The Calgary Real Estate Board opposes city-wide rezoning plans

The Calgary Real Estate Board (CREB) believes that urban-wide rezoning will worsen the city's housing crisis, leading to infrastructure bottlenecks, neighborhood congestion and not creating the type of housing that alleviates this supply crisis.

Ahead of a public hearing on Calgary's city-wide rezoning in April 2024, part of a toolkit the city believes will address local housing issues, CREB said in media reports that a nuanced approach is needed.

“Redistricting is not the right solution to solve Calgary's housing problems. This poses a serious threat to communities, raising congestion levels in urban areas and putting additional burdens on infrastructure and service quality,” Hong Wang, chairman of CREB's standing committee on government relations, said in a prepared statement to the media.

“We oppose this approach and advocate for a community-focused strategy to respond to Calgary's housing shortage that shifts the focus from a general housing crisis to a housing supply crisis exacerbated by zoning.”

The release went on to say that urban-wide rezoning has raised “alarm bells” in the local real estate industry due to the potential for adverse effects on the residential landscape and property values.

In most cases, real estate agents are paid a percentage of the sale price of the homes.

Anne-Marie Lurie, CREB's chief economist, said moving forward with this type of redistricting plan would not necessarily add the type of supply needed to the areas most in need of supply.

“We've had significant population growth in a short period of time in terms of new home starts, and that's contributed to a lack of rentals and ownership, which has driven up rents and home prices in Calgary,” Lurie said.

“Rezoning will not solve the problems associated with a lack of affordable rental product, which requires a broader approach, focusing on communities with underutilized urban land that is accessible to transit and public amenities.”

The profit motive at play, says Kuhn. Walcott

8th district. Courtney Walcott said the city-wide redevelopment plan is only a push to allow more development. According to him, it is not about rent, but about the creation of new housing facilities.

Finally, when an industry is based on profit, any effort to reduce that profit will be met with resistance, Coun. Walcott said.

“Any large-scale effort to lower housing costs, (I) understand that when people are in business, they're going to want to oppose anything that reduces the potential income they can make,” he said.

Mayor Jyoti Gondek said she would welcome a follow-up interview with CREB to understand their approach to rezoning the city as a whole.

“If they're willing to talk to the administration or council members, I would say they should definitely do that. They have their own views based on the numbers they determine, their perspectives as economists,” he said.

“I think it's really important that they come and talk to us about how we can build great communities.”

7th district. Terry Wong said the real goal is to solve the housing problem. The question is what priority action should be taken on this file. He said the city is also looking at strategies to help vulnerable Calgarians and make surplus land available for a variety of built-out facilities.

However, the residents he spoke to are concerned.

“I know people in my constituents are concerned about the value of their own homes and assets,” he said.

“But it's not entirely about asset wealth. It's about a lifestyle.”