Mortgage Process

AVOID FORECLOSURE

Mortgage Calculators

Videos

Testimonials

Highlights:

The average apartment vacancy rate in Alberta’s urban centres was 6.0 per cent in April 2010, up from 4.6 per cent in April 2009. Vacancy rates in April 2010 ranged from zero per cent in Sylvan Lake to 14 per cent in Grande Prairie.

„„The province’s two largest urban centres, Calgary and Edmonton, reported apartment vacancy rates of 5.3 and 5.2 per cent, respectively.

„„The provincial average rent for all apartment unit types was $937 per month in April, down from $962 a year earlier. Wood Buffalo had the highest average rent among all urban centres in Alberta at $1,968 per month, while Medicine Hat had the lowest average rent at $649 monthly.

Apartment vacancy rates increase in Alberta’s rental markets

According to the results of Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s Spring Rental Market Survey, the vacancy rate in privately-initiated rental apartments in Alberta’s centres with a population of 10,000 or more increased to 6.0 per cent in April 2010, up from 4.6 per cent a year
earlier.

The average apartment vacancy rate rose year-over-year in both the Calgary and Edmonton Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) in the latest survey, the third consecutive increase since the April survey was reintroduced in 2007. In the Calgary CMA, the vacancy rate increased by one percentage point to 5.3 per cent this spring. Meanwhile, the Edmonton CMA saw a vacancy rate of 5.2 per cent in April, which is up from 4.7per cent recorded a year earlier. Employment losses in Alberta’s two largest centres, particularly within the primary age group that tend to occupy rental housing, coupled with inter-provincial migration losses have dampened the demand for rental units. In addition, low mortgage rates have provided the incentive for some tenants to move into home
ownership.

For the first time since the reintroduction of the April survey in 2007, lower demand in both Calgary and Edmonton contributed to a decline in average apartment rents. The monthly two-bedroom average rent in the Calgary CMA was $1,082 this spring, a decline of $24 from the same time last year. In the Edmonton CMA, rent for an average two-bedroom suite was recorded at $994 per month, down from $1,059 a year earlier. In addition to various incentives, rental rates have moved lower as landlords and property managers are facing more competition to attract new tenants and retain current ones.

Vacancies increased across all five of the province’s largest Census Agglomerations (CAs). In centres
where the natural gas sector is a key component of the local economy, persistently low gas prices and
moderated drilling activity have resulted in weaker labour market conditions. This has contributed to softening rental demand. The Grande Prairie CA had the highest vacancy rate in Alberta at 14.0 per cent, up from 8.5 per cent a year earlier. The Medicine Hat CA experienced the most change among the five largest CAs, as the vacancy rate across all unit types rose to 10.7 per cent this April, an increase of 6.4 percentage points from last year. As a result of a well-diversified economy, the Lethbridge CA captured the lowest vacancy rate of the five largest CAs at 5.8 per cent, although this is still up from 3.1 per cent in April 2009.

Please click HERE for the complete report.

Canadian
Mortgage Rates

Apply
TODAY!

Loan Programs