“Moving to the Ottawa Valley is more than just a move. It’s a lifestyle!”
Ann Maika-Chartrand should know. The keen and knowledgeable real estate agent is a fifth-generation descendant of Ottawa Valley pioneers. While her brick-and-mortar office is located on the main street in Barry’s Bay, she lives in scenic Round Lake Centre. Speaking of both communities, the striking brunette says, “These are lovely properties that offer so much for a fraction of what one would pay in Ottawa. One could sell in the city, buy in the country, and eliminate a lot of debt.”
Good advice—which, thanks to Ann, more and more people are taking. Ann, a certified Resort and Second Home Property Specialist, sells rural realty, farms, and waterfront estates throughout the aforementioned areas, as well as in Pembroke and Petawawa—and all at shockingly affordable prices ($200,000 – $300,000. Take that, Ottawa!) Many, like her beloved Round Lake area, offer all of the amenities (groceries, post office, bussing, etc.) plus some lovely bonuses, like proximity to beaches and year-round recreational events.
Photography by Sean Sisk
Not that these properties don’t come without concerns: rural zoning, internet reception, and more—but the indefatigable Ann is on top of them all. After all, she’s had the lifelong example of her hardworking father, an ex-paratrooper-cum-welder raised on an off-grid farm. As a small businessman and doting father, he modeled a non-stop work ethic and an instinctive subservience to people’s needs. Both left a deep imprint on his youngest daughter. “I serve rural clients who expect me to show up in a pickup truck wearing boots and plaid to a listing appointment,” explains Ann. “They expect hard work and honesty. Fittingly, those are the core values of who I am.”
Ann came to real estate in 2019, after careers as an Animal Cruelty Investigator and a Carrier Enforcement Officer. Little did she know that those sometimes-surreal tasks, like dealing with an alligator, were imparting skills that would serve her in her next career. “I developed a skill set as a fantastic interviewer and empathetic problem solver,” she reflects.
“I’m also quite adept at understanding the requirements for livestock, which is invaluable when selling or buying a farm. Plus, I’m very adept at interpreting legislation, which is incredibly important as a realtor.”
Since joining Royal LePage, Ann has been consistently recognized as one of that legendary brokerage’s Top Producers. And just last year, she was listed as #3 on Property Spark’s list of the top 20 Ottawa-based agents to follow on social media, the only candidate from the Valley to make the grade.
By Dan Lalande
Photography by Sean Sisk
