Inner-city communities offering residents plenty to get excited about

From the historic streets of Inglewood to the shopping district along 17th Avenue, Calgary's inner city represents an eclectic and ever-changing mix of stories, style and substance. After all, these are areas where 100-year-old brick buildings seamlessly interchange with high-rise construction cranes.

Yet for those who live in Calgary`s inner city, it isn't just their surroundings and amenities that make it special. It's the people.

"Sure we have our night markets, Christmas celebrations and kitschy shops, but what makes Ramsay and Inglewood an exceptional place to live are the people," said local resident Natalia Jezierska.

Calgary housing market to see increased stability, signs of change in 2017: CREB®

The worst might be over for Calgary's housing market, according to CREB®, which is forecasting transitional conditions throughout this year on the back of renewed optimism in the oil patch.

The forecast, captured in the real estate organization's 2017 Economic Outlook and Regional Housing Market Forecast report, comes after more than two years of recessionary conditions that have been manifested by sales and price declines in virtually every corner of the local market.

Economic conditions create ideal situation for renters, challenges for landlords

In the most volatile economy in the country, it is no big surprise Calgary landlords endured 2016 with the highest rental housing vacancy rate in a quarter of a century.

"It is a free market economy, with all the ups and downs, and in the middle of (this downturn), you just hope many will survive it," said Gerry Baxter, executive director of the Calgary Residential Rental Association (CRRA) of Calgary's current seven per cent vacancy rate.

New programs could see homeowners coming out ahead

If 2007 was the year of the smartphone, then 2017 might be the year of the smart home.

Before 2007, there were cellphones that connected to the Internet, sure. But that year, Apple CEO Steve Jobs unveiled the iPhone. It was the company's biggest innovation since 1984's launch of the original Macintosh, and its ripple effect on the entire technology sector continues.

Enthusiasts waited in line all night to get an iPhone and for a tremendous number of people, seeing one was wanting one (although the initial high price tag held a lot of us back until the next year).

CREB® president Cliff Stevenson focuses on the positives during challenging year in real estate

Cliff Stevenson could be forgiven for being downbeat. After all, he's led Calgary's real estate industry through one of its most difficult years in decades.

Instead, during a recent interview, the 2016 CREB® president is confident and animated. While he doesn't downplay the current challenges his industry is facing amid slumping oil prices, he doesn't dwell on them either.

"It's been a challenging year and a continuation of a challenging 2015, as the economy has driven the housing market in further decline," Stevenson said.

Current economic challenges harken back to past president's term

The early 1980s in Alberta were a memorable and challenging time for anyone who lived through them.

Characterized by a severe global recession, widespread housing foreclosures, bankruptcies and unemployment, by the time Jim Moore was president of the Calgary Real Estate Board in 1985, market conditions remained difficult but some changes were afoot.

Downtown office commercial market to see higher vacancy rates in 2017

Despite setting a third-quarter record with a reported $11.2 billion in sales, Calgary's commercial real estate sector will likely see vacancy rates continue to soar this year and next, predicts real estate firm CBRE Ltd.

CBRE Calgary-based managing director Greg Kwong said the downtown market will feel it the hardest, with vacancy rates that are expected to close in on 30 per cent.