Is the Calgary housing market on the mend?

Regional real estate board unveils November numbers

Is the Calgary housing market on the mend?

Residential sales in Calgary saw a considerable 22% annual decline to 1,648 transactions in November, according to data from the Calgary Real Estate Board.

However, the CREB stressed that this was still 12% higher than the region’s 10-year average for the month, and that this did not offset the market’s substantial gains earlier in 2022. Year-to-date sales activity was still nearly 10% above the record high seen during the same period in 2021, with population growth fuelling stronger apartment condo and rowhouse sales.

“Easing sales have been driven mostly by declines in the detached sector of the market,” said Ann-Marie Lurie, chief economist at CREB. “Higher lending rates are impacting purchasers buying power and limited supply choice in the lower price ranges of the detached market is likely causing many purchasers to place buying decisions on hold.”

Market still poised to set availability records

The number of new listings fell by 19.4% annually to 1,611 units across the region in November.

This brought inventory down by 20.9% year over year to 3,109 homes, Calgary’s lowest inventory for November since 2005. CREB said that taking current demand into account, this level represented just 1.89 months of supply.

“The tightest conditions are occurring in the lower-price ranges as supply growth has mostly been driven by gains in the upper-end of the market,” CREB said.

Calgary’s housing affordability remained among the best across Canada, with the residential benchmark price growing by 8.6% annually to $520,200 in November.