Apartment Vacancy & Rental Cost Survey
Alberta Housing and Urban Affairs conducts the Apartment Vacancy and Rental Cost Survey on an annual basis. The survey identifies building type, building age, unit type, number of units, rental rates (including utilities) and the number of vacancies in 59 rural communities. These communities have a population of between 1,000 and 9,999 people and have at least 30 or more rental units.
The survey does not include communities in urban areas with a population of 10,000 or more people as these centres are surveyed bi-annually by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), in April and October. Since 1973, with the exception of 2004, the Province of Alberta has conducted the annual Apartment Vacancy and Rental Cost Survey of multi-family dwellings in Alberta’s rural communities. In 1993, the survey was reduced from 89 rural communities to 63 rural communities, to prevent duplication of the survey conducted by the CMHC. In 2008, CMHC began surveying four more communities (High River, Lacombe, Strathmore and Sylvan Lake), as the population of these communities exceeded 10,000 according to the 2006 Census results published by Statistics Canada. In 2009, Housing and Urban Affairs surveyed 59 rural communities.
The eligibility criteria used in selecting communities to be surveyed are:
· A community has a population of between 1,000 and 9,999 people
· The community has at least 30 or more rental units
· The community is not included in the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s semi-annual Rental Market Survey.
The following communities were surveyed by Housing and Urban Affairs during the months of May, June, July and August 2009, inclusive.
| Athabasca | Banff | Barrhead | Bassano |
| Beaverlodge | Blackfalds | Bowden | Cardston |
| Carstairs | Claresholm | Coaldale | Crowsnest Pass |
| Didsbury | Drayton Valley | Drumheller | Edson |
| Elk Point | Fairview | Falher | Fort Macleod |
| Fox Creek | Grande Cache | Grimshaw | Hanna |
| High Level | High Prairie | Hinton | Innisfail |
| Jasper | Lac La Biche | Mayerthorpe | McLennan |
| Nanton | Olds | Peace River | Penhold |
| Pincher Creek | Ponoka | Provost | Raymond |
| Rimbey | Rocky Mtn. House | Sexsmith | Slave Lake |
| Spirit River | St. Paul | Stettler | Sundre |
| Swan Hills | Taber | Tofield | Two Hills |
| Valleyview | Vegreville | Vermilion | Vulcan |
| Wainwright | Westlock | Whitecourt | |
Purpose
The Apartment Vacancy and Rental Cost Survey provides the Ministry, housing industry, private sector, and various government ministries with essential housing information on private market vacancy and rental rates in multi-family rental dwellings in Alberta’s communities with a population of between 1,000 and 9,999 people.
Methodology
The survey includes private, non-subsidized rental apartment buildings containing four or more rental units. Store-top structures, which may have fewer than four units, were included in 24 communities, as they represented a significant portion of the total rental stock in those communities. In order for a unit to be included in the survey, it must be occupied or vacant. If vacant, the unit must be available for rent at market value. In buildings which include both subsidized and non-subsidized units, only the non-subsidized units were included in the survey.
The survey does not include rented single and semi-detached family homes, basement suites and owner-occupied condominium units. Additionally, 33 caretaker suites rented at a discount were not included in the survey. In 2009, there were a total of 83 units undergoing renovations at the time of the survey and were not included in their respective rental building unit count.
The survey is conducted through telephone and face-to-face interviews with apartment owners, managers, building superintendents, and property management agencies, between the months of May and August, reflecting market conditions at that time. The survey identifies building type, building age, type of unit, number of units, rental rates and the number of vacancies. All survey data records are subjected to computer validity checks.
The following tables have been extracted from the Apartment Vacancy and Rental Cost Survey 2009:
Number of rental units identified and survey response rates - Average rent and rental range by type of suite
- Number of vacancies and vacancy rates by type of unit
- Average rents by bedroom type and overall vacancy rates by community
- Apartment Vacancy and Rental Cost Survey Highlights
Housing and Urban Affairs thanks all those who contributed to the survey.
Questions, comments and suggestions concerning this survey are welcome and should be addressed to:
Housing and Urban Affairs
Box 927
Edmonton, Alberta T5J 2L8
Telephone: (780) 422-0122
Fax: (780) 422-5124
To contact us by e-mail: housing@gov.ab.ca
To be connected toll free in Alberta, dial 310-0000 followed by the area code and the telephone number.
Copies of the Apartment Vacancy and Rental Cost Survey 2009 can be ordered from the Queen’s Printer Bookstore in person, by phone, fax, mail or through the Internet.
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation conducts a semi-annual survey of apartment vacancies and rental costs in communities over 10,000 population. for more information please contact Richard Goatcher at rgoatche@cmhc-schl.gc.ca in Edmonton or Richard Corriveau at rcorrive@cmhc-schl.gc.ca in Calgary.
