Calgary Housing Market Update: April 2024
Supply down to nine-tenths of a month, the tightest Calgary has recorded, with townhouses at just three weeks of stock.
In April 2024, Calgary’s benchmark home price was $596,800 — up 1.2% from March and 9.5% above April 2023. Sales rose 8.2% on the month to 2,875 while inventory of 2,716 homes was 16% below last April. Supply fell to 0.9 months, the tightest in the record, and a typical home sold in 20 days. Row homes were down to 0.7 months of supply at $451,700, up 19.1% year-over-year; apartment condos reached $330,000, up 16%.
April 2024 at a glance
April 2024 set the record for scarcity: 0.9 months of supply, the lowest in Calgary’s data. Sales climbed 8.2% to 2,875 — the strongest April since 2021 — while inventory of 2,716 homes sat 16% below last April. Row homes were at 0.7 months, which is barely three weeks of stock. The benchmark rose 1.2% to $596,800, closing in on $600,000 for the first time. New listings were up 11.4% year-over-year and it made no difference at all.
Calgary prices over time
| Year | Benchmark price | Change on the year |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | $459,500 | — |
| 2015 | $448,800 | ▼ -2.3% |
| 2016 | $434,100 | ▼ -3.3% |
| 2017 | $433,200 | ▼ -0.2% |
| 2018 | $424,600 | ▼ -2% |
| 2019 | $415,900 | ▼ -2% |
| 2020 | $421,300 | ▲ +1.3% |
| 2021 | $463,900 | ▲ +10.1% |
| 2022 | $518,800 | ▲ +11.8% |
| 2023 | $565,200 | ▲ +8.9% |
| 2024 (to April) | $596,800 | ▲ +5.6% |
Sales, listings and inventory
| Month | Sales | New listings | Inventory | Days on market | Benchmark |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2023 | 3,117 | 3,650 | 3,214 | 24 | $552,700 |
| June 2023 | 3,140 | 3,939 | 3,469 | 22 | $560,300 |
| July 2023 | 2,644 | 3,247 | 3,498 | 23 | $563,100 |
| August 2023 | 2,716 | 3,129 | 3,267 | 25 | $566,000 |
| September 2023 | 2,430 | 3,191 | 3,383 | 25 | $565,600 |
| October 2023 | 2,169 | 2,685 | 3,205 | 27 | $566,800 |
| November 2023 | 1,783 | 2,227 | 3,001 | 29 | $567,900 |
| December 2023 | 1,362 | 1,248 | 2,170 | 33 | $565,200 |
| January 2024 | 1,649 | 2,137 | 2,155 | 34 | $565,300 |
| February 2024 | 2,132 | 2,711 | 2,357 | 24 | $579,800 |
| March 2024 | 2,658 | 3,173 | 2,542 | 20 | $589,500 |
| April 2024 | 2,875 | 3,489 | 2,716 | 20 | $596,800 |
The headline numbers
| Metric | April 2024 | vs prev month | vs last year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Benchmark price | $596,800 | ▲ +1.2% | ▲ +9.5% |
| Sales | 2,875 | ▲ +8.2% | ▲ +7% |
| New listings | 3,489 | ▲ +10% | ▲ +11.4% |
| Inventory | 2,716 | ▲ +6.8% | ▼ -16% |
| Days on market | 20 | — 0 days | ▼ -4 days |
A look by property type
| Property type | Benchmark | vs last year | Sales | Days on mkt | Months of supply |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | $748,700 | ▲ +13% | 1,317 | 19 | 0.9 |
| Semi-detached | $667,700 | ▲ +13.1% | 254 | 22 | 0.8 |
| Row / townhouse | $451,700 | ▲ +19.1% | 482 | 19 | 0.7 |
| Apartment condo | $330,000 | ▲ +16% | 822 | 23 | 1.2 |
Nine-tenths of a month
Months of supply had now been at or below 1.4 for fifteen consecutive months. April’s 0.9 was the extreme, and it reflected a market where demand was being driven by population growth that had outpaced homebuilding for several years running.
The practical consequence for buyers was that the process had become almost entirely about preparation and speed. Negotiation, in the traditional sense, had largely stopped existing in Calgary’s market.
Anticipating rate cuts
By April 2024 expectations had firmed that the Bank of Canada would begin cutting rates, after holding them at elevated levels through 2023. Buyers were responding in advance.
There’s an irony worth naming. Lower rates increase what buyers can qualify for, and in a market with 0.9 months of supply, more buying power mostly translates into higher prices rather than better affordability. Rate cuts help individual buyers qualify; they don’t create houses.
Row homes at $451,700
Row homes were up 19.1% year-over-year, the fastest of any segment, and had risen from $300,100 at the end of 2021 — a gain of just over 50% in under two and a half years. At 0.7 months of supply they remained the tightest part of the market.
Apartment condos crossed $330,000, up 16%. The affordable segments had now led Calgary’s market for eight consecutive quarters, which had largely erased their advantage as an entry point.
What this meant if you were buying
In the tightest market on record, the buyers who transacted were the ones who had done all the work in advance. That means a genuine pre-approval with income and down payment documents already reviewed by a lender — not a rate quote.
It’s also worth being clear about the alternative. Renting while waiting for the market to ease was a reasonable choice, but it was not a free one: prices had risen roughly 15% in the preceding fifteen months while rents in Calgary had also been climbing. The right answer depends on your own timeline and finances, not on a view about where prices go next.
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Source: CREB, April 2024 (City of Calgary geography). Prices shown are benchmark (HPI) values. Month-over-month compares to the prior month; year-over-year to the same month last year. The board may revise past months as late sales are recorded. Prepared by Mortgages for Less.
