This spring promises to bring changes to both Calgary's natural and built landscapes, as two new developments from Qualico Communities sprout up in some of the most desirable areas of the city.

Together Ambleton in the northwest and Alpine Park (temporary name) in the southwest will see 6,500 to 7,200 new residents and are at various stages of planning and construction approvals, says Clark Piechotta, Qualico's associate director of development.

It has been quite a ride for some of those affected by the construction of the Southwest Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), so the project's impending completion comes as good news for more than just riders.

How building a garage can dramatically increase your home value

Driving has always been a way of life for Calgarians, and given the ubiquity of cars in in the city, garages are a must for almost every home.

Whether looking to build a home for the first time or renovating an old one, detached or attached garages are the options most builders choose. However, special builds also exist and can even include underground parking or tunnels, at costs upwards of $35,000 for a triple-detached unit.

The luxury custom homebuilding process

Hiring a custom builder to construct your perfect luxury home is a partnership requiring clear decisions and several important choices along the way.

Lupi Luxury Homes builds 18 to 25 homes a year priced between $900,000 and $3 million. Two thirds of these homes are in communities with Lupi land positions (like Rock Lake Estates in Rocky Ridge), the final third are in inner-city neighbourhoods where customers or the company have bought individual lots.

After a tough year for the 'other half' of Calgary's real estate market, the city's apartment/attached segments are expected to see gradual turnaround in 2017

Lower prices and added choices created buyers' conditions in Calgary's attached and apartment sectors in 2016. But a slow recovery is expected in 2017, bringing both sectors into better balance, says CREB®'s 2017 Economic Outlook & Regional Housing Market Forecast.

The degree to which they'll the "other half" will get there will differ, however. While the attached sector is set to post positive overall numbers, apartment sales and prices will be moderated by persistently high inventory levels.

Calgary's industrial market shows signs of turning the corner

While Calgary's downtown office sector and its plunging vacancy rates overshadowed all commercial real estate activity in 2016, the city's industrial market has better weathered the storm and is poised to grow in 2017, say experts.

According to Barclay Street Real Estate, vacancy for the industrial real estate sector finished 2016 at 7.76 per cent. It had peaked at 7.8 per cent in the third quarter of the year. In 2015, it was 6.57 per cent.

"Absorption was a negative 127,373 square feet for Q3. This was the only quarter of negative absorption we have had since the '90s," said Jon Mook, executive vice-president of Barclay Street Real Estate's industrial division.

Homebuilders hope recommendations to lower duties will lead to lower cost for industry, consumers

Recent recommendations by a federal trade tribunal have the homebuilding industry hopeful that high duties on U.S. drywall imports will soon come to an end.

The Canadian International Trade Tribunal issued its Statement of Reasons Jan. 19 outlining why it found drywall duties on U.S. imports are negatively impacting Western Canada's housing industry. Yet it also found U.S. manufacturers were indeed dumping drywall into the Canadian market, an unfair advantage over domestic manufacturers.

CREB® chief economist Ann-Marie Lurie has seen a bit of everything in 2016. From buyers' conditions to migrational changes, Calgary's housing market has taken industry observers like herself on a wild ride over the past 12 months.

CREB®Now recently had the chance to sit down with Lurie and reflect on 2016. Here's what she had to say:

CREB®Now: Did 2016 play out the way you expected?

Commercial development in Airdrie steady despite downturn

Paul Gerla has long had a vision to develop a vibrant neighbourhood shopping destination in Airdrie's flourishing southwest quadrant.

And he wasn't about to let a downturn in the provincial economy distract him.

"When we evaluate a project like this, we think in terms of decades, not necessarily what's happening today," said Gerla, general manager of WestMark Holding Ltd., which is behind a new five-hectare Cooper's Town Promenade commercial district in the upscale Cooper's Crossing community.