Calgary housing starts fall 20% in July as Alberta’s building pace cools

THREAT · Builders & Developers · Housing Starts

CMHC’s July housing starts report, released August 18, shows Calgary starts down 20% year-over-year at 1,504 units, with the six-month trend off 6%. Alberta as a whole recorded 4,041 starts, a 7% annual decline, and CMHC’s deputy chief economist singled out Calgary alongside Vancouver and Toronto as markets where fewer new projects are breaking ground even though the pipeline of homes under construction remains substantial. Edmonton was the outlier: monthly starts were essentially flat at 2,174 units, and the trend measure actually rose 10%.

The slowdown extends beyond the big two cities. Red Deer’s year-to-date starts are down 9% from 2025, and the same reporting pegs Alberta’s year-to-date starts down 19% at 26,118 units, with Calgary off 23%. CMHC still expects Prairie markets to lead national price growth on the strength of continued in-migration, which makes the current pullback look more like caution than collapse.

What it means: Fewer starts means every builder still launching is fighting for a smaller, more deliberate pool of buyers — the operators who keep their brand visible and their community launches sharp through this stretch will take share from those who go quiet, and Edmonton’s resilience makes it the market where growth investment still has a tailwind.