Housing starts in the Calgary Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) increased 65 per cent for the month of June 2012 compared to June 2011.

"The gain in new construction was attributed to higher starts for both single-detached and multi-family units," said a Housing Now report from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC).

Report tags Uptown 17th Avenue with highest retail rents in Calgary

Colliers International has dubbed Calgary's Uptown 17th Avenue the city's most expensive street to rent on.

The commercial real estate company took a look at top retail corridors around the world including New York's Fifth Avenue, Hong Kong's Queen's Road Central, London's Old Bond Street and the Champs-Elysées in Paris in a Global Retail Streets survey.

A spurt in Calgary's population growth, plus a strong economy and rising home prices is starting to make its mark on the city's rental vacancy and in turn could mean changes for the housing market.

The average apartment vacancy rate in Alberta's urban centres decreased from 4.7 per cent to three per cent between April 2011 and April 2012, according to the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC).