MARKET UPDATE FOR CALGARY REAL ESTATE IN SEPTEMBER 2025
Good afternoon to all our clients, both near & far!
We'll begin with the open questions we left off with last month:
1) The Bank of Canada did indeed reduce the fixed rate. Mortgage broker and agent colleagues speak of a multitude of buyers obtaining pre-approvals since the announcement and a slight uptick in new files, respectively. The bank is signaling a slow easing of rates (less aggressive than it was signalling this time last year).
2) The mid-August sales drop-off did continue right through to the end of September - in particular, areas of the market which are exposed to the risk of falling prices have seen a drought of sales - this is the self-fulfilling nature of a buyer's market in the short-term. Think apartment-style condos, areas with a girth of new construction, and, now, luxury homes. In fact, one of the biggest changes in the last few weeks is that the high-end market "confidence level" shifted down from $2.25m to $1.75m. We saw a number of downward adjustments in list prices in our hyper-local markets of the Inner City NW, for example. It's worth noting that detached activity below $1.75m*, particularly in prime areas of the Inner City, remains strong when we look at the bigger picture. Think quick sales, and multiple offers on the best & best-priced products.
*$2m is the true cut-off, but the market slows over $1.75m
On the buyer side, I have personally seen a slight increase in activity (showings/offers/transactions), but not yet an increase in the rate of new clients entering the system. Showings per listing at RE/MAX First (a forward-looking indicator) remain statistically flat. This is something we monitor every week.
Breanna describes her year as "steady". New sellers have come into the system, and by and large, those homes have been sold (and continue to do so) promptly. In our experience, it is in times like these that Breanna's expiry rate is significantly lower than the average seller/agent combination in the marketplace.
Today's Market Summary
Freehold properties (no condo fees) remain effectively in a balanced position, except in new construction areas or parts of the City that experienced exuberance during the post-COVID boom (NE). We remain confident in this housing type.
"True" luxury freehold ($2m+) has flipped to a buyer's market - we are now anticipating falling values in those ranges
Townhomes remain in balance, but this is, of course, subject to location. We remain confident in this housing type.
Apartments, though technically just in a buyer's market, find themselves in a steady buyer's market across all price bands and locations, and we anticipate falling values to continue for the foreseeable future.
Outlying communities in order of strength of buyer's to balanced markets: Chestermere (recently & quickly flipped to buyer's market), Cochrane (same), Airdrie (technically balanced, but buyer's in reality), Okotoks (balanced and likely to stay there).
Thoughts For The Day
a) Timing is right for a move from an apartment into another housing type, particularly if you have held your apartment for some time.
b) It has been some time since we recall our advice for individual clients being so varied across price ranges & property types. Personalized advice matters more now than ever
c) Barring unforeseen circumstances, we're expecting a broadly balanced future for Calgary real estate, except the apartment market & entry-level suburban townhomes.
Do you have thoughts or questions to bounce off us? Please reach out!
Oh Canada... 
Parts of Ontario are seeing falling prices, not just in apartments, followed by parts of BC. Hot markets persist in some lower-priced communities/provinces throughout the country. Read more of what our expert colleagues have to say, in our very own
Insider Market Report...
Click HERE to read the most recent report (including regional AI summaries).
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