OSFI (Regulator of Banking in Canada) has tightened how banks qualify mortgages for rental and investment properties. These are lender-facing rules, but they directly change what investors must bring to the table when buying or refinancing rental units. Below is a summary of the changes, how they’ll affect small investors and sellers in Calgary, and practical next steps.

What Changed?

• No double-counting rental income: Lenders can’t use the same rental income stream to qualify a borrower across multiple mortgages – each property must independently support its financing

• Stricter classification for income-dependent loans: If mortgage repayment relies heavily on rental revenue, loans are classified as “income‑producing residential real estate,” triggering tougher underwriting standards

• Short-term rental expense limits: CRA rules now restrict expense deductions (including mortgage interest) for short‑term rentals that aren’t licensed or permitted locally — reducing allowable deductions and impacting cash flow

Impact on Small Investors

• Lower qualifying power: Expect lenders to count less rental income toward qualifying ratios; multi-property investors will see borrowing capacity shrink

• Higher down‑payment and rate risk: Some lenders will tighten LTVs or add investor overlays; investment mortgages may carry higher rates and stricter terms

• Less leverage for portfolio growth: Deals that worked under previous rules may no longer cashflow after conservative underwriting and higher financing costs

• Greater documentation requirements: Lenders will demand solid lease records, tax filings, rent rolls and proof of local licensing for short‑term rentals

Impact on Sellers of Rental Properties

• Smaller buyer pool: With stricter qualifying, fewer investors will qualify — expect longer marketing times for pure investment listings

• Pricing sensitivity: Cap rates and buyer yield expectations will adjust; some buyers will seek lower prices or seller financing to bridge gaps

• Marketing must be lender-friendly: Present thorough income documentation, low vacancy history, and recent expense records to reassure buyers and their lenders

• Opportunity for owner-occupiers: Reduced investor demand can create buying opportunities for owner-occupiers or well‑capitalized investors

Practical steps for YOU (Calgary Investors and Sellers)

• Talk to a mortgage broker now: Get lender‑specific guidance on investor overlays, qualifying runs and down‑payment needs before making offers

• Clean and compile your paperwork: Lease agreements, T‑series/rental income on tax returns, rent rolls, tenant payment histories and local licensing for short‑term rentals

• Re-run your deal math conservatively: Use lower rent assumptions, higher qualifying rates and increased financing costs to stress‑test cash flow (I always sensitize my most conservative scenario, and an “OK” economic scenario to understand the downside risk – never make an investment decision only based on the “BEST” case scenario)

• Consider alternative strategies: Larger down payments, partner equity, private lending, or seller financing can bridge financing gaps — evaluate costs and exit plans; understand your EXIT! You wouldn’t enter into a legally binding agreement without understanding if there are any HOOKS and same with investments (whether is a sale, refinancing, flip, etc.) know your options

• Update marketing for sellers: Put verified income documentation in the data package and highlight low vacancy, recent capital improvements and professional property management (work with a professional that understands these market changes)

Bottom Line: These rule changes reduce leverage and increase lender scrutiny for rental-property financing.

For Calgary investors, the practical result is tighter qualifying, potentially higher costs, and a need for cleaner documentation and more equity.

For sellers, expect a smaller pool of investor buyers and a need to present income confidently. Work with a mortgage broker and a local agent familiar with investor financing to preserve deal viability and adapt your strategy.

Reach out if you want me to run the numbers on a property to show you how these rule changes affect your cash flow position!

Wishing everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving Weekend!

Hope you enjoy some amazing meals and more importantly, spending time with loved ones.

Thank you for all your support as my clients, friends and family.

I couldn't do the work that I do without your help and encouragement, feeling very blessed and happy!

Some shots from this weekend (for some shot ideas, check out this blog post), have a great short week ahead!

Fall is HERE! Nothing better than to watch the leaves turn colour, sipping on a pumpkin spice latter, am I right??

For us who live here, sometimes we take for granted how beautiful our city can be. Check out some of the most photographed spots in town for your own exploration to get to know Calgary a little better…

Calgary Tower (101 9 Avenue SW)

The Calgary Tower can be seen rising from the city’s heart and can be captured as part of the Calgary skyline from vantage points like Scotsman’s Hill and Crescent Heights. For an alternative perspective, head to the 191-metre-high observation deck for a 360-degree view of Calgary.

Simmons Building (618 Confluence Way)

Over 100-years-old, this former mattress factory is a dream location for anyone with a creative eye. Original elements including the faded signage, brick walls and solid pine features make for some truly stunning pics. Fuel up after your photoshoot at the Simmons Building with food and drink from Phil & Sebastian, Charbar and Sidewalk Citizen Bakery

Peace Bridge (Bow River Pathway NW)

See musicians and buskers perform, couples proposing and people snapping pics of this striking piece of architecture from a range of unique perspectives. Peace Bridge has become an iconic landmark in Calgary's skyline.

Studio Bell (National Music Centre)

Inspired by the design of musical instruments, Studio Bell, home of the National Music Centre, is the state-of-the-art home to music in Canada. Use your lens to capture various angles of the exterior or venture inside to experience the light and shapes created by the different surfaces and design elements.

Bloom Sculpture (St. Patrick's Island)

Since it’s 2015 installation on St. Patrick’s Island, Michel de Broin’s Bloom sculpture has become a popular landmark for park-goers and photographers alike. Check out the sculpture against the early evening sky for a stunning photo opportunity.

Wonderland Sculpture (110 6 Ave SE)

In 2013, Calgary joined the ranks of London, New York City and Dubai as a proud owner of one of Spanish artist Jaume Plensa’s fantastic urban sculptures. The Wonderland sculpture sits below the Bow Tower so you capture both in one great photograph.

Scotsman's Hill (2022 Salisbury Street SE)

Offering panoramic views of the city, Scotsman’s Hill is also a popular spot to catch glimpses of the Rocky Mountains and is a well-known vantage point to catch the Calgary Stampede fireworks.

Crescent Heights Hill (240 Crescent Road NW)

Located in Northwest Calgary, the neighbourhood of Crescent Heights offers one of the best vantage points for Calgary skyline photos.

If you're so inclined, some wonderful places beyond the city (post coming)

Lake Louise

With its iconic turquoise water, Lake Louise is a photographer’s dream location. Take a snap from the shore, paddle out in a canoe and go hiking to see it from every angle. In the cooler months, see it transform into a winter wonderland complete with festive ice sculptures and skating.

Moraine Lake

Chances are you’ll recognize Moraine Lake as one of the most photographed locations in all of Canada. Known as the “twenty dollar view”, the photogenic lake features on two of Canada’s previous twenty-dollar bill designs.

he weather seems to have turned just as quick as the real estate market here in Calgary.

A well-maintained home brings peace of mind and protects your investment, especially as we move into the fall. A few tips below to keep your property safe, efficient, and comfortable this season:

Heating & Indoor Systems

• Schedule furnace servicing (avoid any pitfalls come winter - furnace emergency call-outs in the winter are not cheap!)

• Clean or replace air filters monthly

• Inspect humidifiers

• Vacuum electric baseboards

• Test smoke and carbon monoxide detectors

• Inspect attic insulation for gaps or pests

Plumbing & Water

• Top off water softener salts

• Check sump pumps

• Drain outdoor hoses

• Shut off and drain exterior hose bibs (you'll want to do this before the first frost)

• Inspect your water heater for leaks

Windows, Doors & Weatherproofing

• Swap screens for storm windows

• Clean window glass (inside and out)

• Reseal caulking

• Ensure weather stripping is intact (or replace old weather stripping)

• These small steps help keep the cold out and energy bills down

Roof & Exterior

• Clear gutters to avoid ice damming

• Inspect shingles and flashing to avoid water intrusion into the home

• Cover the AC unit (depending on your AC unit type - some do not require covers)

• Check your foundation for cracks and seal gaps in walkways

Yard & Outdoor Prep

• Rake leaves

• Fertilize and aerate your lawn

• Trim bushes

• Store outdoor furniture

• Cover / protect new planted trees with burlap if required

• Check grading and ensure slope is away from foundation of home

Safety & Prep

Service your snowblower

Stock up on de-icing supplies

Update your emergency kit

Clean dryer vents and check garage door safety

Attention to these details not only protects your investment but ensures a cozy, worry-free winter for your family. If you're looking for service provides, we work with a variety so please reach out if you have any questions. 

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Last week, our offices had Anne-Marie, Chief Economist at the Calgary Real Estate Board give her updated views since their latest forecast in the Spring, how things have evolved over the summer and what's potentially in store for the rest of the year. Some interesting takeaways I wanted to share. 

What Has Happened this Year?

Sales Down (Remains Above LT Trends)

We've seen sales slow down, this year in comparison to the previous years with record high activity, across all segments of the housing market. 

Detached Homes: -17% drop in sales activity

Semi-Detached: -16% drop in sales activity

Row Homes: -22% drop in sales activity

Apartments: -34% drop in sales activity

In basic form, a drop in sales is due to a reduction in buyer and sellers meeting to achieve a sale. Slower demand (which we will discuss further below) and an increase in supply (higher supply) has widened this gap, relative to prior years. The silver-lining here is that, despite the slowdown, trends still remains above long-term trends for Calgary. I would see this as a slight market pullback from furious activity in prior years, which is healthy for an evolving market.

One of the largest drivers of a drop in demand has been the ease in population growth. 

International Immigration: 50% decline in 2025 compared to 2024

Interprovincial Immigration: 28% decline in 2025 compared to 2024

In Calgary, we're expecting a +3.1% population growth rate (compared to a +6% growth in 2024). Calgary still continues to attract families and individuals, which is why we're still seeing a positive growth rate, albeit, a bit slower. 

Rental Market Shift

As a result of the slower migration, we've seen a material shift in the rental market, further complicated by purpose-built rentals.

Currently in Calgary, we've seen an enormous mountain of rental inventory come online over the last few quarters, ultimately impacting the net rental prices achieved (estimated vacancy rate is about ~9%). These figures also don't capture the 'shadow market' which are privately owned and operated landlord operations, only the big institutional figures that are publicly available dataset.

New Home Supply Continues to Grow

Resale market continues to compete with a the growing new home inventory. A lot of the new supply has been in the apartment sector, and most of which also represent purpose-built rental units.

Sales to New Listing Ratio (Resale Market)

We've seen a bloating of resale inventories over the last few months as I'm sure everyone has noticed, a lot more selection for buyers these days. 

In July, we've seen a 48% increase in inventories (YoY), reaching now above the 10-year average inventory figure of 5,866.

In August, we've seen ~57% sales to new-listings, which means for every 1 sale, there are about 2 new listings that come up. Our 10-year average rate has been ~64% absorption. While this is down from the 62% seen last August, we're still above 50% which remains healthy. Area of concern is when we start seeing sub-50% ratios.

Calgary Remains TOP for Affordability

Compared to the national housing averages and in context with median household income of key metropolitan areas, Calgary remains the top destination for affordability (leading to continuing population growth). Sure our sales rate has slowed, but our population rate continues to grow and is backed by a strong Alberta economy (more below). 

Alberta LEADS National GDP

It's no question - the Canadian economy is cooked. Regulation, tax systems, foreign investment appetite and growing public sector have all been detrimental to the growth and attractiveness of our economy, unfortunately. Coupled with lower immigration overall, and uncertainty of tariff impact on steel, aluminium, and auto - this is not good for Canadians. Despite this, the Alberta economy is slated to ring in the strongest growth amongst all provinces, signalling this is where people want to be for employment / investment opportunities. 

Changes in interest rates will be what the market will be keeping an eye on for future financial incentive of cheaper debt. With key inflation figures well within range for the BoC, we could see fewer rate cuts, and this time largely driven to incentivize growth.

Calgary's employment figures have also been strong, albeit slower than previous years. Important to note here the mix of job-types - with professional, scientific and technical jobs leading to the top gains. This, hopefully underscores the quality of demographics our city setting us up for strong durable growth in the future.

I know, it's a lot to distill - but in summary: we've seen a pullback in demand and material supply increases, following HUGE advances in sales and price growth. These levels are not of concern. The Alberta economy is primed to lead the country in growth, with Calgary's job market leading quality advances. Fundamentally remains a healthy market (while the rest of the country is seeing detrimental activity in real estate). 

For my buyer clients: this slowdown in activity has been long-awaited. There's no saying when the window of opportunity and vast selection of properties will close; most importantly, making a move could set you up for a lifestyle, financing terms, and home selection we've been waiting for - act, prepare now.

For my seller clients: it may be discouraging seeing some of these figures, but that means you need a strong team at your back. Price strategy is KEY. Marketing is more important than ever, and professional advice is imperative. Get ahead of the market to achieve your goals, and we are here to help.

Still some warm weather for the rest of the week, wrapping up the summer in 2025 (enjoy it out there)!

August pegged a critical month of real estate activity following a few years of quite the heated real estate market in Calgary (this August saw the highest inventory jump since 2019). The unadjusted residential benchmark price was $577,200, down month over month, and down ~4% compared to last year. 

The bulk of the impact is from townhome and apartments, with a staggering increase in supply hitting the market. Stability with some modest growth in detached and semi-detached housing, but areas / neighbourhoods matter, with communities with the largest supply growth (via new builds) seeing the bulk of the impact. 

More inventory + lower sales, led August to see ~3.4 months of supply. 

In recent news, Canadian GDP slowed sharply in Q2, coming in weaker at -1.6% (annualized), following a 2% gain in Q1 2025. Still in line with the BoC estimates, but the weakness was largely concentrated in heavy trade-exposed sectors. Banks are expecting GDP growth to slow further (still positive) for the remainder of 2025, but this will largely impact the BoC's upcoming rate decision on September 17th. (more from RBC)

Potential expectations of rate cuts could provide some incentive for buyers in real estate, but will unlikely be as strong as prior years with slowing international immigration and growing housing supply from new home builders and purpose-built rentals.

Looking for something to do this weekend while the weather is still good? Check out the list of events going on this weekend!

Housing supply continues to increase in the city of Calgary, with nearly 7,000 units for sale in July across detached, semi-detached, townhomes and apartments. Inventories haven't been this high since before the pandemic, and are now higher than long-term trends. This is nuanced however, with the largest gains of inventory acutely impacting new communities. 

The added supply has weighed on home prices in the city with the benchmark residential price trending downwards over the last couple months (now ~4% below last year's peak) across all property types.

That said, price declines are not impacting all property types across all locations in the city. Even where there have been recent price declines, this hasn't erased gains made over the last several years, effectively setting a 'new floor' for home prices in Calgary. 

As I've mentioned previously, a healthy market will see fluctuations in supply and demand, and a pullback in pricing is positive for sustainable growth over long periods of time. 

Key persistent issues dampening demand are:

• Continued tariff uncertainty (clouding business decisions, and ultimately employment growth)

• Stubborn lending rates (BoC holding policy rates flat)

• Competition from the new home market

Tracking listings and sales over the last 10 years, we're seeing now inventories ~25% above the 5-year average and sales ~10% below the 5-year average. 

If you're looking to move, there's no time like the present to start the buying process. Especially if you're looking for a condo or townhome, as a buyer you have much more to select from to find the perfect home. Detached / semi-detached, a little more nuanced depending on the location but more options out there as well. 

If you're looking to sell, give us a call to chat. There's always a strategy no matter the market, but the key here is there are market tops and market troughs that will dictate the strategy and reasonable expectations to set during times of uncertainty. 

Between the two cities, you probably can't tell given the amount of rain we've had lately – Calgary recorded it's 5th wettest July in recorded history, with 139.6mm of rain as of Sunday evening, more than double the precipitation for July. 

The rainiest July in Calgary was recoded in 1927, with 245.4mm. Sunday's weather also broke summer temperature records, having the coldest daytime high for July (16.1 degrees), since 1931...

But fret not, we're seeing some sun on the way later this week with some actual summer weather (hopefully). 

That said, there are a few things I wanted to bring to your attention as current or potential home owners as it related to water management.

1. Eavestroughs: remember to have your eaves cleaned out at least twice a year (early spring / fall) to manage the amount of debris caught in the eaves and to prevent overflow (having overflow leads to bigger problems, more below)

- Inspect for leaks / overpour, and fix as soon as practically possible to prevent further deterioration

2.Gutters / Downspouts: Have gutters pointed away from your foundation at least 6-8 feet away; this prevents water from re-entering the soil beneath the foundation which could lead to increase hydrostatic pressure (side wall pressure against foundation), and possible water intrusion

- Inspect for leaks / overpour, and fix as soon as practically possible to prevent further deterioration

3. Grading: Imperative to have proper grading to allow water to rest away from the foundation of the home. Especially important in our city where we get a ton of freeze-thaw activity, this prevents ice from further damaging the foundation walls which can lead to water intrusion as well

- Ensure to keep an eye on pooling water around the foundation, you'll want to resolve this as soon as possible (big red flag)

- Use soil / gravel to grade away from the home so your lot will shed water

4. Rain Barrels: As much as "save for a rainy day" sounds old school as it is practical, it not only applies to finances, real estate but also actual rain water. We've had a ton of rain lately, so why not conserve your own bills and use it, it's free! Not to mention, better than tap water for your plants.

5. Sump Pump: For those who don't know what a sump pump is, this is a cistern cut into your foundation with an installed pump to pull out an excess water in the basement. This is key, and city code for most new-built infills today. It prevents water from accumulating in the basement, and expels it outside. Make sure you have a backflow value on the pump, but also make sure your sump pump line outside is directed at least 6-8 feet away from the foundation (similar to gutters) to prevent re-entry of water

It doesn't hurt to get an inspection of the home done, and is a wise choice especially before you sell. To point out any potential flaws that another inspector / buyer may flag, resulting in a price reduction or more work from your end. If you need help to point you in the right direction, or want some contacts of great inspectors we work with, give us a call.