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Laneway home tour hopes to spark interest – Metro US

Laneway home tour hopes to spark interest

As laneway houses — small, one- or two-storey suites built on the lots of existing homes — continue to spread across Vancouver, city developers are working hard to ensure the projects maintain a favourable public image.

Sponsored by Lisa MacIntosh realtors, Vancouver’s first-ever laneway home charity tour is scheduled to take place Saturday, as organizers hope to capitalize on growing public interest in the sometimes-controversial housing fad.

At $50 per ticket, the Kensington-area tour is not cheap, but then neither are the homes.

“I’d definitely say we’re looking at an upscale demographic,” said tour spokeswoman Jacqueline Cannam.

“This is not a cheap undertaking, but it is a good way to create some secondary income.”

Since city regulations presently only allow laneway homes to be owned by whosever property they are built on, the units are mostly used as rental suites, or a way to add value to a heritage home that may be too expensive to renovate.