Once thought of as one of Canada's youngest cities, Calgary's aging population could have implications on the city's real estate industry.

In 2011, the first wave of Calgary's 268,000 baby boomers – those born between 1945 and 1965 - turned 65.

It is estimated that there are around 100,000 seniors living in Calgary, a number that comprises roughly 10 per cent of the city's entire population. While it has taken a full 70 years for Calgary seniors to climb from five per cent to 10 per cent of the population, estimates suggest it will only take 30 years to climb to almost 20 per cent of the population by 2040.

With reports predicting doom and gloom for much of the Canadian housing market, Calgary continues to chug along, and should continue to be one of the country's top performers in 2013.

According to BMO's first housing panel of the year, the word is Calgary will continue to buck national trends while the rest of Canada will experience a "soft landing" after a decade long boom.

It's a happy New Year for Calgary's real estate market, as the city ended 2012 with sales volume up 15 per cent and benchmark prices up five per cent.

Average sale prices were the highest ever in Calgary at $428,655 for combined single family and condominium, but this figure was skewed by a surge in $1-million plus homes sold in 2012. The benchmark price of $381,408 is lower than the average because tracking is based on comparable properties.

Since launching in 2009, the Attainable Homes Calgary Corporation (AHCC) has received over 6,000 registrations for its attainable home ownership program.

The AHCC home ownership program supports eligible households earning up to $80,000 annually by delivering quality entry-level homes at attainable prices as well as providing gifted down payments.

If you were to choose a theme for real estate in the Calgary area in 2012, perhaps it would be the "year of the pleasant surprise".

Heading into 2012, CREB® predicted an 11 per cent increase in sales, citing the persistent record low interest rates that have greeted Canada homebuyers since 2009 as a key contributor to the increase. Instead, the Calgary area experienced a 23 per cent increase in year-over-year sales in October and is headed for equally positive numbers by the end of the year.

After seeing double digit growth in 2012, CREB®'s housing market forecast for 2013 shows things settling into more balanced territory.

"Overall, we expect sales growth to ease to two per cent next year," said CREB® economist Ann-Marie Lurie at a forecast sneak-a-peek Dec. 11.