Market sees modest inventory gains, but overall prices inch up 

Sales exhibited stable growth through the first half of the year in the Calgary housing market, but the number of transactions slowed slightly in July compared to last year.

Citywide sales totaled 1,637 units, six per cent below July 2016 levels. Year-to-date sales activity totaled 11,957 units, nine per cent above last year.

"Sales growth exceeded expectations so far this year. Clients were re-entering the market after delaying decisions until there were some signs of economic improvement," said CREB® president David P. Brown.

Making the right decisions during this crucial part of buying a house can set you up for long-term financial success

For anyone buying real estate, arranging a mortgage is a sure sign that you're about to make your dream home a reality.

But with the all the options that are available, how do you find the mortgage that's right for you?

Greg Miller, a mortgage professional with SmartCap Inc. in Calgary, says step one for him is "finding out what are the client's short-term needs and long-term needs, their goals, and what does their budget allow for in terms of a payment?

"After that you can tweak a mortgage to cater it to them."

Major renovations and minor modifications to make any home more accessible and livable for seniors

As Canada's population continues to skew older, more and more seniors want to remain in their homes rather than move into a retirement residence or long-term care facility. This preference for "aging in place" has increased the popularity of several home renovations and modifications that make the home more accessible, and easier to navigate, for older individuals. Here are some of the top aging-in-place renovations.

Calgary is coming together to win the war on homelessness, one home at a time

What a difference a year can make. The City of Calgary launched its affordable housing strategy in July 2016, aiming for a more unified approach to building more housing for low-income individuals and families. Since then, a lot has happened, according to groups that provide housing for low-income Calgarians.

"What we've seen in the first year is a tremendous drive toward increased collaboration and recognition that none of us can go it alone," said Kim O'Brien, CEO of Horizon Housing Society.

The importance of working together in a more co-ordinated fashion cannot be understated because the challenge of providing affordable housing in Calgary is daunting. It's a problem the City, as well as other Canadian municipalities, have been struggling to address for several years – despite the best of intentions.

Putting together your first down payment is all about planning and prioritizing

With changes to mortgage regulations and the Bank of Canada's qualifying rates, buying a first home might be tougher than expected, especially for those already carrying a large amount of debt. Currently, the total cost of a mortgage payment, property tax and utilities must be less than 40 per cent of a borrower's gross income.

"The debt ratio makes a big difference to your purchasing power when buying a home," said Calgary mortgage broker Monika Hägele. "Some people might work really hard, save up five per cent towards their desired home, and then that amount might not even be enough if they are carrying too much debt."

Former King Edward School is reborn as hub for the Calgary arts community

Once a sandstone monolith surrounded by bald prairie, King Edward School has seen countless generations of students pass through its hallways. Its slate staircases bear faint grooves from more than a century of feet, including the hard-soled boots of soldiers that once used its basement for rifle-range training.

Now, 105 years later, the inner-city community of South Calgary surrounds the school, which is undergoing a massive $33.5-million transformation into an arts incubator and artistic venue called cSPACE King Edward.

The school closed in 2001, and was eventually acquired by cSPACE, a social enterprise real estate company that provides rental space, property management and community development. Capital funding for the project has come from the City, province, Calgary Foundation and other organizations.

Will a home makeover make you money?

There are many motivations for renovating a home: expanding the space, upgrading the look or even making the neighbours jealous. While they're all valid, the hope to enrich a house's value along with its appearance is one reason that's often cited. And though there's nothing wrong with that on the surface, it's important to dig deeper to see if a higher home value is really in the cards before taking the renovation plunge.

"It really depends on the type and purpose of the renovation," said Greg Macdonald, president and founder of Sage Appraisals in Calgary and a 23-year veteran of the appraisal business.

"I stress to people that the cost of improvements won't always equal the increase in market value. Developing your basement might give you a 50- to 75-per-cent return and the payoff for landscaping is minimal. With certain unique items, like pools, your return will be next to nothing."

What any homeowner should ask before hiring a contractor

It doesn't take much asking around to find people with horror stories about renovations gone wrong, and many of those stories stem from negative experiences with contractors. Finding the right contractor(s) for your specific needs and budget is a crucial part of making your renovation dream into a reality, so it pays to do your homework.

The following is a list of questions from the Canadian Home Builders' Association (CHBA) to ask any contractor before you hire them:

Smart alarms provide connectivity and peace of mind 

A smart home needs to be a connected home, but the fact that a home is connected doesn't necessarily make it smart. When it comes to safety, though, there really is a new level of intelligent connectedness available in today's generation of smart smoke alarms.

At their most basic, and cheapest, they can alert you remotely via a mobile app when an alarm is activated. In fact, a device like the Roost Smart Battery can smarten up any standard, functioning smoke detector – as long as it's battery-powered or has a battery backup – for about $60. This deceptively simple device is a lithium nine-volt battery with a Wi-Fi chip and a microphone that "hears" your alarm.

Not only will you get an alert when the alarm is activated, you'll also get one when the battery needs replacing. No more annoying low-battery chirps, and yes, you can just swap in any standard 9-volt cell when it's time.