Living by the water has always been equated with exclusivity.

A special stretch of residential development in Calgary, including communities that took root more than 100 years ago, continues to be a treasure trove for today's high-end homebuyers.

If you follow the stretch of the Elbow River that runs from the Glenmore Reservoir all the way to the downtown core, you'll come face to face with some of Calgary's swankiest addresses. Bel-Aire, Britannia, Elbow Park, Eagle Ridge and Roxboro topped the luxury charts in 2018 when it comes to average home sale price. CREB®Now chatted with Sam Corea, luxury specialist with RE/MAX House of Real Estate, to find out what makes these top luxury communities so desirable.

Five years later, memories of the 2013 flood are still vivid, but Calgary is working hard to make the next one less memorable.

"When I got involved five years ago, I thought the City would be further along than they are now, but we have to appreciate that a ton of work has been done around flood mitigation," said Tony Morris, co-president of the Calgary River Communities Action Group. The grassroots organization advocates for upstream mitigation to protect thousands of homeowners across Calgary.

Waterfront living comes at a premium in the Calgary market

DaVinci Homes CEO Naheed Kazmi utters three magic words when describing the appeal of the 31-unit Riviera on the Bow in Parkdale, one of her company's most recent projects: "Location, location, location."

"Everybody wanted that location," she said, recalling when the company purchased the land in 2008 and how she has received many calls since over the years from would-be buyers.