Home prices in Calgary continue to surge as the city recorded a new monthly record high in April. The total unadjusted benchmark price reached $550,800, up by almost two per cent from the previous month and setting a new monthly record for the city.
“While sales activity is performing as expected, the steeper pullback in new listings has ensured that supply levels remain low,” said CREB Chief Economist Ann-Marie Lurie. “The limited supply choice is causing more buyers to place offers above the list price, contributing to the stronger than expected gains in home prices.”
Last month, sales reached 2,690 units compared to the 3,133 new listings. Inventories declined by 34 per cent year-over-year and are over 45 per cent below long-term averages for April. The months of supply eased to just over one month, reflecting tighter market conditions than those reported in April 2022.
While sales activity has slowed by 21 per cent compared to last year, the steep decline in supply has caused the months of supply to decrease, contributing to the stronger-than-expected gains in home prices.
Limited supply and high demand contribute to rising prices
In the detached market, CREB reports new listings have decreased in all price ranges, particularly homes priced below $700,000, with a sales-to-new-listings ratio of 88 per cent, leading to a fall in supply levels. This has caused the months of supply to ease to just over one month, tighter than both last year and last month, with the detached benchmark price reaching a new record high of $661,900.
For semi-detached properties, the sales-to-new-listings ratio jumped to 89 per cent, leading to further declines in inventory levels, which are at their lowest April level since 2007. This has contributed to further price growth, with the unadjusted benchmark price in April reaching a new record high of $593,200.
The row properties segment faced the tightest market conditions in April, with a sales-to-new-listings ratio of 95 per cent, driving home prices up to a new record high of $387,400, a 7.0 per cent increase from last year.
The apartment condominium sector is the only sector to see sales activity rise over last year’s levels, thanks to a boost in new listings in April. With a sales-to-new-listings ratio of 77 per cent and a months of supply of 1.5, conditions are not as tight as other property types in the city.
As of April, the unadjusted benchmark price reached $299,400, a significant gain over the $277,600 reported at the start of the year and over 10 per cent higher year-over-year.
