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Calgary Still Short 42,000 Homes Despite Record-Breaking Construction Efforts

Calgary may be leading Canada in housing starts, but it’s still nowhere near closing its housing gap. According to the city’s chief housing officer Reid Hendry, Calgary is on track to be short 42,000 housing units by the end of 2025, despite building more new homes than ever before.

The update comes from Hendry’s latest report to the Community Development Committee, where he outlined progress made under Calgary’s seven-year Home is Here housing strategy. The plan, launched in 2023, includes 98 recommendations to boost both market and non-market housing and address the city’s growing affordability crisis by 2030.

Record Construction, But the Gap Is Still Growing

In 2024, the city approved over 25,000 building permits for market housing, more than doubling its historical average of around 12,000. That effort translated into $10 billion in private investment, making Calgary the national leader in housing starts in early 2025.

In fact, 55% of all new homes built in Alberta this year were in Calgary, and the city topped Canada in total housing starts in Q1 2025, with over 6,270 units under construction.

Still, the shortfall persists.

“The gap is widening, but importantly, it’s widening at a slower pace,” Hendry told the committee.

Despite the building boom, Calgary’s housing deficit sits at 42,000 units, largely due to high population growth and increased demand that continues to outpace supply.

Below-Market Housing: Progress, But Not Enough

One of the standout accomplishments of the strategy is the growth in below-market housing approvals. In 2024, the city approved 893 development permits for below-market units, an 850% increase compared to the previous year.

However, that still falls short of Calgary’s goal of 3,000 new non-market units per year– a key target to support residents in the deepest housing need.

What’s Fueling the Crisis?

Calgary’s 2023 Housing Needs Assessment showed that nearly 1 in 5 households were struggling to afford shelter, with inflation, housing prices, and rents all surging. Currently, there are:

  • Over 40,000 households stretching every dollar to keep their homes
  • More than 7,000 families on the Calgary Housing waitlist
  • Over 3,000 unhoused residents

The city’s poverty reduction organization, Vibrant Communities Calgary, urged council to keep up momentum and increase investment in non-market housing, arguing that the lack of affordable options is undermining the well-being of vulnerable residents and the city’s long-term prosperity.

What’s Next?

The city has enacted or initiated 88% of its 98 housing strategy recommendations, including:

  • Incentives for building secondary suites
  • Office-to-residential conversions
  • Below-market land sales to housing providers
  • Zoning reforms
  • Property tax relief for affordable housing developers

Hendry also previewed a future “by Indigenous, for Indigenous” housing initiative called Maa’too’maa’taapii Aoko’iyii’piaya, aimed at addressing the specific needs of First Nations communities in the Calgary region.

While the city has missed some initial targets, Hendry urged officials to stay the course, saying the foundation has been laid for long-term impact- if the strategy stays supported.

References

Kaleylangille

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