Buyers feeling ‘more confident’ in market
More signs that Calgary ‘turning around’ as construction starts jump 34% in May
For the fourth consecutive month, new construction of single-family homes in the Calgary area outperformed activity from the same time in 2016.
Construction starts on singlefamily homes in May jumped 34 per cent, says Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. Shovels turned for 369 single-family homes last month, up from 243 year over year.
The Calgary census metropolitan area counts activity from nearby cities and towns, such as Airdrie, Cochrane, and Chestermere.
“I think buyers are more confident about the market,” says Richard Cho, CMHC’s principal of market analysis. “I think we had a pretty tough year in 2016, but in 2017, we’re seeing more and more signs that the market has been turning around.”
Another reason more people have turned to the new home market has been the downtick in singlefamily options through the city’s resale listings, he adds.
The Calgary Real Estate Board says there were 2,941 single-family homes available through the resale market in Calgary last month, slipping three per cent from 3,040 in May 2016.
From Jan. 1 through the end of May 2017, the Calgary area has re- corded 1,571 starts on single-family homes compared to 1,127 over the same time a year ago, says CMHC.
Northwest Calgary had 85 starts in May, marking the fourth straight month where the quadrant topped all ends of the city in new construction of single-family homes.
It was trailed by 75 in the northeast, 48 in the southeast, and 20 each in southwest Calgary and the Fish Creek area. North Hill had eight starts while the Chinook area broke ground on a single, as well.
Part of the credit for the pickup in starts for the Calgary area goes to Airdrie. The small city just north of Calgary had shovels in the ground on 53 single-family homes, up from 26 a year earlier.
For people in the market for a quick possession single-family home in the Calgary area, selection in May increased from the same month in 2016 but eased from a month earlier.
CMHC says there were 423 constructed but unabsorbed singlefamily homes in the Calgary area. This is up from 364 in May 2016, and down from 443 month over month.
Northwest Calgary was the only end of the city in triple-digits for constructed and available singlefamily homes, with 140 in May. It was followed by 52 in the city’s northeast.