CALGARY -- Estimates of Alberta's population breaching the five-million mark are almost certainly exaggerated, but the province is poised for continued growth, says the research director of the Canada West Foundation.
Robert Roach told the 1,300 delegates at the Calgary Real Estate Forum yesterday that by 2031, Alberta's population will have grown by more than 880,000 people to reach 4.14 million, most of whom will flock to the province's urban centres.
Immigration especially is a "highly urban phenomenon," he said, noting that 8.4% of international migrants arriving in Canada move to Alberta.
Calgary, however, still trails Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver as a magnet for new arrivals in Canada.
Roach didn't explain what impact the growing population will have on Calgary's real estate market, but real estate professionals, including officials from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, consistently point to shifting demographics as one of the main underpinnings of the province's housing market.
Roach said that Canada's demographic weight, together with the economic weight, is gradually shifting toward the western provinces, most notably Alberta and B.C.
"That's where the action is," he said.
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