The North West Arm neighborhood in Halifax, Nova Scotia commands the region’s highest prices for its oceanfront position and proximity to the city’s downtown core. While bigger Canadian markets are facing choppy waters, this coastal segment has seen smooth sailing in its luxury segment, with ever-growing demand for homes in these coveted waterfront neighborhoods.
The South End combines the cultural and professional opportunities of being in the city center with the ease and safety of feeling connected to the ocean. Halifax’s downtown core is at most a 10-minute drive from the North West Arm.
“It’s all about waterfront living. The people in this neighborhood have docks and boats,” said Nas Klayme, an agent with Re/Max Nova. “And there is such a limited number of properties that land value has skyrocketed. It’s at the point where people are buying C$4 million (US$2.842 million) homes as teardowns.”
The neighborhood saw Halifax’s highest-priced sale this year, according to Klayme—C$11 million for a 10,500-square-foot custom waterfront home. This area also borders Point Pleasant Park, whose lush grounds include walking trails and century-old forts.
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Exclusive Amenities and Lifestyle
Reflecting the area’s waterfront lifestyle, the South End includes yacht clubs, including the Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Club and Armdale Yacht Club, according to Klayme.
The Waegwoltic Club is the North West Arm’s “pre-eminent private club,” Laing said. “It’s generational. Kids go there for tennis, swimming and sailing lessons.”
The neighborhood’s true amenity, she said, is “the lifestyle. You can be a doctor, walk home from work, get on your sailboat or kayak shortly thereafter. People make the decision to live here based on that.”
Most of Halifax’s top private schools are in the South End, including Halifax Grammar School, Sacred Heart School and Armbrae Academy, according to Bryant. Dalhousie University, St. Mary’s University and University of King’s College are among Halifax’s highly rated universities, she said.
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Laing’s listings include a 6,157-square-foot waterfront estate with a private 44-foot wharf for C$9.95 million. “Prices took a huge leap during Covid, but maintained their value, unlike other markets across Canada,” she said.
Across the South End, the average home price is about C$1.6 million, she said, with waterfront homes averaging C$3 million–C$4 million. But in the North West Arm neighborhood, “which is much more coveted and rare, homes can go for anywhere from C$5 million–C$11 million.”
“Buyers have had to fight for properties in this neighborhood, but we’re going through a more balanced period now, and prices are holding,” Laing said. “The peninsula will stay on a long-term growth trajectory, though—it’s reasonable to predict 10% to 20% over the next five years, and 2% to 4% annually.”
The North West Arm should see “a continual, gradual increase,” said Klayme of Re/Max. “That’s how we roll here. We don’t have the population for the big peaks and valleys of bigger Canadian markets. But we still see people moving here from other parts of Canada.”
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