Why Edmontonians are moving to Calgary

The paperwork barely changes

Same Alberta purchase contract, same Land Titles registration, same lack of provincial sales tax and transfer tax. Your existing Alberta lawyer can usually act on a Calgary purchase, and your lender relationship carries over. That makes this the cheapest interprovincial-style move you can make — because it is not one.

How the city is laid out

Calgary is organised around quadrants, with Centre Street and the Bow River as the dividing lines, and Stoney Trail ringing the city. Addresses carry NE, NW, SE or SW and that suffix does real work — the same street number exists in more than one quadrant. Learn the quadrant before you learn the street.

Choosing a community

Edmonton buyers usually already know how to read a community by age of housing stock. The same instinct works here: newer construction sits toward the outer ring in all four quadrants, established communities with mature trees sit closer to the core, and pricing follows the same logic.

Weather and commute

Calgary sits higher and further south, gets chinooks that break winter cold spells, and generally runs shorter drives across the city. Expect more wind and faster weather swings than you are used to.

• Keep your Alberta lawyer and lender if the relationship is good
• Shortlist two quadrants, not ten communities
• Drive your would-be commute at rush hour on the scouting trip