Canada CRE News In Your Inbox.

Sign up for Connect emails to stay informed with CRE stories that are 150 words or less.

Sub Markets

Property Sectors

Topics

Canada  + Alberta & Prairies + Ontario + Pacific Canada + Quebec  + Apartments  | 
Canadian housing starts fell 9% in April, says a new Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation report.

Calgary Apartment Starts Hit All-Time High

Calgary apartment-construction starts reached an all-time high in 2023 as developers responded to an ongoing shortage in the rental market, says a new Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation report.

A total of 9,304 rental-apartment suites were started, compared to 7,750 units in 2022, according to the Housing Supply Report (HSR). Most new Calgary units in 2023 were constructed in the southeast quadrant, particularly the Fish Creek area, and the southwest and northwest quadrants.

Purpose-built rentals accounted for 54% of all apartments started, marking a shift from traditional building trends in Calgary. Historically, condominium units have dominated.

Calgary was among cities that experienced a surge in apartment construction in 2023. The surge helped sustain overall new-housing supply in comparison with the 2022 level.

But the large amount of construction starts will not improve housing affordability, and apartment developers could struggle to match the new-supply level in 2024, Aled ab Iorwerth, the CMHC’s deputy chief economist, has warned.

Apartment construction, including purpose-built rental suites and condominium units, reached record levels in Toronto, Vancouver and Ottawa in 2023.

The CMHC report covers Canada’s six largest cities, including suburbs.

Connect

Inside The Story

CMHCAled ab Iorwerth

About Monte Stewart

Monte Stewart serves as Content Director - Canada for Connect Commercial Real Estate. Based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Monte provides daily news coverage of major Canadian commercial real estate markets, including Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal and Calgary. He has written about the real estate sector for various media outlets and Avison Young since the early 2000s. In addition, he has covered sports, general news and business for several leading wire services and publications, including The Canadian Press, The Associated Press, The Calgary Herald, The Globe and Mail, Research Money, The Daily Oil Bulletin, Natural Gas World and The Toronto Star. Monte is active in his community as a youth basketball coach and raises funds for such charitable causes as Movember.

  • ◦Development
New call-to-action