ABOUT MERRITT
Merritt is a city of 7,051 people (2021 Census) in the Nicola Valley, where the Nicola and Coldwater rivers meet, about 88 km south of Kamloops on the Coquihalla Highway, roughly an hour's drive. The townsite was surveyed in 1893 as Forksdale, renamed Merritt in 1906 and incorporated in 1911.
In town, neighbourhoods include the Bench, Collettville, Diamond Vale and the Nicola Wynd subdivision, and rural communities such as Douglas Lake, Upper Nicola and Nicola Lakeshore surround it. Merritt has its own hospital, five elementary schools, a secondary school and a campus of the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology, and Logan Lake is up the road.
MERRITT LISTINGS
Listed by Stonehaus Realty Corp
Listed by Stonehaus Realty Corp
Listed by Stonehaus Realty Corp
Listed by Real Broker B.C. Ltd
Listed by REMAX Kamloops
Listed by REMAX Kamloops
Merritt
Area Guide
Practical answers on Merritt from a third-generation Kamloops REALTOR with 18 years in construction, who asks about the 2021 flood before anything else.
Contact JeremiaWhere is Merritt?
In the Nicola Valley about 88 km south of Kamloops on Highway 5, the Coquihalla, roughly an hour's drive. Highway 97C runs east toward the Okanagan, Highway 8 runs west to Spences Bridge, and Highway 5A runs north to Kamloops and south to Princeton.
Who lives in Merritt?
Families, retirees and people working in the Nicola Valley, plus buyers who want a small city with ranch country and lakes around it.
What is the lifestyle like?
Monck Park on Nicola Lake has a beach and camping, Kentucky-Alleyne Provincial Park has lakes and camping south of town, and there are mountain bike trails close to town. The Nicola Valley Museum and Archives covers local history.
What are the properties like?
Single-family homes in neighbourhoods like the Bench, Collettville and Diamond Vale, the Nicola Wynd subdivision, and rural property in the surrounding valleys. About two thirds of households own their home. Ask where a property sits relative to the Coldwater and Nicola rivers before anything else.
Schools and services
School District 58 (Nicola-Similkameen) runs Collettville Elementary for French immersion, Diamond Vale, Merritt Bench, Merritt Central and Nicola-Canford elementary schools, and Merritt Secondary for grades 8 to 12. The Nicola Valley Hospital and Health Centre is in town, although its emergency department has had temporary closures, with Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops as the backup.
Discover Merritt
Things to Do & See
Monck Park on Nicola Lake
View Activities
Kentucky-Alleyne Provincial Park
View Activities
Nicola Valley Museum and Archives
View Activities
Merritt Mountain Biking
View ActivitiesPhotos via Wikimedia Commons: Merritt by Brislian, CC BY-SA 4.0; Coldwater Hotel by Kylesobrien, CC BY-SA 3.0; Coldwater River by The Interior, CC BY-SA 3.0; Monck Park campsite by Paul Joseph, CC BY 2.0; Kentucky-Alleyne Provincial Park by GoToVan, CC BY 2.0; Nicola Valley by Jason Jackson, CC BY-SA 3.0; Nicola Lake by Murray Foubister, CC BY-SA 2.0.
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WHAT MOST PEOPLE DO NOT THINK TO ASK
On November 15, 2021 the Coldwater River flooded and the whole city was evacuated, and dike and flood mitigation work is still under way. Ask the City of Merritt about the property's flood history and mapping, ask the seller what happened in 2021, and get an insurance quote with overland flood coverage before subject removal.
Merritt's water comes from municipal wells drawing on aquifers under the city, while rural properties outside town often rely on their own wells and septic, so test the water and inspect the septic. In August 2021 wildfires put the whole city on evacuation alert, so ask about defensible space too. I have 18 years in construction and I am not a licensed home inspector, so I will tell you when to bring one in.
Huxley
Jeremia Huxley is a REALTOR with Stonehaus Realty Corp., based in Pinantan Lake, BC, who focuses on rural, acreage and lake properties around Kamloops, including Merritt. He has 18 years of construction experience and 9 years in real estate, and the two have overlapped for most of that time. He is not a licensed home inspector. Contact: 250-571-0379.
Merritt FAQ
REAL ESTATE INSIGHTS
Buying or selling rural property raises questions that city listings never do: wells, septic, who plows the road, what the ALR allows.
The blog takes them one at a time, in plain language, from someone who has lived on rural property since 2008.