Housing gains in November "not enough" to offset Calgary demand
Even with a year-to-year increase in new listings, housing availability still remained low for Calgary in November 2023.
According to the latest numbers from the Calgary Real Estate Board (CREB) in its most recent report, there were 1,787 sales that month, leaving the sales to new listings high at 80%.
The benchmark price was $572,700 in November 2023, a climb from October 2023 and around an 11% spike from November 2022.
Year-to-date, the average benchmark price went up more than 5%, according to the CREB.
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“Like other large cities, new listings have been increasing,” CREB Chief Economist Ann-Marie Lurie said in a statement.
“However, in Calgary, the gains have not been enough to change the low inventory situation thanks to strong demand. Our market continues to favour the seller, driving further price growth.”
New listings in November 2023 climbed to 2,227 units, which is almost 40% higher than the exceptionally low levels reported last year at this time.
The CREB report shows that gains in new listings occurred across most price ranges, but the most significant gains were for homes priced over $600,000.
Experts have continuously said that the housing crisis in Calgary has been fuelled by a lack of supply, with the city seeing record population growth and immigration over recent months and years.
The City’s new housing strategy and a number of proposed developments, including the downtown office-to-residential conversion plan, are attempts to curb the problem, but affordability issues still loom large for many in this city.
The average wage needed to qualify for a mortgage in Calgary also increased significantly from this time last year.