couple, yet Graham and Maddy Davies have fallen in love. Newfoundland is among the world's most unspoilt environments, and the Davieses leapt at the chance to invest in a new venture, where prices start at £48,000 for a plot of land.

"As keen golfers we were looking at Spain and Florida, then we heard about the plans for Newfoundland's Humber Valley resort which include a new championship course," Mr Davies says. "We didn't know much about the place but the idea of buying land and having a beautiful timber property built in an area of natural beauty immediately appealed."

St John's, Newfoundland's international airport, is only five hours from the UK and there are regular Air Canada flights. From there to the Humber Valley resort in the west, it's best to take a 55-minute shuttle flight to the nearby town of Deer Lake. As the Davieses discovered, Newfoundland has a broad appeal for visitors. In the summer, outdoor pursuits in temperatures in the mid-20s include golf, salmon-fishing, sailing and whale-watching against a backdrop of Titanic-sized icebergs. Humber Valley is less than an hour's drive from the attractions of Gros Morne National Park – designated a Unesco world heritage site. In winter, the Marble Mountain ski resort, venue for the 2002 Canad- ian Freestyle Ski Championships, is nearby, with 745 miles of snowmobile trails.

And it is quiet. "The locals are very friendly," says Mr Davies, "but I must admit, the concept of living in a forest and not being able to see your neighbours sold the resort to us. The chalet hasn't cost much more than a flat in a suburb of London. And it's something we hope our grandchildren will love."

Graeme Grant, from Premier Resorts, in Richmond, Surrey, is marketing Humber Valley in the UK. He says it has been remarkably easy to sell the concept here. "Investors are looking for real alternatives to the crowded, over-priced places in the Costas and Portugal. People have been amazed at the value. A three-bedroom chalet on an acre plot overlooking the golf course or the lake is less than £160,000."

The Davieses were also interested in summer and winter rental income. "We've put our property in the rental pool operated by the resort managers but it still means we can use it ourselves 150 days a year."

The Humber Valley Resort is being developed at a cost of £50m by a locally based group of companies called Newfound, committed to the growth of sustainable industries in the area. Six hundred acres of virgin forest land was acquired from the Newfoundland government six years ago and the infrastructure to support the development is in place. A bridge crossing the Humber River from the Trans-Canada Highway opens soon.

There are 300 building plots in total, on average 1.2 acres each. Prices are determined by size and location, the most expensive plot being £128,000. Six styles of three-bedroom, three-bathroom timber-built chalets with fitted kitchens and bathrooms, central heating, stone fireplaces and insulated walls and roofs are available ranging in size from 1,775sq ft to 2,150sq ft which cost between £64,000 and £68,000. Designed to blend in with the surrounding forest, the cabins are built from local materials with external clapboard in spruce and asphalt shingle roofs. For an extra £16,000 the company will supply all furniture and equipment down to wine glasses. Properties are freehold and include a snowmobile as standard with every home.

The purchase was easy for the Davieses "It was straightforward," Mr Davies says. "We had a 60-day get-out clause from when we signed and Premier handled the legal side of things for us. The chalet will be ready in the spring." The Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce is offering finance for UK residents up to 70 per cent of the purchase price.

Canada does not have stamp duty, but harmonised sales tax (Canada's version of Vat) is payable at 15 per cent of the purchase price. This can be avoided if, like the Davieses, buyers place their property in the rental pool. Income earned from rentals is taxable and there's a monthly resort fee of around $250. If the chalet is sold later, capital gains tax of 25 per cent is payable.

Out west, at the Kicking Horse Mountain Resort, in British Columbia, the first to be built for 25 years in the Rockies, demand for "estate-size" plots of land ranging from 6,000sq ft to 11,000sq feet has been high. In April, 15 plots at an average price of CN$200,000 (£79,000) were sold within 24 hours of the launch. Gordon Vizzutti, spokesperson for the resort, says UK residents are the second-largest purchasers after US citizens. "The pound is very strong against the Canadian dollar which makes the land good value." Unlike Humber Valley, purchasers can build their own properties. These must be completed within four years and in accordance with strict architectural designs. According to Mr Vizzutti so far about fifty per cent of buyers have opted to rent out their properties.

Six national parks – including Glacier and Yoho – surround the resort which offers 4,000 acres of ski and snowboarding terrain in the winter, with golf, white-water rafting, paragliding, mountain-biking and hiking in the summer. Calgary is three hours' drive. Further Kicking Horse properties will be released this year ranging from one to three bedroom apartments. Prices start at CN$250,000.

Four-day inspection visits of Humber Valley can be arranged by Premier Resorts (020 8940 9406) at £1,000 per person, including flights, accommodation, meals and tours. For information about Kicking Horse, call 1-888-706-1117 or (250) 344-8626 or e-mail realestateinfo@kickinghorseresort.com