Valuable land in the city centre provides several avenues for profit generation

Sharon van de Burgt and her family will move into their new, two-storey, 1,800-plus-square-foot, inner-city duplex before Christmas.

They will have new next-door neighbours in 2018 – and earnings to help pay for their home – with the sale of the other 2,000-square-foot unit, now listed at $865,000.

Small-volume builders say they've been largely unaffected by the economy

Alberta's economic downturn is not impacting all areas of the housing industry in the same way, according to small-volume builders who say their niche is, in fact, busier than ever.

"We are pretty much unaffected by the economy," said Brian Cook of Cook Custom Homes, a Calgary-based micro-builder that designs and builds five homes per year. "There is still money in Calgary and those who work in economy-friendly industries are building homes."

Cook noted one of the only differences he's seeing is in buying strategy, especially with spec homes. When the market was hot, buyers would tour a home once and put in an offer.