Community Profile: Varsity

Varsity is an established community with a lot to offer, which explains why nobody wants to leave.

Residents of this northwest neighbourhood generally stay put until the kids leave the nest and it's time to downsize.

"There is very little turnover here," said Gord McArthur, a REALTOR® with RE/MAX Real Estate Mountain View. "Most people stay in their homes for 40 years, if not more. It's the type of community where no one wants to leave – you see claw marks in the driveway when people have to go."

He knows firsthand the joys of living in this sought-after and coveted neighbourhood. A few decades ago, he built a home for his family in upscale Varsity Estates.

Although his children are now grown and he has since downsized, McArthur still feels a strong connection to the community and all it has to offer.

"It's really the Mount Royal or Britannia north of 16th Avenue. It has all of the amenities, from the LRT to the golf course, so of course, despite the economy, Varsity is really holding its value," he said.

"The area really has a lot of strength. It's got schools, the university, it's within walking distance of Market Mall, and it's loaded with parks and green space."

"It's really the Mount Royal or Britannia north of 16th Avenue. It has all of the amenities, from the LRT to the golf course, so of course, despite the economy, Varsity is really holding its value." - Gord McArthur, RE/MAX Real Estate Mountain View

Homes in Varsity are currently selling for more than 96 per cent of their listing price, which McArthur says is significant. Prices in the community range from the low $500,000s all the way up to well over $1 million. However, McArthur says the statistics can be deceiving.

"The community of Varsity is really three separate areas all developed in different decades," he said. "Each area has a different average price and a different personality."

Developed in the 1960s, Varsity Acres is dominated by three-bedroom bungalows with attached two-car garages, laid out in a grid pattern with rear lanes.

Carma Developers LP (now Brookfield Residential) stepped onto the scene in the late '60s and early '70s with an avant-garde development plan for what is now known as Varsity Village. The plan ditched the rear lane and grid pattern, replacing it with pedestrian pathways and cul-de-sacs. Homes in this community reflect traditional styling – two-storey, four- or five-bedroom, centre-hall-plan models – and many hover around the $900,000 mark.

In the '80s, Varsity Estates came online, bringing in open-concept, two-storey homes with modern amenities. "These homes generally sit around the $1-million mark as an average price," said McArthur.

Statistics
Quadrant: N.W.
Established: 1963
Population: 12,874
Dwellings: 5,888
Median pre-tax household income: $85,500
Number of residential sales (YTD): 264
Residential average price (YTD): $513,741
Residential benchmark price (YTD): $475,567
SOURCE: 201 Calgary Civic Census, 2016 Census of Canada & CREB®