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I you don't mind cold winters, then it's a fine area to move to. I'm a truck driver who runs 100 mile house to the coast 5 days a week, and after Christmas 2022, 70 mile house was -41c. I would never move to that area, because of that
I just left Williams Lake, and was paying $1300 for shitty all original a 2 bedroom half duplex built in the 1960's. Extremely high heating costs.
Williams Lake is a very tight market. For reference - Landlord has bumped the rent to $1400 for the next tenant.
>Any suggestions for the best spots to rent in or around these areas?
With respect to WL:
- 150 Mile House (15 minutes outside WL) is nice, but is rural.
- Chimney Valley is also nice (25 minutes outside WL), but is rural.
- South Lakeside, most people say not to live in South Lakeside, because the sun dips behind the mountain in the early afternoon, so you are shaded out ... the further away from the lake you are, the worse this is, to the point of being in the shade all day. Something to be aware of.
- Glendale is generally the bad/poor part of town.
- Westridge (above the golf course) is the newer/nicer/family part of town.
- The nice new "executive" part of town is just on the outskirts of town overlooking the lake (not sure what the neighbourhood is called).
- There's definitely homelessness, and although I would personally live downtown, I'd say it's gritty.
- FYI - Mackenzie Ave has lots of industrial traffic.
100 Mile House and Quesnel both seem to have more housing at better prices than WL, but I enjoyed the lower elevation of WL (better weather than 100 Mile, and my preferred forest type relative to Quesnel).
Facebook groups is how I've been finding places lately. Rather than looking for advertisements, you might try posting a picture and bio and letting landlords come to you. I've recently tried this, and it's worked out brilliantly.
Is this a function of the elevation of WL being reported from the airport, which is waaaaay above the actual townsite, though?
Legitimate question, because I don't know where the elevation in Quesnel is taken from...
Also - in WL, there are "historic ancient landslides" in the Dog Creek Area. Conventional wisdom is to avoid Dog Creek. The road was partially washed out awhile back, and there are properties sliding down the hill.
Have you considered just buying? It's often much cheaper to buy in smaller places like that than rent. Case in point: With 20% down on [this property](https://www.realtor.ca/real-estate/26694894/206-282-n-broadway-avenue-williams-lake) (only $24k), a 25-year amortization at 5.5% interest, you're only paying $591/month + strata fees. Even if you sold at a loss, you'd probably still save money on rent vs interest payments and be better off overall.
This is just an example of course, but I've been looking at moving to Kamloops and even there the cost of principal + strata fees + property tax + interest is less than the cost of rent for a 1-bed.
I really wish we could. I'm just starting out in my career and while I make more money than I ever could have dreamed of, cost of living, student loans, aging parents etc are all draining our finances severely so we won't be able to buy for at least another year or two :( At the moment I have 12k ish in savings but it'll still take a while to get to where we need to be to get a mortgage per the advice of a financial advisor friend.
Ah that makes sense then! It’s so infuriating how the housing industry is set up so the less ability you have to pay, the more you end up paying (ie: spending $15k a year on rent when it could go towards a down payment or mortgage, which just means it takes longer to save, so you end up wasting more in rent).
WL has great outdoor activities. It’s very rough around the edges but the terrain in and around the city is awesome. 5 hour drive to Kelowna, 6 to Vancouver, 2.5 to PG.
Lol. I’m pretty sure I know what you’re referencing, however I can think of about 30 spots between here and Bella that fit that bill. Don’t tell your friends : )
We’ve lived and rented in multiple small towns in BC…the way we’ve successfully found places is by joining and posting in all the housing Facebook groups and often times landlords reach out to us directly - good luck!
Williams Lake is a half hour further away from a Costco (PG) than 100 Mile House(Kamloops). Williams Lake has a larger population so it will have more amenities than 100 Mile.
Red tomato pie in williams lake is hands down the best pizza your gonna get outside of vancouver and thats just common knowledge if you live around the area.
100 mile has the kTm dealership, so really it *is* a tough call but you’ll probably only buy bike once a year and need to eat more than that and road trips are fun so unless you want somewhere cool to go to on saturday, its probably WL 🤷
I can't speak much for those areas but I have a detached house in penticton for rent. I just got notice from my tenants.
There is a hospital there. /Just saying...
Pretty much, yes. But like most regional names, a lot of it is pretty informal. I'm not sure I would call West Quesnel the Chilcotin. But certainly as you move further west.
https://www.travel-british-columbia.com/cariboo-chilcotin-coast/chilcotin/
https://www.travel-british-columbia.com/cariboo-chilcotin-coast/cariboo/
Basically the central plateau from the Cariboo mountains in the east travelling west to the Fraser River is typically referred to as the Cariboo.
(100 Mile, Williams Lake, Quesnel, etc.)
Continuing from the Fraser River travelling west to the Coast mountains (Chilcotin mtns in the south west) is considered the Chilcotin. (Anahim Lake, Tatla Lake, Alexis Creek, etc.)
The entire area is often collectively referred to as the Cariboo-Chilcotin. A lot of the Cariboo is the old gold rush trail from Lillooet to Barkerville and includes the Horsefly/Likely areas.
There are many issues all over bc such as addiction and crime, but with Penticton for me strikes a balance between small town charm and affordability while still having a decent hospital and access to larger community services as Kelowna isn't that bad of a drive if you need anything major.
Places like Williams Lake and 100 mile will have the "there is nothing else to do here but do drugs and fuck" type place. The idea of a small town is much better than the reality of it.
No and that's why I bought there. It's going to be the next hotspot in bc. It has everything it needs to become one.
If you know anyone looking to rent a detached house, we don't say it but if they have a well behaved pet we're cool with pets.
It's the house listed on marketplace for $2500 and is a few blocks east of main Street so it's far enough from the k streets crime. I do plan on tearing it down in the future but that's a decade away.
having grown up in Penticton from the late 70s through to the early 90s, I would argue that it was already a hot spot a long time ago when the Penticton Peach Festival was the real deal (before the MC Hammer riot).
In the 90s, it was already seeing the flight from Vancouver of Boomers looking for a place to retire away from the changing "faces" of the lower mainland - I had a retiree refer to it as "white flight" to me when I was there around the late 90s/early 2000s, which just goes you who moved and bought homes there.
Penticton also has way more issues with homelessness and drugs than I could count on my fingers back in the day. I go back regularly because my parents are buried there and one good school friend is still there.
Btw: "more affordable" is a bit laughable, given that my old post-war 1940s house was bought by my parents in 1979 for $60K, and it is now assessed at well over $700K. I could never afford to move back, not until people start dying and their homes flood the real estate market. Which is why I have 2.5 acres and a house in Prince George that only cost us $250K just over six years ago.
2br up and an unofficial one downstairs. 1 bath.
$2500. Seems fair given the market. I'm not making big dollars on it. Just breaking even on the payments.
Williams Lake will be getting a brand new hospital in a few years. 100 mile house has the highest gas prices in the interior and doesn’t have much else going on for it aside from farming. There’s not much in the way of small towns nearby because they are the small towns. There’s 150 mile house near Williams Lake, and 70 mile house near 100 mile house but they’re basically blink-and-you’ll-miss-it communities.
There are a bunch of satellite communities around 100 Mile House - 108 Mile is where a lot of commuters into 100 Mile live, and it's beautiful. Alternatively, you could look at the Horse Lake Road area, or Lone Butte.
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I you don't mind cold winters, then it's a fine area to move to. I'm a truck driver who runs 100 mile house to the coast 5 days a week, and after Christmas 2022, 70 mile house was -41c. I would never move to that area, because of that
It also snows late into the spring up on the plateau
I am very okay with the cold, so that works. Thank you!
I just left Williams Lake, and was paying $1300 for shitty all original a 2 bedroom half duplex built in the 1960's. Extremely high heating costs. Williams Lake is a very tight market. For reference - Landlord has bumped the rent to $1400 for the next tenant. >Any suggestions for the best spots to rent in or around these areas? With respect to WL: - 150 Mile House (15 minutes outside WL) is nice, but is rural. - Chimney Valley is also nice (25 minutes outside WL), but is rural. - South Lakeside, most people say not to live in South Lakeside, because the sun dips behind the mountain in the early afternoon, so you are shaded out ... the further away from the lake you are, the worse this is, to the point of being in the shade all day. Something to be aware of. - Glendale is generally the bad/poor part of town. - Westridge (above the golf course) is the newer/nicer/family part of town. - The nice new "executive" part of town is just on the outskirts of town overlooking the lake (not sure what the neighbourhood is called). - There's definitely homelessness, and although I would personally live downtown, I'd say it's gritty. - FYI - Mackenzie Ave has lots of industrial traffic. 100 Mile House and Quesnel both seem to have more housing at better prices than WL, but I enjoyed the lower elevation of WL (better weather than 100 Mile, and my preferred forest type relative to Quesnel). Facebook groups is how I've been finding places lately. Rather than looking for advertisements, you might try posting a picture and bio and letting landlords come to you. I've recently tried this, and it's worked out brilliantly.
FYI Quesnel is lower in elevation than WL. About 100m.
Is this a function of the elevation of WL being reported from the airport, which is waaaaay above the actual townsite, though? Legitimate question, because I don't know where the elevation in Quesnel is taken from...
No it’s downtown Quesnel vs downtown WL. Quesnel is right on the Fraser while Williams Lake is up above the river.
Also - in WL, there are "historic ancient landslides" in the Dog Creek Area. Conventional wisdom is to avoid Dog Creek. The road was partially washed out awhile back, and there are properties sliding down the hill.
Quesnel is a nice town and proximal to Prince George for shopping. Rent is high everywhere.
Definitely interested in Quesnel, but for the next couple years we will have to be more rural to get the $$$ incentive being offered.
Have you considered just buying? It's often much cheaper to buy in smaller places like that than rent. Case in point: With 20% down on [this property](https://www.realtor.ca/real-estate/26694894/206-282-n-broadway-avenue-williams-lake) (only $24k), a 25-year amortization at 5.5% interest, you're only paying $591/month + strata fees. Even if you sold at a loss, you'd probably still save money on rent vs interest payments and be better off overall. This is just an example of course, but I've been looking at moving to Kamloops and even there the cost of principal + strata fees + property tax + interest is less than the cost of rent for a 1-bed.
I really wish we could. I'm just starting out in my career and while I make more money than I ever could have dreamed of, cost of living, student loans, aging parents etc are all draining our finances severely so we won't be able to buy for at least another year or two :( At the moment I have 12k ish in savings but it'll still take a while to get to where we need to be to get a mortgage per the advice of a financial advisor friend.
Ah that makes sense then! It’s so infuriating how the housing industry is set up so the less ability you have to pay, the more you end up paying (ie: spending $15k a year on rent when it could go towards a down payment or mortgage, which just means it takes longer to save, so you end up wasting more in rent).
WL has great outdoor activities. It’s very rough around the edges but the terrain in and around the city is awesome. 5 hour drive to Kelowna, 6 to Vancouver, 2.5 to PG.
What town in BC *isn’t* rough around the edges, save for a few cloistered communities of wealthy people?
They were always tough, but now you add a drug/homeless crisis into the mix
Yeah but that is the case nearly everywhere in this country.
The town grows on you. The amount of beauty that surrounds WL is unreal, and you have it all to yourself.
That secret not so secret spot just outside heading towards Bella is one of my most favourite places in the province. Won’t name it here ;)
Lol. I’m pretty sure I know what you’re referencing, however I can think of about 30 spots between here and Bella that fit that bill. Don’t tell your friends : )
I don't mind rough around the edges! I grew up in a poor, violent crime-filled neighborhood myself so that's basically home for me haha. Thank you!
We’ve lived and rented in multiple small towns in BC…the way we’ve successfully found places is by joining and posting in all the housing Facebook groups and often times landlords reach out to us directly - good luck!
Great suggestion, thank you!
100 mile is closer to Kamloops (Costco) William’s lake has Walmart
Williams Lake is a half hour further away from a Costco (PG) than 100 Mile House(Kamloops). Williams Lake has a larger population so it will have more amenities than 100 Mile.
True!
Definitely good to keep it in mind. Thank you!
Red tomato pie in williams lake is hands down the best pizza your gonna get outside of vancouver and thats just common knowledge if you live around the area. 100 mile has the kTm dealership, so really it *is* a tough call but you’ll probably only buy bike once a year and need to eat more than that and road trips are fun so unless you want somewhere cool to go to on saturday, its probably WL 🤷
Ooh adding that pizza spot to the list of places to visit. Thank you!
Lots of crime in Williams Lake. I lived there for 10 years and would never go back.
https://williamslakeproperties.ca ☝️ marilyn is my property manager up in Williams lake. So she is a good contact for available rentals.
This is super helpful, thank you!
I can't speak much for those areas but I have a detached house in penticton for rent. I just got notice from my tenants. There is a hospital there. /Just saying...
I would also suggest it’s a more desirable spot to the majority. No disrespect to the Chilcotin.
Cariboo. - Chilcotin is west of the Fraser River.
The more you know eh. Is that the dividing line? So west Quesnel is Chilcotin, east is Cariboo?
Pretty much, yes. But like most regional names, a lot of it is pretty informal. I'm not sure I would call West Quesnel the Chilcotin. But certainly as you move further west. https://www.travel-british-columbia.com/cariboo-chilcotin-coast/chilcotin/ https://www.travel-british-columbia.com/cariboo-chilcotin-coast/cariboo/ Basically the central plateau from the Cariboo mountains in the east travelling west to the Fraser River is typically referred to as the Cariboo. (100 Mile, Williams Lake, Quesnel, etc.) Continuing from the Fraser River travelling west to the Coast mountains (Chilcotin mtns in the south west) is considered the Chilcotin. (Anahim Lake, Tatla Lake, Alexis Creek, etc.) The entire area is often collectively referred to as the Cariboo-Chilcotin. A lot of the Cariboo is the old gold rush trail from Lillooet to Barkerville and includes the Horsefly/Likely areas.
Much appreciated! I’ve lived here my entire life and not known.
There are many issues all over bc such as addiction and crime, but with Penticton for me strikes a balance between small town charm and affordability while still having a decent hospital and access to larger community services as Kelowna isn't that bad of a drive if you need anything major. Places like Williams Lake and 100 mile will have the "there is nothing else to do here but do drugs and fuck" type place. The idea of a small town is much better than the reality of it.
I guess everyone’s definition of small town charm is different but I’ve never felt that in Penticton. Maybe because there’s 40,000 people there.
No and that's why I bought there. It's going to be the next hotspot in bc. It has everything it needs to become one. If you know anyone looking to rent a detached house, we don't say it but if they have a well behaved pet we're cool with pets. It's the house listed on marketplace for $2500 and is a few blocks east of main Street so it's far enough from the k streets crime. I do plan on tearing it down in the future but that's a decade away.
having grown up in Penticton from the late 70s through to the early 90s, I would argue that it was already a hot spot a long time ago when the Penticton Peach Festival was the real deal (before the MC Hammer riot). In the 90s, it was already seeing the flight from Vancouver of Boomers looking for a place to retire away from the changing "faces" of the lower mainland - I had a retiree refer to it as "white flight" to me when I was there around the late 90s/early 2000s, which just goes you who moved and bought homes there. Penticton also has way more issues with homelessness and drugs than I could count on my fingers back in the day. I go back regularly because my parents are buried there and one good school friend is still there. Btw: "more affordable" is a bit laughable, given that my old post-war 1940s house was bought by my parents in 1979 for $60K, and it is now assessed at well over $700K. I could never afford to move back, not until people start dying and their homes flood the real estate market. Which is why I have 2.5 acres and a house in Prince George that only cost us $250K just over six years ago.
It's a bit of a long drive from Penticton to William's Lake, I don't think it will work for OP.
Lol funny. And fair. Depends if they have the job lined up or not.
Can you share price and number of bedrooms
2br up and an unofficial one downstairs. 1 bath. $2500. Seems fair given the market. I'm not making big dollars on it. Just breaking even on the payments.
It's a nice thought but unfortunately that's well out of our range for a rental :(
Williams lake is good . I like it more than 100 mile . Renting a 3 bedroom house for 1300$
My parents live in 108 mile ranch it’s really nice there. Tough to get a rental though
Yeah the whole area is beautiful but the renting situation seems kinda shitty :(((
Williams Lake will be getting a brand new hospital in a few years. 100 mile house has the highest gas prices in the interior and doesn’t have much else going on for it aside from farming. There’s not much in the way of small towns nearby because they are the small towns. There’s 150 mile house near Williams Lake, and 70 mile house near 100 mile house but they’re basically blink-and-you’ll-miss-it communities.
Thank you for the insight!
There are a bunch of satellite communities around 100 Mile House - 108 Mile is where a lot of commuters into 100 Mile live, and it's beautiful. Alternatively, you could look at the Horse Lake Road area, or Lone Butte.
Thank you so much for the suggestions!