Albertans cool on air conditioning at home

This time of year, Albertans can't live without air conditioning in the workplace or at the mall, but at home? Seems most would rather sweat it out.

Calgary's Cedarglen Homes lists air conditioning as an option for single-family home buyers, but the majority of customers are frosty toward the idea.

“I would say less than 10 per cent actually choose to install air conditioning up front. However, about 35 per cent rough it in for installation at a later date,” says Allison Harvie, sales and marketing manager, noting that optional air adds about $6,000 to the purchase price.

Multi-family builder Avalon Master Builder sees a similar trend, with only 10 to 15 per cent of buyers willing to spend on air conditioning.

“Our basic price for air conditioning is about $3,500 for a two-storey townhome, depending on the cost of materials,” says Marni Chenier, sales and marketing lead.

The recent heat dome was enough to melt the resolve of many hardy Westerners, leading to an unprecedented surge in phone calls, says Matt Zivanov, general manager of Reliance Home Comfort in Alberta.

Zivanov's rough estimate for central air conditioning of an average size single-family home (1,200 square feet to 1,400 square feet) is about $3,500 for an entry level unit.

Those building a home might want to at least consider an air conditioning rough in.

“If the basement is finished and we install after the fact, sometimes we'll have to cut holes to get the line set to the unit outside,” Zivanov says.