Calgary has spent the past several years building homes at a record pace, and new data suggests all that construction is actually making a measurable difference.
According to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s Fall 2026 Housing Supply Report, Calgary is one of the few major Canadian housing markets where the estimated housing supply gap needed to restore pre-pandemic affordability has actually narrowed.
Years of record housing starts have allowed new supply to outpace demand.
As a result, CMHC now estimates Calgary needs approximately 4,000 to 5,000 additional homes per year beyond what is currently expected to be built to restore housing affordability to 2019 levels by 2036.
That’s still a shortage.
But compared with many of Canada’s other major cities, Calgary is moving in a very different direction.
Calgary’s Housing Supply Gap Is Shrinking
Canada still needs dramatically more housing overall.
CMHC estimates the country needs between 417,000 and 469,000 new homes every year over the next decade to restore housing affordability to pre-pandemic levels by 2036.
Under current trends, Canada is expected to build only around 231,000 annually.
But the size of that shortage varies significantly depending on the city.
CMHC says Calgary’s housing supply gap has narrowed significantly following several years of record construction.
Edmonton is currently the only large Canadian market where CMHC estimates there is no additional housing supply gap.
Calgary isn’t there yet, but it is one of the few major cities where the gap is getting smaller.
Calgary Just Went Through Three Years Of Record Homebuilding
The improvement follows an extraordinary construction boom.
CMHC says Calgary experienced three consecutive years of record housing starts.
During the first half of 2025 alone, approximately 14,700 homes were started across the Calgary metropolitan area.
That worked out to roughly 80 housing starts for every 10,000 residents.
Construction has slowed in 2026, but activity remains high compared with recent historical levels.
Approximately 11,350 homes were started during the first half of 2026.
That represents a decline of more than 20% compared with the same period last year.
However, Calgary still recorded around 61 housing starts per 10,000 residents during the period.
More Than 25,000 Calgary Homes Are Currently Under Construction
The scale of Calgary’s recent building boom becomes even clearer when looking at what is currently being built.
CMHC reported 25,049 housing units under construction in Calgary in August 2026.
Another 17,069 approved units were waiting to begin construction.
That means tens of thousands of additional homes are currently somewhere in Calgary’s development pipeline.
The market is now moving from what CMHC describes as a housing-start boom into a major delivery phase.
Many projects launched during Calgary’s record construction years are finally being completed.
Calgary Home Completions Are Up 9%
While housing starts are falling, completions are moving in the opposite direction.
CMHC says total Calgary housing completions increased 9% during the first half of 2026 compared with the same period last year.
Apartment completions increased by roughly 32%.
Approximately 12,700 homes were completed during the first six months of 2026, including:
5,762 purpose-built rentals
4,786 freehold homes
2,119 condominium units
That works out to approximately 68 completed homes for every 10,000 Calgary residents.
Those homes largely represent construction decisions made two or three years ago, when Calgary’s housing market was considerably tighter.
Calgary’s Rental Construction Boom Is Starting To Slow
One of the biggest drivers of Calgary’s construction boom has been purpose-built rental housing.
But that part of the market is now cooling.
Purpose-built rental starts fell by more than 30% during the first half of 2026.
Despite the decline, rentals still represented almost 60% of housing starts.
CMHC says Calgary’s rental market has softened as new supply has arrived.
Developers are reporting more unleased units, greater use of rental incentives and asking rents that are either remaining unchanged or declining.
Some proposed rental developments have consequently been delayed, redesigned or cancelled.
Condo Construction Is Holding Up Better
Calgary’s ownership market is showing a different trend.
While rental construction has slowed sharply, condominium apartment starts increased 4%.
Completed but unsold condo inventory also fell 59%, according to CMHC.
Several new condominium projects launched during the second quarter of 2026.
CMHC says demand for relatively affordable ownership options remains resilient even as Calgary’s rental market becomes more favourable for tenants.
However, conditions in Calgary’s resale condo market remain considerably softer.
CREB reported nearly six months of apartment-style resale supply in August.
The apartment benchmark price was $295,400, down 8% from August 2025 and nearly 13% below its August 2024 peak of $341,300.
Calgary Still Needs Thousands More Homes Every Year
Calgary’s construction boom has helped, but CMHC’s latest estimates don’t mean the city’s housing shortage has disappeared.
The city still needs roughly 4,000 to 5,000 additional homes every year beyond projected construction levels to restore affordability to 2019 levels by 2036.
And there is another challenge emerging.
The construction boom responsible for narrowing Calgary’s housing shortage is already slowing.
Total housing starts fell more than 20% during the first half of 2026, and CMHC expects supply growth to moderate further once the enormous backlog of projects currently under construction is completed.
Higher construction costs, economic uncertainty, rising rental vacancy and growing inventories are all affecting decisions about whether new projects move forward.
Calgary Is Becoming A Major Housing Supply Test Case
For years, one of the biggest questions surrounding Canada’s housing crisis has been relatively simple: what happens if a city actually builds significantly more housing?
Calgary is providing an interesting real-world example.
Three years of record construction allowed housing supply to outpace demand and significantly reduced the number of additional homes CMHC estimates the city needs to restore affordability.
But maintaining that progress could become the next challenge.
More than 25,000 homes are still under construction, meaning a substantial amount of new supply has yet to reach the market.
At the same time, new housing starts are already slowing.
For now, Calgary remains one of the relatively few major Canadian housing markets where CMHC says the housing supply gap is moving in the right direction.
References
CMHC Fall 2026 Housing Supply Report
CMHC: Slowing Home Construction Threatens Recent Affordability Gains
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