BC, Ontario residents are driving Calgary's housing market into a "frenzy"

BC, Ontario buyers are driving Calgary's housing market into a "frenzy"

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There may not be a one-size-fits-all answer for the rising prices and decrease in inventory in Calgary’s housing market, but migration is likely a large contributor.

In Re/Max Canada’s 2024 tax report, the real estate company highlighted that homebuying activity in this city was rampant, driven predominantly by affordable housing values and lower tax rates.

That trend incentivized a growing number of people, mainly from BC and Ontario, to move to Alberta.

Real estate experts and economists have attributed that to rising home prices in Calgary. However, it may not lead to costs seen in other big cities.

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“We’ve got a sustainable growth happening here,” Darryl Terrio with Re/Max Complete Realty told Daily Hive Urbanized.

“Prices are going up, but they’re not going stupid. Toronto and Vancouver had some really stupid run-ups.”

Data from Statistics Canada shows that, in the first three quarters of 2023, Alberta saw around 45,000 new residents.

During the same period, net international migration increased by nearly 100,000 people, including new immigrants, net emigration, and net non-permanent residents.

According to Re/Max, buyers from Ontario and BC are the most active in the Alberta housing market.

Most of them are settling in Calgary, where the average price at year-end in 2023 was $539,313, according to the Calgary Real Estate Board (CREB).

“Ownership can be attained for as low as $350,000,” the Re/Max report reads.

“The condominium apartment category is seeing the highest year-over-year increase in sales in 2023.”

The report also says that entry-level buyers, representing between 20% and 30% of the market, are driving activity between $350,000 and $650,000.

Inventory, however, is still expected to remain low this year. Migration trends are anticipated to slow down, but that may not create a significant impact on the market.

“We are bringing more people into Canada than we can afford to build for… But with more and more of those people coming to Calgary, we are having a hard time keeping up with the building,” Terrio said.

“There’s plenty of room to stay affordable.”

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