Calgary's housing market showing signs of stability, but the road to a full recovery will take time.

If Calgary's housing market was a hospital patient, it would have been in intensive care for the last year. Today, though, the patient is showing signs of serious recovery.

First quarter data for 2017 from the CREB®, released earlier this month, reveals the market could be entering a period of stability in which supply and demand are essentially balancing out in the detached sector of the market.

"When we talk about recovery, we have to differentiate the marketplace conditions because there are two segments facing different prospects," said Ann-Marie Lurie, chief economist with CREB®.

Detached sales activity boosts February housing market

After the first two months of the year, Calgary's detached sector continues to drive a slow transition in the housing market.

February sales totaled 1,342 units, which is still 19 per cent below long-term averages, but an improvement over the past two years.

As sales kept trending upward, detached inventory levels continued to ease in February. These conditions caused months of supply to fall to 2.4 months, putting less downward pressure on pricing.