VANCOUVER, BC
The sod hut market is soaring in Vancouver as Fraser Valley Mennonites are moving into the city and buying up huge swaths of valuable real estate.
“Prices are out of control! It’s getting to the point where these Mennonites are buying up perfectly fine bungalows just to tear them down and put in a sod hut!” said local resident Kathrine Unger. “I’ve seen cases where the Mennos are coming in, tearing down a 20-storey high-rise, and replacing it with a chicken coop or hog barn!”
As a result of this influx of Mennonites, longtime residents of Vancouver are being forced to move out of the region because they simply cannot afford it anymore.
“When you’re paying $2000 a month just to share a 100 square foot semlin with the fifteen Friesen children and a half dozen chickens, well, it’s not not reasonable anymore,” said Unger. “We’re thinking of moving to Calgary, but, if we really have to…then Winnipeg.”
Real estate agents, however, are excited to see the hot sod hut market brought on by Mennonite investment.
“It’s definitely a seller’s market,” said Century 16 agent Jakob Fehr. “I think in ten years you won’t even recognize Vancouver. These Mennonites are turning the Lower Mainland into a new Vistula Delta!”
Unger, on the other hand, says he’s ready to move. Although Winnipeg is low on her list, it’s not for reasons you might expect like the notoriously cold winters.
“Nobody wants to live that close to your relatives,” explains Unger. “I’ve learned long ago that it’s always best to keep some distance from a Mennonite mother-in-law.”
