How the future of oil and gas in Alberta will affect Calgary's housing market

The plummeting price of oil is unlikely to affect Calgary's housing market in the immediate future, but a prolonged slump could eventually leave its mark on the local landscape, say Canadian economists.

"If the recent slide in oil prices turns down the migration taps, construction activity could begin to soften again in Calgary," said BMO senior economist Robert Kavcic, noting that, in the interim, Calgary's housing market remains red hot.

The Economic Developers Association of Canada (EDAC) conference wraps today in Calgary.

More than 400 economic development officers gathered at the Westin Hotel downtown as well as various other spots in the city learning more about Alberta's energy sector as well as the economic value and opportunity for jurisdictions nationwide.

The conference included study tours on disaster recovery at the Calgary Stampede, community economic development at Village Brewery and economic development at Canada Olympic Park.

The Bank of Canada today announced yesterday it was maintaining its overnight rate at 1 per cent.

"Inflation is close to the two per cent target and is evolving as the Bank anticipated in its July Monetary Policy Report (MPR)," said a release from the Bank. "Recent data reinforce the Bank's view that the earlier pickup in inflation was attributable to the temporary effects of higher energy prices, exchange rate pass-through, and other sector-specific factors rather than to any change in domestic economic fundamentals."

Calgary's million dollar market continues to post positive numbers

Calgary's luxury housing market remained among the top performers in all of Canada through the first half of 2014.

Propelled by a thriving economy, high average incomes and an influx of new Calgarians, sales of homes priced at $1 million or more increased by 18 per cent through the first six months of 2014, according to CREB®'s annual mid-year forecast update.

Mid-year forecast calling for more supply, added choices

Mario DeMarco thought he was prepared for anything after deciding to become a first-time homeowner.

The 25-year-old Calgarian has spent the past two years saving for a down payment, and was recently promoted at work, giving him the financial stability to purchase his own place – ideally a condo in the Beltline.

Alberta's economy is expected to grow by 3.5 per cent this year, nearly triple the national average of 1.2 per cent, according to a recent report from BMO Capital Markets Economics and BMO Commercial Banking's Blue Book.

The continued positive outlook is largely due to the province's energy sector and related industries.

"Oil and gas companies still dominate the scene, but we see significant opportunity for firms that support the industry spinoffs," said Mike Darling, BMO's regional vice-president of commercial banking for southern Alberta. "This particularly applies to the engineering sector, where our clients are experiencing considerable growth."

Office vacancy in Calgary's downtown is up compared to last year.

A report from Colliers said vacancy in the downtown was at 8.13 per cent in the first quarter of this year, an increase over the 4.35 per cent recorded in the first quarter of last year.