Western Real Estate Luxurious, green and high-density developments are defining Canada’s West
WESTERN REAL ESTATE
Residential real estate in Western Canada has never been hotter.
Houses are being sold at a record pace and for record prices, new communities are sprouting up and selling out, and the quality of the product on the market has never been better.
Although Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia are all very distinct provinces, they are all booming and their residential markets are experiencing some important and similar major trends.
The first of these is an increase in the density of residential developments, even in suburban communities.
“We’ve seen a huge increase in condominium development, both apartment and townhouse style, and residential single-family development is going to smaller and smaller lot sizes,” says Steve Kurrein, vice president of Land Development with Progressive Construction Ltd. – a Vancouver-based land development company.
With density increasing, multi-family development is on the rise across Western Canada.
David Allen, vice president of Calgary Land for Carma Developers LP – builder of the popular MacKenzie Towne community – says, “The trend in new community design is moving towards mixed-use. We like to have a variety of housing forms to appeal to a wide range of the market so that somebody can buy their first and last house in the same community.”
In Saskatchewan, Trevor Bell, land bank manager with the City of Saskatoon’s Land Branch – which develops 40 per cent to 60 per cent of the residential market share, depending on the year – says the percentage of multi-family development over single-family is increasing. “Multi-family now makes up 40 per cent to 50 per cent of the total number of units in our suburban communities.”
He says density has increased from four units per acre to eight or eight-and-a-half units per acre.
Densities in Calgary are even tighter. “The seven units to the acre of five years ago is now more like 10 to 11 units to the acre, mostly due to the increased influence of more multi-family in the new communities,” says Mr. Allen. Inner-city density is also on the rise.
Sam Boguslavsky, president of Calgary-based Sable Developments Inc., says as inner-city land becomes scarce, costs alone are driving up density. “The cost per square foot to build has doubled in the last five years, so multi-family is the only affordable inner-city option, short of renting.”
He says while buyers can get into the downtown condo market for $350,000, they certainly couldn’t get a house with as convenient a location for that price point.
Vancouver has seen innercity densities increase as well. “A one-bedroom suite in the good old days was 650 square feet,” says Mr. Kurrein.
“Today, people are putting one-bedroom suites into 500 square feet.”
While density is driven up by increasing costs, lower land availability and the desire for a convenient lifestyle, it is also being driven by sustainable building initiatives.
“Sustainability is gaining momentum in Saskatoon, and our neighbourhoods are being designed with that in mind,” says Mr. Bell.
But the trend towards green building is more aptly called an emerging trend, according to the experts. “We’re just on the edge of moving into green building in the residential market,” says Mr. Bell. “Until now, that has been more common in the institutional and office market.”
While Mr. Kurrein says most developers are being dragged kicking and screaming into the green era because consumers are not prepared to pay the extra to go green, he does say that builders are paying more attention to sustainability.
“In single-family, we are seeing some builders using lower emission materials, midefficiency furnaces rather than the cheapest of the cheap,” he says. “Other than that, most other green initiatives are mandated through the city or municipality.”
According to Mr. Allen, green building is definitely reaching the community design phase of residential development, due to both consumer interest and emphasis from approval regulations. “Green community design is the next big trend,” he says.
“As approval agencies and consumers ask for more initiatives around sustainability, we are working to find out how those initiatives are best incorporated.
Some of those things developers can’t offer, like public transit, so it becomes more of an integrated approach.”
One final trend running deep through Western Canada’s real estate market is luxury.
“The consumer is getting used to high-end finishes and seems to be willing to pay for that. It is now almost typical to see granite countertops and high-end cabinets and flooring,” says Mr. Boguslavsky.
Luxury items are becoming so common, according to Mr. Allen, they are almost considered mainstream. “Everything from home automation, steam showers, jetted tubs and kitchens that are real showpieces are much more common now than three to five years ago.”
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