Calgary Real Estate December 2014 Monthly Housing Statistics

Calgary Real Estate News - Despite a December Dip in Sales, 2014 Was a Good Year for the Calgary Real Estate Market 

While the Calgary housing market experienced a 7.5 percent decline when comparing December 2014 to December of the previous year, the story was far different when considering only the condominium and townhouse sectors. In fact, it was a records-setting year in these sectors, with sales increasing by 9.3 percent to reach a new annual high.

According to the latest CREB® report, monthly sales activity experienced a bit of a slowdown in December. This phenomenon is not unusual, however, as consumers typically begin to shift their attention away from the housing market and more toward the holiday season. Nonetheless, annual condominium apartment sales increased by 18 percent when compared to last year, totally 4,742 units sold. Townhouses also experienced a 17 percent increase when compared to 2013, reaching 3,737 units sold.

Although it is normal for real estate sales to slow down in December, the decrease in sales when comparing year-over-year data may be the start of a downward trend for 2015. The recent 2015 forecast released by CREB® indicates that the housing market is likely to cool a bit in 2015. Despite these predictions, most experts agree that the Calgary real estate market is likely to remain stable throughout the New Year.

In all, the City of Calgary saw 25,664 residential real estate sales in 2014. During this same period of time 36,329 new listings appeared on the market. With new listings increasing by 13 percent compared to sales growing by 9 percent during this same period of time, the overall inventory levels within the Calgary real estate market have increased. With more options available on the market, benchmark prices continued to level off in December. Annual average benchmark gains within the market, however, remained above nine percent. Furthermore, the unadjusted benchmark prices for condominium apartments, townhouses and single-family properties remained similar to those they experienced the previous month.

In all, single-family property sales increased by 5.5 percent in 2014, reaching 17,185 sales. Despite the fact that single-family homes represent 67 percent of the total number of sales in 2014, condominium apartments and townhome sales outpaced single-family homes. This is largely due to the lower price of these homes as well as their greater availability. While the number of single-family homes within city limits available for less than $400,000 has been declining, most of the condos on the market fall below this price point.

As a result of the strong demand for condominium apartments, supply levels have also been increasing. In 2014, this sector saw a 30 percent increase to 7,297 units. This has helped to take pressure off of prices, with unadjusted condominium apartment and benchmark prices experiencing a recovery. 

December 2014 Calgary Monthly Housing Statistics by Crystal Tost