Renting Downtown (and area) in Calgary - Advice!

[Cecil Terwilliger]

Hi All,

Going to be moving to the downtown area soon and looking at prospective locations. I WFH right now but anticipate an eventual return to the office.

I've never rented before so in addition to advice on location, any suggestions for a first time renter are welcome.

Suggestions on areas, specific buildings that are good or to avoid, where to look for reviews, how to find a good place (been browsing using rentfaster), how to deal with landlords etc are all welcome.

I've lived in Calgary for a long time but never lived near the core before.

Preferences are close to food, grocery, public transit. No kids, so schools are irrelevant to me. Not particularly concerned about nightlife all that much, I'm old and boring now.

TIA.

[troutman]

Maybe look around Co-Op Midtown (11 Ave SW):

https://www.calgarycoop.com/stores/midtown/

[_Q_]

How close do you need to be to downtown?

I live in Marda Loop, in a 2 bedroom condo and I can't picture myself ever leaving this area. It's definitely not walkable to downtown (although it can be done in about an hour).

[TSXCman]

Mission was great on 21st ave. 25 min walk to core.

[HockeyIlliterate]

Years ago, I rented a condo in the Xenex building (788 12th Ave SW). Fantastic location, a block from Safeway and walking distance to the Co-Op and Sunterra (if that still exists), with very easy access to downtown by foot. If there is an available unit in that building, I’d definitely consider being there.

Again, it has been years since I was there so I can’t speak to recent matters, but the building did have a few water leaks (my unit was affected due to poor construction on an upper floor, but the roof leaked as well from what I heard) and the fire alarms went off a bit too often in the winter because of some issue with the underground garage. But I did love living there and the utilities seemed cheap (under $100 a month, all in, as I recall).

[Joborule]

If you want to be able to walk into downtown/have a quick few minutes drive via transit into it, Areas to scope out is beltline (I would recomend between 14 Street SW to about 4 Street SW if you want to be close to Co-Op, Safeway, or Urban Fare. There's also a Sunterra on Macleod Trail), Sunnyside/Hillhurst (Kensington), Bridgeland (highly recommend here for a virbant spot that's up and coming, and still quiet), Inglewood and Mission/Erlton. Marda Loop is a good recommendation if you don't mind being a bit further away, but have a quick transit ride in.

I would also recommend Sunalta for possibly some cheap condos of good value. The area isn't vibrant as others yet, but there is intentions for it to be so, and some signs of life of it happening are showing with new developments starting around there now. The only draw back is that it doesn't have a grocer right in, but is relatively close to the Midtown Co-Op still.

What type of building do you want to be in? House rental? Condo/Apartment? Does having air-conditioning matter? In-suite laundry? (And there's a difference between a washer/dryer combo, or a 2-in-a washer and dryer) You mentioned public transit, but if you have a vehicle, does parking matter at all? Secured?

[Cecil Terwilliger]

Originally Posted by _Q_

How close do you need to be to downtown?

I live in Marda Loop, in a 2 bedroom condo and I can't picture myself ever leaving this area. It's definitely not walkable to downtown (although it can be done in about an hour).

Good question. Depends on how often I have to go to work. The less often I need to go to the office, the further away I'm ok being. Except I don't know the answer to that yet.

I'd say Marda Loop is a perfectly fine location but slightly more central would be preferred. Maybe. I'm not sure. Is right downtown better?

[Bigtime]

Be a baller and rent at Telus Sky:

https://living.westbankcorp.com/property/telus-sky

[Joborule]

Originally Posted by Cecil Terwilliger

Good question. Depends on how often I have to go to work. The less often I need to go to the office, the further away I'm ok being. Except I don't know the answer to that yet.

I'd say Marda Loop is a perfectly fine location but slightly more central would be preferred. Maybe. I'm not sure. Is right downtown better?

I would say that if not being able to walk downtown isn't a concern, Marda Loop is a strong contender. It's walkable to Elbow River and the park around there, has great accessibility for all modes of transportation, and covers pretty much everything you would want in a community. Mount Royal University is not too far away either if you're wanting a big recreational facility in the area.

[photon]

Used to live in Erlton and loved it. Close enough to walk to downtown for work but far enough away to not feel a little quieter.

Was close to the C-Train and bus, and 4th Street was right there for shopping and restaurants.

[calgarygeologist]

Originally Posted by _Q_

How close do you need to be to downtown?

I live in Marda Loop, in a 2 bedroom condo and I can't picture myself ever leaving this area. It's definitely not walkable to downtown (although it can be done in about an hour).

I would second this and also add Lower Mount Royal. Lower Mount Royal is nice because of all the nearby amenities and it is close to downtown (15 to 20 minute walk) but it sucks because of the traffic and noise. Marda Loop is great for location and amenities, parks and lots of choices for rentals. We lived in two different places in the area (South Calgary and Altadore) and in both cases we were close to 14th Street. It was a quick bus ride to downtown or a 30 minute walk although going home up the hill sucks.

[Reaper]

Originally Posted by Bigtime

Be a baller and rent at Telus Sky:

https://living.westbankcorp.com/property/telus-sky

Hey, for two months of my mortgage on my house I could live in the smaller penthouse for a whole month. Seems worth it to me.

[_Q_]

Originally Posted by Cecil Terwilliger

Good question. Depends on how often I have to go to work. The less often I need to go to the office, the further away I'm ok being. Except I don't know the answer to that yet.

I'd say Marda Loop is a perfectly fine location but slightly more central would be preferred. Maybe. I'm not sure. Is right downtown better?

It all really depends on what you're looking for.

What you'll get in Marda Loop is a complete community that is a lot less sketchy than some parts of downtown. There's also a Safeway, Blush Lane and Shoppers Drug Mart with plans to build a Co-op in the future. If you're into coffee, it also feels like the unofficial coffee district of Calgary. It has ample park space and good transportation options - bike paths, roads, BRT close by. It's also extremely easy to get to places outside of downtown. Chinook centre is an 8 minute drive, kensington is 7 minutes away, 17th ave is 5 minutes away, Westhills and Deerfoot Meadows are both a 10 minute drive. The restaurant and pub scene is decent and improving. If you're a single, straight male, there's also a good number of weirdly friendly women in their 30s here. In fact, everyone is weirdly friendly in Marda Loop.

With that said, out of all the inner city neighborhoods, Marda Loop is probably the least "happening". It does feel kind of suburb-y and is a bit sleepy after 9. There's also a lot of losers that drive around in the summer in their Harley Davidson bikes making as much noise as possible. So it gets incredibly annoying. Though the restaurant scene is improving, I can't think of any one restaurant in the area that is that great. It's all decent, but nothing to write home about. Finally, yes the transportation options are good, but the lack of a CTrain station makes getting downtown a bit of a drag. The BRT has improved things, but waiting outside for your bus at 5 pm when it's -30 outside is painful. Mind you, I can't imagine that walk being much better to the belt line for example.

[I_H8_Crawford]

I love living in Renfrew - my wife works @ Suncor, and it's literally a 15 min walk or 5 min drive to there when she had to go into the office.

In fact, we are vacating this property end of June, so if you're interested, PM me

[troutman]

When he walks down the street
He smiles at everyone
Everyone that he meets
Calls him "King of Kensington"

[Hack&Lube]

For food, there is no better option than renting in East Village or closeby in the beltline due to the new Superstore in downtown. In fact, when the condo opens on top of it, I would prefer to live in the same building as Superstore itself.

Where is your office located in downtown? I like walking to work but in the summer I enjoy doing a 30 minute walk from end to end as it's enjoyable and good exercise.

[Cappy]

Are you looking at newer buildings or older? Apartment building or home/duplex etc?

For landlord, are you looking for a management company / rental apartment building or a private owner?

I would avoid downtown proper unless you truly want to live in the heart. Beltline, East Village, Mission, Kensington all offer a variety of tall apartment buildings and mid-level places with varying degrees of age and style.

I live in the heart of the beltine but am quite partial to Mission east of 4th street. there is a mix of old and newer buildings, most are mid-rise.

Two other areas worth mentioning are Bridgeland and inglewood. They offer more apartment buildings than Marda Loop and are largely equidistant to DT. Bridgeland may be more reasonable price wise too.

The most important thing is proximity to a grocery store for sure.

[jwslam]

Originally Posted by Cecil Terwilliger

Preferences are close to food, grocery, public transit.

What kind of food?
What kind of grocery store? Like a fru-fru sunterra, safeway, or cheapo superstore
For transit where would you be trying to get to?

[Vinny01]

I lived in Sunnyside/Kensington from 04-11 and it was a great neighborhood. Walking distance to Downtown, C-train, had some good pubs. Honestly I haven’t been there for a long time though and I think there has been a lot of newer buildings put up there.

[Cecil Terwilliger]

Originally Posted by Hack&Lube

For food, there is no better option than renting in East Village or closeby in the beltline due to the new Superstore in downtown. In fact, when the condo opens on top of it, I would prefer to live in the same building as Superstore itself.

Where is your office located in downtown? I like walking to work but in the summer I enjoy doing a 30 minute walk from end to end as it's enjoyable and good exercise.

i was near TD square/CORE but i think we're gonna move. if/when i ever go back. I'm thinking I won't return to office until 2022 and even then it'll be mix of WFH and office.

I do not plan to walk to work but on a nice summer day, I wouldn't mind the option. I've had a 45 min+ drive and an hour long public transit commutes in the last 5 years so if I can get it to a 10-20 min commute, that would be fantastic, be it bus/train/walk.

In general, I just found the suburbs very boring but they it was convenient to live out there when I worked in the burbs. Now that I work DT, I'd like to live somewhere that isn't dead and boring past 7pm every day. I just want to be around people. Especially in these COVID times and if I WFH on a more permanent basis. I've started to forget what interacting with other humans is like.

Originally Posted by Cappy

Are you looking at newer buildings or older? Apartment building or home/duplex etc?

For landlord, are you looking for a management company / rental apartment building or a private owner?

I would avoid downtown proper unless you truly want to live in the heart. Beltline, East Village, Mission, Kensington all offer a variety of tall apartment buildings and mid-level places with varying degrees of age and style.

I live in the heart of the beltine but am quite partial to Mission east of 4th street. there is a mix of old and newer buildings, most are mid-rise.

Two other areas worth mentioning are Bridgeland and inglewood. They offer more apartment buildings than Marda Loop and are largely equidistant to DT. Bridgeland may be more reasonable price wise too.

The most important thing is proximity to a grocery store for sure.

New/old - doesn't matter but strong preference for in suite laundry, secure/underground parking and concrete building. Lived in a south facing wood building and I used to have fans going 24/7 all summer. Never again. Oh and none of this 450 sq ft living space BS I keep seeing. 700 minimum.

Apartment or Home/duplex? Doesn't matter. Whatever fits my budget. No basement suites though. I've been mostly looking at apartment condos but not ruling anything out.

Landlord - Not sure. I think I would prefer private but many of the locations I've been looking at are rental buildings/ management company.

Mission and East Village appear to be the front runners at the moment.

Originally Posted by jwslam

What kind of food?
What kind of grocery store? Like a fru-fru sunterra, safeway, or sunterra
For transit where would you be trying to get to?

Food that losers (formerly me) in the suburbs don't get. Not fine dining or anything most of the time. Just options that aren't Montanas and Subway. I do not eat out a lot but find myself frequently jealous of the multitude of options in the inner city. The suburbs generally have nothing but lame ass chains. A good pizza place, some schwarma, maybe some sort of bistro or coffee shop. That sort of thing. A place to grab food when I'm feeling lazy that won't break the bank.

Grocery. Not sure. A traditional grocery store I guess? Just a place I can buy meat, veggies and bread for reasonable prices. I wouldn't mind sunterra but it seems pricey for my liking.

Transit. To work mostly. Bus is fine. But from door to door hopefully less than 20 mins or so. Somewhat near ctrain is nice in case I want to go to see a football game but I own a car so anything beyond work, I can drive when needed. Definitely won't be driving to work.