Soaring demand sees record housing starts in Alberta

Alberta has again set a new record for housing starts, helping push the national numbers up two per cent last year compared to 2023.

According to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), Alberta saw construction of 46,632 homes in 2024—a 32 per cent increase year-over-year.

“I think by almost every metric you look at in terms of the housing data, we’ve set a record this year in Alberta. And in Calgary and Edmonton, they’ve also then set their own records,” said Scott Fash, CEO of the BILD Alberta Association.

Out of Canada’s major cities, Calgary (24 per cent) trailed only Edmonton (39 per cent) in increased housing starts last year.

“There’s been a lot of effort at all levels of government—provincial, federal and municipal—that have really been pushing toward more rental housing. And so that has definitely stimulated a lot of that,” said Tania Bourassa-Ochoa, CMHC’s deputy chief economist.

The number of multi-unit projects breaking ground in Calgary jumped by nearly 30 per cent last year.

In Ontario and British Columbia, the number of new build starts dropped in 2024, mostly due to cooling demand for condos, analysts say.

TD economist Marc Ercolao said a divide has started to emerge between Ontario and other parts of the country, despite starts “running at a lofty level nationwide.”

“Further declines in Ontario are likely on tap for this year, which, when combined with cooler population growth, points to a pullback in Canadian starts in 2025,” Ercolao said.

According to some local Realtors, Calgary is also already starting to see the condo and rental market slow as interest rates decline and buyers search for more space.

“It’s quite an interesting market at this point because, overall, we’re in a more balanced market than we were last year,” said Brian van Vliet, with Redline Real Estate powered by REAL Broker.

“We’re seeing in apartments and condos, it’s more of a buyer’s market. There are a lot of apartment condos available right now.”

With some of those housing projects being completed, van Vliet said 2025 is likely to be another steady year for real estate in Calgary.

“There are a lot of people that have been sitting on the fence to see what’s going to happen with mortgage rates, and as the interest rates have dropped, it’s going to bring that influx of buyers to the market.”

For builders, the hope is for another busy construction season, but there are already unknowns this year—namely possible tariffs from the incoming Trump administration in the U.S.

“We’re cautiously optimistic. ... I have no idea the impact of potential tariffs, not only on the broad economy, which will obviously drive demand, but how will that impact the cost of housing materials?” Fash said.

With files from The Canadian Press.