Andrew Kyle’s Blog - Calgary Real Estate

I added a cool new feature to all the listings on AndrewKyle.com this morning - a Walkscore^TM assessment. Walkscore is a site that estimates the walkability of a given property by it’s proximity to stores, entertainment, restaurants, parks and so on.

Here’s an example for the Emerald Stone condo in Connaught:

And here it is on my listing pages:

There was a nice rundown in the Calgary Herald today on the city’s farmers markets. And since I am a GoogleMaps nut, I decided to put all of them on a Google map - see below. Left-click on the icon for the market’s hours and directions.

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If you think this is a useful map then please click on “View Larger Map” and then “Rate This Map”, so it will show up for others on GoogleMaps.

Happy and healthy shopping! Remember, it’s all about quality of life!

- Andrew

It looks like the trend to a more balanced market continues. Solds are up and inventories are coming down. You can say you heard it hear first - 2 weeks before you will read about it in the Herald.

- Andrew Kyle

I love this website:
http://calgaryrealestatemarketblog.wordpress.com/

He has some really cool examinations and opinions on real estate trends in Alberta. If you have an interest in the finer points of real estate market trends then I think you will find it very interesting.

I think it is the best non-Realtor real estate website in Canada.

- Andrew Kyle

The Fraser Institute recently released it’s take on Alberta Schools based on 2006-07 provincial testing results.

You can look up any school by name in their database and see it’s report card. It’s a great tool for checking on neighbourhoods you are considering moving to.

Look up an Elementary School:
http://www.fraserinstitute.org/reportcards/schoolperformance/schoolfinder.aspx?prov=AB&lv=E&l=A

Look up a High School:
http://www.fraserinstitute.org/reportcards/schoolperformance/schoolfinder.aspx?prov=AB&lv=S&l=A

The database includes, public, seperate and private schools.

The Fraser Institute uses Grades 3 and 6 test results to grade elementary schools, and uses diploma examination results, grade-to-grade transition rates, and graduation rates to grade high schools.

The Institute itself urges parents not to put too much emphasis on the last year’s score or ranking, and I agree. Look at the last 5 years scores to get a more accurate picture. Also the Institute uses arrows (up or down) in the right-most column to indicate trends (if any) in the school’s performance over 5 years - that can be more useful than just the last year’s ranking or score.

- Andrew

It’s been announced that Jaume Plensa, arguably the world’s most renowned living public sculpture artist has been chosen to create a work for the Encana Bow Tower currently under construction on 6 Ave downtown. The tower will be the tallest building in western Canada when it is complete. The full story:

http://calsun.canoe.ca/News/Columnists/Platt_Michael/2008/06/16/5890296-sun.php

Here’s some of Plensa’s other works:

An interesting little article in the Herald today. The Stampede is proposing an extension of 17 Ave across the LRT tracks into the road system of the Stampede grounds.

Full article: http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/story.html?id=f35bea4f-df2c-4a64-a498-50a5c567ea25

I could see that eventually causing a revitalization along 17 Ave between McLeod Trail and 2 St SW, which has some vacant lots and older light-industrial/commercial businesses such as a body shop or two. Would the red mile eventually shift to the east I wonder? I think it might, as a matter of fact I am sure it would as the restaurants and bars closer to the Dome and Stampede Grounds take advantage of the closer proximity.

It’s an interesting proposal. The one concern i would have is traffic backing up 17 Ave at Rush hour, like it sometimes does on 25 Ave, because of the trains coming by every 3 or 4 minutes on average.

- Andrew Kyle

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CMHC published their Spring 2008 Rental Market Report on June 5.

The overall vacancy rate in Calgary in April 2008 is 2.0%, compared to 0.5% in April 2007. The breakdown:

Bachelor: 2.6%

1-Bedroom: 1.8%

2-bedroom: 2.2%

Average rents April 2007: bachelor:$608 1-bedroom:$848 2-bedroom:$1008 3+Bedroom:$939

Average rents April 2008: bachelor:$651 1-bedroom:$906 2-bedroom:$1081 3+bedroom:$1105

The full report including other markets: http://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/odpub/esub/64725/64725_2008_B01.pdf

- Andrew Kyle

UPDATE 2-Jul-2008: This property is now off the market.

It looks like the Calgary market has turned the corner, inventory is coming down now. The 3rd week of May appears to have been the high water mark for Absorption Rate and inventories. Knock on wood.

(c) 2008 Andrew Kyle. Feel free to re-use these charts provided you place a link back to this blog or my main website www.AndrewKyle.com.

I’ve published my Market report for June.  See below or click here: Market Report - June 2008

Market Report - June 3, 2008

by Andrew Kyle, B.ASc., Realtor

Now Is The Time To Buy!

I’m usually pretty conservative in my language in these market reports, but there is just no other way to describe the current market - “Now is the time to buy!” It is the best time to buy real estate in Calgary in many years. Home inventories are high, and buyers are reaping the benefits in the form of selection and being able to negotiate the best sale price and most favourable terms. If you have been thinking of buying but want to wait, what exactly are you waiting for?

The combined (houses and condos) Absorption Rate within Calgary city limits stands at 5.64, with houses being 5.47 and condos being 6.05 (See Charts A and A2 below - AR Trend). The very high absorption rate is something that we have not seen in Calgary in a very long time. Sales are down 32% in May 2008 from May 2007, while inventory at the end of the month is more than double what it was at the end of May 2008. The bottom line: there are far more properties for sale in Calgary than there are buyers to buy them - we are in the middle of a market correction.

Condos continue the trend of the last 6 months and are lagging behind Single Family (SF) houses. See the February Market Report for an explanation of why I think this is.

The average property sold in May was on the market 45 days (See Chart B - DOM Trend). Sellers should expect this number to continue to rise until the market corrects itself. The days when Calgary properties which were priced right sold in less than a month are gone for now.

The median price for one and two bedroom condos respectively is now $240k and $280k, down from $255k and $310k respectively in May 2007. For SF houses the median price is now $419k, a $16k decline from May 2007. (See Chart C - Median Price Trend) .

Andrew Kyle, B.ASc., is a REALTOR^® with Royal LePage Foothills and a Certified Condominium Specialist.

Copyright 2008 Andrew Kyle