The Calgary Open House Checklist
An open house gives you twenty minutes to evaluate a six-figure decision. The buyers who get the most out of them arrive with a system — they know what to inspect, what to ask, and which observations actually matter in Calgary's housing stock. This checklist is that system.
Structure & Exterior — Check These First
Before you fall for the kitchen, walk the outside. In Calgary's freeze-thaw climate the exterior tells you the most about how a home has been cared for:
✔ Roof — age, curling or missing shingles, and hail damage (Calgary is Canada's hail capital; ask when it was last replaced and whether by insurance claim).
✔ Grading and drainage — ground should slope away from the foundation; look for downspout extensions and any pooling.
✔ Foundation — hairline cracks are common; wide, stepped, or horizontal cracks are not. Note them.
✔ Windows — fogged sealed units mean failed seals; check age and material.
✔ Driveway and walks — heaving and cracking hint at soil movement.
Inside — Look Past the Staging
✔ Basement — the most informative room in the house. Smell for must, look for efflorescence (white mineral staining) on foundation walls, water marks along the floor edges, and fresh paint on just one wall.
✔ Mechanical — furnace and hot water tank age (stickers usually say), electrical panel type and capacity, any Poly-B plumbing in homes from the 1980s–90s (insurers care).
✔ Kitchens and baths — run the taps, check under sinks, look for soft floors near tubs.
✔ Layout and light — walk it the way you'd live it: groceries to kitchen, laundry route, morning sun. Staging can't fix a floor plan.
✔ If it's a condo — note fees and what they include, and plan to review the condo documents carefully during conditions. Our condo buyer's guide covers exactly what to check.
Questions Worth Asking the Hosting Agent
✔ How long has it been on the market, and have there been price changes?
✔ Why are the sellers moving? (You won't always get an answer — how it's answered is informative too.)
✔ Any offers in hand or offer deadline set?
✔ What's the age of the roof, furnace, and hot water tank?
✔ Any permits pulled for renovations — especially basement development?
✔ What's included — appliances, window coverings, garage openers, sheds?
One caution: the hosting agent works for the seller. Be friendly, ask freely — but avoid volunteering your budget, motivation, or timeline. Anything you share can shape a future negotiation.
Red Flags That End Our Showings Early
Strong scent-masking (candles in every room), fresh paint on a single basement wall, spongy floors, doors that won't latch (movement), extension-cord wiring, DIY plumbing, and any answer to the permit question that starts with “the previous owner...”. None of these are automatic dealbreakers — but every one of them changes the questions your inspector should ask and the conditions your offer should carry.
Better yet — walk it with someone whose job is spotting these. Book a call and we'll view homes with you, on your side, at no cost to you as a buyer.