Edmonton’s luxury market poised to heat up

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Luxury and value are odd bedfellows.

Yet in Edmonton, they go hand-in-hand as high-end buyers get much more for their dollar than in other major cities.

It’s not that buyers are necessarily moving to Edmonton from other cities in droves, driving resales for homes priced at $1 million or more, says Jeremy Amyotte, realtor and president of Amyotte Real Estate in Edmonton.

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“The luxury market here isn’t driven by as many out-of-towners as you might think,” he says. “The majority of the out-of-province buyers are actually looking more in the average price points in the $500,000 range.”

Still, that added demand to already strong local demand in the more affordable parts of the market have helped pump up sales in the upper echelons of the resale market.

“There is a trickle up effect,” he says, adding move-up buyers are now increasingly jumping into the city’s relatively affordable luxury market.

It’s affordable, at least, compared with luxury markets in Toronto and Vancouver.

Realtors Association of Edmonton statistics from the first half of the year show sales for all homes grew 32 per cent over the same period last year. The average price also increased about six per cent over that span from 2023 to reach about $439,000.

Yet luxury home resales — while a small share of the 15,025 sales that took place in the first six months of 2024 — grew more than 66 per cent — from 69 sales in 2023 to 115 this year in Edmonton proper.

If the city was included in the recently released to Sotheby’s International Realty Canada’s Top-Tier Real Estate: 2024 Mid-Year State of Luxury Report, it would have led all major cities by percentage, year-over-year growth.

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In the study, Calgary led Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver, with sales up 46 per cent year over year for the first six months of 2024.

“People are leaving other provinces to come to the vibrancy of the province,” says Don Kottick, president and chief executive officer of Sotheby’s International Realty Canada.

Recent Statistics Canada data shows both cities saw the strongest population growth last year. Edmonton’s growth rate was 4.1 per cent in 2023, trailing Calgary’s at 5.9 per cent.

As well, net interprovincial migration to Edmonton was 16,082, and 26,662 in Calgary last year.

The numbers reflect how more people are moving to the province and giving Edmonton a closer look, Amyotte says.

“Trends that Calgary’s market has experienced have started here,” he says. “Only more buyers recognize that Edmonton is probably a better option today because it’s significantly cheaper.”

Typically, Calgary’s average home price has been about 10 per cent higher than Edmonton’s, but the difference has widened recently.

At the end of July, the average home price in Calgary was about $607,000 versus about $439,000 in Edmonton, a difference of about 39 per cent.

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The luxury market offers even better value, too, Amyotte adds.

Generally, both cities are value markets for luxury compared with Toronto and Vancouver. Luxury homes in those cities start at $4 million whereas in Alberta, the entry point for luxury is generally $1 million.

Calgary’s high-end market is far more active than Edmonton’s — with 1,130 sales of $1 million or more between January and June.

Although Edmonton has seen a surge in luxury sales, the entire Greater Edmonton Area, which includes Sherwood Park among other municipalities, only saw 247 sales.

Still, growing luxury sales here reflect the overall health of the Edmonton market, which should only improve as interest rates fall, affording more sellers to consider purchasing higher priced homes, Amyotte says. “We will definitely see a lot more local move-up buyers in luxury.”

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