A new luxury condo development is headed for Mission.

The XII includes 14-storeys of suites each spanning an entire level, with the exception of two, two-level suites.

"Research led us to what we have today which is essentially 12 single-family homes that happen to be stacked on top of each other and we determined nothing like this existed in Calgary, just elsewhere like Vancouver, New York and other cities of equal stature to Calgary so we decided to provide that part of the opportunity," said Stanley Yasin, managing partner for The XII.

The CREB® Charitable Foundation announced five recipients for the Governor's Grants reception Oct. 17.

"I'm very proud of everything the Charitable Foundation does to support the community on behalf of our members," said Aneve MacKay-Lyons, Charitable Foundation co-ordinator. "To the five recipients that we will be recognizing tonight, you all make tremendous contributions to the community and I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart."

Affordability driving sales growth in Airdrie, Cochrane and Okotoks

Calgary's surrounding communities and their respective residential resale housing markets are continuing their torrid pace in 2014, with 4,449 homes overall exchanging hands for the first nine months of the year, a 26 per cent increase compared with 2013, according to CREB®.

Airdrie, Cochrane and Okotoks all saw double-digit sales growth on a year-over-year basis.

Calgary's commercial sector still going strong

The Calgary Tower's new, much-discussed exterior lighting system may serve as more than an eye-catching attraction. It might also shine new light on the city's burgeoning commercial sector, which, according to new statistics, is leading the country in a number of key categories for 2014.

Commercial leasing activity in the city is among the most active in Canada, with companies having snatched up 1.2 million square feet of space through the first nine months of 2014, according to commercial real estate firm CBRE Limited.

This year marked the 16th annual CREB® Charitable Foundation Building Hope golf tournament, which had a record-breaking year raising more than $50,000.

Funds raised will go towards local organizations such as Inn From the Cold, Brown Bagging for Calgary's Kids and the PREP Program, dedicated to the inclusion of individuals with Down syndrome in home, school and community life.

Calgary Chamber comes out in support of secondary suites

The Calgary Chamber of Commerce has come out in support of secondary suites in the city – a hot-button topic that has dominated city council's agenda over the past several months.

"The Chamber, in particular, is in support of the further legalization of secondary suites because there's a strong business case to do it," said Justin Smith, director of policy, research and government relations.

"Mainly, there's a strong business case in having an affordable rental market in a city to attract new labour. and to also retain talented labour to make sure you have an affordable city overall."

Calgary's secondary suite saga continues, focus turns to ageing in place

It just might be the suite that broke the camel's back.

City council debated rezoning one secondary suite for more than three hours on Oct. 6, leaving many since then to further question the process surrounding the issue.

Several residents from the northwest community of North Haven appeared before council to speak against an application to rezone property to include a secondary suite. Included in those speaking against was Sonya Staveley who lives between Nesbitt and Nolan roads, an area zoned RC-1, not allowing secondary suites. She said it's the process of filing for secondary suites that needs to change.

* Part three of three in Calgary's Growing Up series

Calgary's commercial sector riding high with innovative designs, added amenities

It's tough to keep tabs on Calgary's skyline these days.

With new buildings breaking ground every week in an area already adorned with construction cranes, it's no surprise the city's commercial sector ranks as one of Canada's most active.

With 791,344 square feet of office space leased through the first nine months of 2014, and another 3.8 million of square feet under construction, it's not simply the amount of leasing activity taking place in downtown Calgary, but the stature of those building yet to be constructed.

Royal LePage Benchmark donates more than $13,000 to Children's Cottage Society

For the last five years, the crew at Royal LePage Benchmark have been fundraising for the Children's Cottage Society (CCS), including this year's offering of more than $13,000.

"[CCS] helps the world's most vulnerable population, the children," said Corinne Lyall, owner/broker for Royal LePage Benchmark and president-elect of CREB®. "Our agents really like the idea of supporting families and trying to keep them together and providing counselling in order to make the families a healthier group."

Calgary's condo sectors continue to set the pace for the city's residential resale housing market, which recorded 2,148 sales in September, nearly 12 per cent higher than the same period last year.

"September's sales growth was stronger than expected, due largely to a surge in condominium apartment and townhouse sales," said CREB® chief economist Ann-Marie Lurie, who credits Calgary's strong economy and fewer options in the lower-priced single-family market behind the continued demand.