In Calgary, and throughout most major Canadian areas, housing is hot! And although housing trends notoriously fluctuate, Calgary construction stats and real estate trending suggests a Calgary multi-family boom.
“The new multi-family homes we’re seeing are the result of supply catching up to the demand that was created by people moving to Calgary from other provinces and other countries over the last couple of years,” explains Alan Tennant, president and CEO of CREB. “The good news for renters is that a lot of the new units have been built to fill the rental shortage in Calgary that we’ve all read about,”
CREB stats show the surge in Calgary’s multi-family sector. He cites that, last year, sales of apartment style units hit a record of 7,881. The previous five-year average was 4,661. Row home sales were 4,647, which wasn’t a record but quite a bit higher than the five-year average of 3,580.
“So far this year, apartment sales are only five per cent higher than the five-year average, and row home sales are about the same as the average.”
Last year, Calgary saw a record-breaking 10,059 new rental units completed, a significant increase compared to previous years, reflecting the rising demand and construction activity in the multi-family market. Although there are various reasons for Calgary’s multi-family boom, there is a consensus that population is a key trigger.
Statistics Canada tracks that although Canada’s population growth actually stalled in the first quarter of this year, Canada now has a population of 41,548,787 people. Alberta continues as the destination of choice for interprovincial migration.
Demographics matter and while Calgary’s overall population is still growing, like many developed cities, Calgary is experiencing an ageing population, which can put pressure on certain services and infrastructure.
There is some caution among builders and analysts that the Calgary is experiencing a decline in the population of young adults aged 20-24, suggesting young people may be leaving Calgary. Even though the numbers show a definite demographic shift, Calgary’s population continues a momentum of growth.
Multi-family construction in Calgary is not only gaining traction due to high housing demand, urbanization and various economic factors. The stats conclusively show that the multi-family market in Calgary is stronger than other Canadian markets.
“The main reasons are strong fundamentals,” says the plugged-in and positive Brayden Logel, president of Logel Homes, winner of the BILD Calgary Large Volume Multi-family Builder of the Year award for five years in a row. “Strong in-migration, market-relative affordability, ongoing economic diversification, great infrastructure with low commute times and stronger economic growth is forecasted compared to any other province, and it’s all at the foot of the Rocky Mountains in a world-class city.”
The blunt bottom line is that multi-family construction is simply good business. It continues to be an attractive and cost-effective way for builders and developers to address the increasing demand for housing, especially in Calgary’s urban areas. There are a significant number of multi-family units in the development pipeline across Calgary, with concentrations in areas like Beltline/East Village, Eau Claire/West Village and the Inner Northwest, and others.
Ash Mahmoud, president of Cairo Development and a leading Calgary area multi-family developer is high energy looking forward but explaining that the past couple of years of Calgary’s multi-family boom were partially a rebound from COVID days, when development shut down as demand for multi-family heavily outweighed supply. “The market could not catch up, especially because most multi-family development projects take a minimum of three years from inception to handover.
“A key factor in the business of Calgary’s multi-family boom is CMHC, which is the only provider of mortgage loan insurance for multi-unit residential properties in Canada. The CMHC program is a big incentive, specifically in Alberta, prompting many developers to build, when the debt to loan ratio is almost 95 per cent of total development cost. CMHC’s MLI Select program provides financing for multi-unit properties that meet affordability, energy efficiency and accessibility commitments, with a minimum five per cent own payment and 50-year mortgage terms for eligible borrowers.”
Alan Tennant points out that multi-family housing is experiencing a significant boom in Calgary, driven by population growth, and the multi-family market has seen a surge in construction and development, including both rental properties and mixed-use developments that cater to diverse needs. “Multifamily housing is popular in Calgary due to a combination of factors including a growing population, the desire for a more urban lifestyle and a need for more affordable housing options, compared to single-family homes, especially for first-time homebuyers and those seeking a lower-maintenance lifestyle.”
He adds that Calgary’s densification strategy and focus on transit-oriented development have also fueled the popularity of multi-family housing.
Calgary developers and builders are increasingly drawn to multi-family projects like townhomes, apartments and condos, because they offer land efficiency, economies of scale and consistent income streams.
There is business consensus that investing in Calgary’s multi-family market offers strong potential with rental yields that are attractive to investors. “For home buyers, multi-family homes are generally more affordable than detached homes. For developers, they can build more units on a given piece of land at a lower cost, although multi-family construction takes a different skill set.”
For the builder and the consumer, as for the real estate market in-general, the business of multi-family is heavily impacted by affordability. “Affordability has become a challenge for both Calgarians and the entire country,” Logel notes. “Many prospective homeowners have had to adjust their budgets and expectations as home prices and interest rates rose. Then, despite last year’s Bank of Canada cuts, buying power became an issue. Those who were planning on purchasing a duplex or laned single-family home had to consider a townhome, and those looking for a townhome had to consider a condo.”
Much of Calgary’s multi-family surge is based on supply, demand and consumer trends. “Most of our sites are in what we call A+ locations, next to grocery stores, shops, restaurants and services. And multi-family offers maintenance-free living.
“Consumers expect lifestyle basics and features in multi-family,” Logel says. “We consider the popular components of single-family homes and put them in our condos and townhomes: kitchens, ensuites, storage and living spaces so homeowners don’t have to compromise.”
He cites successful Logel multi-family successes like Sage Walk, Seton West, Waterside at Mahogany and new projects like Livingston Central and a second Altitude building at Three Sisters Mountain Village in Canmore. “All aspects of our multi-family projects are driven by customer feedback which we constantly monitor and use as a key indicator for innovation.”
For Calgary’s multi-family developers and for builders in general, zoning can often be a speedbump.
Brayden Logel points out that zoning is important as it relates to how the site has to be designed, what components are included. For the builder, density is critical, finding the right balance for parking, the number of homes per acre, how many floors can be built, how high can the building be and other factors.”
Summer 2025 numbers show that Calgary is experiencing a trend where increased multi-family construction, particularly apartments, is leading to a slight decrease in rental prices.
CREB’s Alan Tennant is cautiously optimistic about Calgary’s multi-family situation for the rest of this year and 2026. “There are more new multi-family units coming, but trending also projects fewer people moving to Calgary. Next year, we expect to see builders slow down a bit. Of course, with the uncertainty around tariffs, inflation and the economy in general, that prediction could change a few times before 2026 actually happens.”
