No new downtown office towers for at least five years, say experts

Despite the number of construction projects currently on the go, it is unlikely Calgary's downtown office market will see any new towers for quite some time.

Todd Throndson, managing director and principal for Avison Young in Calgary, says the millions of square feet of recently created new space, three new towers coming on line and a soaring vacancy rate will sideline any plans for more towers.

He says it will take several years – at least five – before the existing vacancy will be absorbed and a landlord will be prepared to take on the risk of constructing a new tower. Today, Calgary's vacancy rate is about 25 per cent.

Interior design experts set to hit the Home + Garden stage in March

Tiffany Pratt loves colour.

An interior designer, stylist and host of HGTV Canada's Home to Win and Buy It, Fix It, Sell It, she's also a self-proclaimed "rainbow hunter" and "rainbow thrower." Even her vibrantly hued hair, which takes inspiration from the rainbow, attests to her passion for palettes.

It's no surprise, then, that colour will take centre stage when Pratt makes her debut at this year's Calgary Home + Garden Show.

Front verandas bring the elegance of the southern lifestyle to Calgary

Hughues Lefebvre and Rachel Malone enjoy the easy grace and relaxed living that southern architecture inspires.

Rachel grew up in Alabama, sipping lemonade in a rocking chair on the veranda of her family's southern home.

"That's my thing and it's hard to find here in Calgary," said Malone.

How to freshen up houseplants in the shower

Do you have a layer of dust on your indoor plants from the pre-Obama era?

As the sun shines on my plants, I can see it's been too long. If I can write my name on the leaves in dust, I know it's time to send my greenery to the shower.

Light levels are so low in February in Calgary that any extra interference, like dust, slows houseplants down and blocks the already limited light. If leaf tips are browning or whole leaves yellowing, the plant is probably cutting its losses by getting rid of the lazy leaves that are too shaded to give back.

In nature, regular rains wash leaves clean, but in your apartment or house, plants need a helping hand.

Suburban condos appeal to those looking for good value

After renting a condo in Marda Loop for the past ten years, Kerri-Lyn Ouellette is moving: She's buying a condo in the suburbs. Her choice? Hopewell Residential's Sandgate development in Mahogany.

"Marda Loop isn't affordable for a single woman with a middle income. Condos in the suburbs, however, are affordable," said Ouellette, adding that Sandgate condos start in the $190s range.

Ouellette says market conditions played a primary role in her decision to buy now.

Market conditions and low dollar could entice foreign buyers to Calgary

While those in the real-estate industry agree that Calgary is not yet a top destination for international buyers, others feel optimistic that foreign buyers will want to call Calgary home.

"There is a steadily growing minority who are very interested in Calgary," said Charles Pittar, CEO of Juwai, China's largest international-property website.

"Because Calgary is a relatively small city, even if it wins just a tiny share of the buyers that have been going to other parts of North America, it would reap huge benefits."

The emphasis is on the "if."

With new home starts down, inventories are stabilizing

New home construction in the Calgary region continues to be negatively affected by a struggling economy that has slowed down the pace of activity in the past two years – and more of the same is expected this year.

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp's Richard Cho, principal market analyst for Calgary, says the pace of activity was starting to stabilize in the single-detached market as 2016 progressed.

''But on the multi-family side we saw inventory levels steadily rising throughout the year and they're pretty elevated levels for Calgary and they've had an impact on the number of new projects breaking ground last year,'' said Cho.

Beyond beautification, trees provide a bevy of benefits for urban dwellers

Even before the turn of the century, early civic leaders envisioned Calgary as an urban oasis, with broad tree-lined streets connecting numerous parks. In 1894, the City of Calgary started planting trees along major boulevards in the city, beginning the effort to create an urban forest that continues today.

But aside from beautification, what's the point of an urban forest?

Rocky View's proposed gravel pit policy has local homeowners crying foul

Gravel hardly seems like a subject to stir controversy, but a proposed policy plan for gravel pits in Rocky View County has done just that.

Since the draft of Rocky View County's Aggregate Resource Plan was announced last year, it has raised the ire of residents in areas close to existing and possible future gravel operations.

Local company eyes future shipping container developments in Calgary

They travel across the ocean from Asia all the way to Canada and, until recently, these steel shipping containers were considered surplus.

If a local company gets its way, however, these re-purposed shipping containers could provide part of the solution to affordable and special needs housing demands in Calgary.

"We are currently looking at a couple of different projects in Calgary," said Rhys Kane, director of business development for Ladacor Advanced Modular Systems. "They would be multi-family apartments and seniors' independent-living projects of six- to eight-storeys."