Alberta and Calgary seniors' housing vacancy rates increase

A new report released today by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., says the overall vacancy rate for a standard space in retirement homes in Alberta increased from 9.2 per cent in 2016 to 10.5 per cent in 2017.

The Seniors' Housing Report also indicated that Calgary had the largest increase in vacancy, increasing 2.6 percentage points to 13 per cent in 2017.

"Some of Alberta’s increased vacancy rate was due to an increase in supply of units. There were 12,624 units included in the survey, as opposed to 12,211 in 2016," explains the report.

"However, demand for these units increased by 1.8 per cent as the number of Albertan residents increased from 12,261 to 12,477. Overall average rent in Alberta for a standard space increased to $3,015 per month in 2017 from $2,992 in 2016."