FALL SEEDING
Recreation Properties Feature
Late-season crops are still viable
Out-of-town home market is showing staying power
DONNA BALZER A8
Don Dickson
2004 CREB® President
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A4
FREE sept 9 to sept 15 2016 issue 06-35 editorial 403-781-1324 advertising 403-263-4940 crebnow@creb.ca
real estate news from industry experts
STUCK IN THE MIDDLE JOEL SCHLESINGER for creb®now
W
hat’s old is new again. It’s an apt description of homebuyers’ newfound interest in Calgary’s sandwich communities – those not-quite-inner-city neighbourhoods that long outgrown their suburban roots. Built along what was then the city’s outskirts starting in the late 1950s, these detached-heavy communities such as Thorncliffe, Huntington Hills, Ogden, Winston Heights, Albert Park, Fairview and Kingsland represented optimism and prosperity synonymous with the post-Second World War era. Fast-forward several generations later and upwardly mobile generationXers and millennials are returning to their birth places, attracted by location, ample amenities and familiarity. “In Calgary, we refer to these sand-
wich communities as the middle ring because it really is a ring around the city,” said Bev Sandalack, associate dean of landscape and planning and professor at the University of Calgary’s Faculty of Environmental Design. “What has happened is people started rediscovering that they could be a lot closer to the inner city and that urbanity is good and has a lot to offer.” Yet as the city has grown up around these so-called hidden gems, many have struggled to find their respective identities – especially when it has come to redevelopment. “For example, there’s a big NIMBY undercurrent where people are sometimes … reluctant to accept higher-density housing in their neighbourhoods,” said Sandalack. Sandalack, who recently coauthored a study on the subject, said she’s seeing more cases of existing residents in these sandwich communities feeling caught between two seemingly opposing concerns. The first is with newcomers coming in and tearing down character bungalows in favour of mighty modern-day structures. According to CREB®, detached homes in many of these sandwich communities generally sell for upward $650,000. That’s roughly $200,000 more than the benchmark price for similar homes situated farther out from the city centre, noted CREB® chief economist Ann-Marie Lurie.
CREB® chief economist Ann-Marie Lurrie said the price of homes in Calgary’s sandwich communities is predicated primarly on land value.
SANDWICH A3
5022
AUG14 SEP14 OCT14 NOV14 DEC14 JAN15 FEB15 MAR15 APR15 MAY15 JUN15 JUL15 AUG15 SEP15 OCT15 NOV15 DEC15 JAN16 FEB16 MAR16 APR16 MAY16 JUN16 JUL16 AUG16
3384
4058
4336
4796
MLS® MONTH END INVENTORY* AUG ‘14 – AUG ‘16
5533 5706 5641 5394 5141 5137 5215 5600 5623 5327
CITY OF CALGARY 4838 4801 4643
PHOTO BY ADRIAN SHELLARD/FOR CREB®NOW
5681 6084 6242 6148 6004 5685 5656
Calgary’s aging sandwich communities seek their place in shifting housing landscape
*All statistics based on monthly data compiled by CREB® via MLS® activity. Includes detached, attached and apartment.
ALBERTA HOME CONTENTS CONSTRUCTION NEWS BRIEFS POSTS DECLINE MLS® STATISTICS
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August 2016
CREB® STAFF
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COMMERCIAL. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A6
lberta posted the largest decline in housing construction in Canada during the second quarter, with investment in the sector declining by 17.4 per cent, according to Statistics Canada. Residential construction investment in the province fell to $4.2 billion in the second quarter compared with the second quarter of 2015 – the fifth consecutive quarterly decline. Statistics Canada attributed the decrease to lower spending on all four principal dwelling types, with single-family dwellings accounting for most of the decline.
CONSTRUCTION A3
Suburban office
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CREBNow
@crebnow
www.crebnow.com
LUXURY, PRIVACY AND SPECTACULAR VIEWS / ANTLER RIDGE $1,399,000
MLS®C4075242
Set in the heart of the most scenic countryside in Alberta. Beautiful log home with verandah spanning the front of the home, a deck spanning the back, and a prow in the great room with two and a half story windows leading up to the centre vault to view the meadow outside. Over 5500 sq. ft. on 3 levels, the rooms are spacious, even with 6 bedrooms and 5.5 baths. Hardwood floors cover the main living areas. The kitchen features a large centre island, granite countertops, and stainless steel appliances. The bright walk-out level with in-floor heating has a large recreation area as well as 2 bedrooms and a flex area that has been roughed-in as a summer kitchen.
Lee Edwards 403.540.0540
CANYON CREEK
braggcreekrealestate.com lee@braggcreekrealestate.com