Calgary housing activity to moderate this year, prices to remain strong: board

Snow falls in front of a residential home. (Getty Images)

The Calgary Real Estate Board says it expects the city's housing market activity to moderate this year after record sales were experienced in 2021, but tight conditions will linger.

The Alberta board is forecasting the city will see 25,598 sales this year, down from 27,686 last year and 16,149 in 2020.

CREB says rising lending rates will cool some demand for housing, but sales will still be strong because many were able to save more money during the COVID-19 pandemic.

CREB is predicting annual price growth will slow to four per cent this year, down from more than eight per cent last year, when the average price of a home totalled $585,275.

The board expects supply levels will eventually improve relative to demand this year, especially after last year's surge in housing starts.

However, CREB chief economist Ann-Marie Lurie says the current tight conditions will stick around until at least spring and could result in one of two scenarios.

"If supply levels remain low relative to demand, we could see stronger-than-expected price growth," she says, in a release.

"On the other hand, if rates rise much faster and higher than expected, it could cause a more significant pullback in sales."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 24, 2022.