Monthly Archives: June 2008

Has Calgary real estate inventory peaked?

For the past 2 weeks in June SFH inventory in Calgary has fluctuated around 7100, and around 3300 since the beginning of May for Condos.

Has the influx of new inventory peaked?   

(A special thanks to Matthew for compiling all the daily stats and providing us with the graph!)
To view the month-end inventory level numbers:  click here

Last year, it seemed that it peaked around June/July as inventory levels remained steady.   Then there was another surge of listings in September/October.   Finally, as winter approached many listings were left to expire to be relisted in the spring (which caused for the abnormal inventory reduction in December, seeing that sales didn’t coincide to the drop of inventory)

If you believe inventory will continue to surge later this year, feel free to post what month this will happen in (ie.  Will it be similar to last year’s cycle?)

Poll: Has Inventory peaked?

Status:

Also want to create a poll? Click here

Buyer’s Guide: Condo “Registered Size” VS “Total Living Area”

When speaking of Conventional Condominiums, it’s important to understand that the Registered Size listed is not necessarily the amount of living area in the condo. Let’s define the terms first:

Registered Size: is the size of the condominium unit as registered through Alberta Land Titles and must be verified from the Registered Condominium Plan. This size may include areas such as parking stalls, garages, below grade areas, balconies and storage areas.

Total Living Area: only includes the above grade developed heated living area.

Have you ever walked into a condo and asked, “This is 1100 square feet? It sure doesn’t feel like it.” You may have been right. If you subtract a couple dozen square feet here and there for the balcony & storage room, and several dozen more sq ft for the space making up any parking stalls – it gobbles up your square footage fast.

I’ve noticed listings on MLS® where the Total Living Area measurement is the same as the Registered Size. You know, it might well be. Perhaps the parking, balcony, and any titled stalls were not used to calculate the Registered Size.  This is all outlined on the Condominium Plan – and it’s STRONGLY ADVISED that you have the Condo Documents professionally reviewed.

Guidelines: “When measuring the Total Living Area for a Conventional Condominium Unit, measurements are to be taken to the inside surface of the interior finishing material (wall-to-wall)…Garages, parking stalls, storage areas, balconies or below grade areas shall not be included in this size…”

May 2008 Review – Calgary Real Estate Market

SINGLE FAMILY HOMES – CALGARY

SFH Calgary sales for the past two months have remained even – 1368 for May compared to 1363 for April.  However, this is still down over 30% from the 1,995 sales recorded in May 2007.

Compared to a year ago, the SFH median has dropped from $435k to $419k.   It is down $1,000 from April’s median of $420k.  The highest median on record was for June 2007 at $439k.

Buoyed by 50 homes that sold over the $1M mark, the average for May 2008 was $479,564 – down from the $487,523 from May of last year, but up $5k (exactly) from last month.

Inventory continued to climb, ending the month with 7099 active listings – up 218 from April’s month end level.   For comparisons sake, at the end of May 2007 there were only 3716 active listings.

Single-family homes need to be priced agressively to stand out in the midst of a 5-month supply of homes on the market (7099 active listings/1368 sales for May)

The Condo Market in CALGARY

Condos are approaching a 6-month supply, putting it well past a “balanced” market and firmly into buyer’s territory.

From April, the median has dropped $5k to $285,000 and is off year-over-year by 7.5%.  The average price is also down $20k from this time last year.

It will be interesting to take note how this market will handle the influx of new condominium projects to be finished in the next few years:

  • Waterfront, with its one million square feet of residential development, is the largest condo development in Calgary history.  Calgary Herald April 5, 2008
  • Concord to build 14-floor condominium in Calgary’s downtown core at First Avenue and Sixth Street SW. The building will contain about 185 grand luxury suites with a projected selling price of $1-million to $5-million.  Financial Post, April 24 2008
  • According to research by Barclay Street Real Estate Ltd., in Calgary, there are currently 2,841 residential condominium units under construction in the Beltline compared with 848 in the downtown core. Another 2,187 units have been approved for construction in the Beltline compared with 1,422 units in the downtown, and more than 11,000 units are being proposed in the Beltline and nearby neighbourhoods for the future, far outpacing the downtown proposals of about 300 residential condo units down the road. Calgary Herald, November 11, 2007

For more Condo & SFH stats, including Average Price / Sq ft, median & average prices, & more: MLS STATS ARCHIVE CLICK HERE