A rising number of homebuyers in Canada are turning to alternative lenders for a mortgage, says the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC).

Mortgage investment corporations (MICs) held between $13 and $14 billion of outstanding mortgages in Canada in 2018, capturing one per cent of the market share, according to a CMHC report.

The mortgage-approval process can be a time of uncertainty, one that often ends with many bankers suggesting mortgage protection through their creditor insurance. Buyer beware – the product has come under scrutiny by the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) for incentivized sales and consumer risk.

Calgarians have many options when helping an aging parent find suitable housing, but for some people the solution is right where they live.

So-called "mother-in-law" suites provide a separate space for an elderly parent to live with the assistance of family members just a door away.

For Airdrie REALTORS® Matt and Michelle Carre, giving back is second nature.

The couple and their two children ditched Calgary's big-city life for the quiet, laid-back and connected vibe of Airdrie 13 years ago.

A few years later, in 2013, they started the Airdrie Angel Program, a grassroots initiative that assists struggling families and individuals in the community by offering needs-based, streamlined gift baskets filled with cash and gift cards totalling between $1,500 and $2,000.

If your garden party is usually over after the irises, peonies, plums and lilacs fade, add late-blooming flowers to really stretch your summer this season. Making way for late bloomers means the joy of summer continues past your escape to the lake and well into back-to-school season.

Trico Homes recently introduced five new home designs that are garnering interest from a broad spectrum of buyers. The Gems Series, an enclave collection of 80 homes in the established northeast community of Redstone, features innovative architecture and interiors that stand out from the pack.

The way light shines brightly through the carefully placed windows of every size and shape is Homes by Avi CEO Charron Ungar's favourite part of this year's Rotary Stampede Dream Home.

"There is no dark corner anywhere," said Ungar, whose company is in its 24th year of building this Stampede mainstay. "(It) is so fluid – everything has its place."

Drawing a line down Elbow Drive from north to south traces a rough timeline of Calgary community creation. This one road spans nearly 60 years of development – starting with some of Calgary's earliest, inner-city neighbourhoods and ending with several of the
1960s-era suburbs that now make up the city's middle ring. Here are the communities that  fall within the city's Elbow Drive corridor.