See real estate listings in Downtown, Edmonton.
Downtown At A Glance
Homes Downtown
• Average Asking Price (2011): $291,000
• Asking Price Range (2011): $119,900 to $1,299,000
• Average Home Size (Approx): 1002ft²
• Size Range (Approx): 420ft² to 3240ft²
Real Estate Market
• Hot Market Index (2011): 48.3 °G
• Absorption (2011): 53.7
• Buyer Willingness (2011): 96.2%
• Desirability Score (2011): 92.8/100 (Extremely Desirable)
• Dilapidation Score (2006)*: 3.5 (Spectacular)
Amenities
• Accessibility Score: 170 homes per point of access.
• Parking: Poor (what downtown doesn’t have poor parking?)
• Transit: 92 bus stops with access to the LRT via 5 different stations.
• Parks: 6 with access to the river valley and biking trails at multiple points.
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Location & Description
As with almost all cities, downtown is located at the centre of Edmonton, and is one of the oldest parts of the City. Downtown is considered a general location by some, but there is actually a specific downtown neighbourhood as indicated by the City of Edmonton. From east to west, it runs from 97 street to 111 & 109 st, and extends from the north 105 avenue (like Oliver does) all the way to Rossdale road to the south and 103 street, which separates it from Rossdale. The remaining southwest boundary is the river valley south of the Alberta Legislature.
The biggest appeal of living in downtown Edmonton is usually from being close to work and living in a more densely populated area than single family neighbourhoods. Other benefits are proximity to the river valley, access to the LRT and distances to Grant MacEwan City Centre Campus and the University of Alberta (which is just a few minutes away by LRT). Owners who do not have a car will find navigating the downtown area quite easy, which is another reason to live in the city’s centre.
Downtown is also the home of the Art Gallery of Alberta, the Winspear Centre which hosts concerts on an almost daily basis is also home to the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, The Citadel Theatre, The Stanley A Milner public library and Rogers Place Arena.
For more information about businesses downtown, check out the Downtown Business Association.
The Downtown neighbourhood is located in Edmonton real estate zone 12 along with Oliver and Rossdale:
As you can see from the above chart, most of downtown was built during the boom of the 1970s and early 2000s. Not much was built in the post-war era or in the 50s and 60s, and almost nothing at all was built in the early 1990s. Downtown Edmonton real estate has been very sensitive to market fluctuations – much more so than other neighbourhoods in Edmonton.
Because Downtown real estate is expensive, many residents cannot afford to own the homes they live in, so investors have purchased most of the properties and are renting it out. Large apartment blocks are sometimes condominiumized, but not so many downtown as other places. Edmonton’s real estate investors love the downtown core because they are less likely to suffer from vacancy losses than if they were investing in other areas.
Much of downtown, Edmonton real estate is zoned for commercial development, but there are quite a few apartment buildings located there as well – 43 of them being condominium buildings. You can see that the majority of these apartments are highrises, because the area can support them, both structurally and economically. Lowrise apartments are less common and houses and row houses are almost non-existent. The real estate values are just too high not to have high density housing.
Schools
Elementary:
~ None in this neighbourhood.
Junior High:
~ None in this neighbourhood.
High Schools:
Centre High Campus | 200-10310 102 Ave – 780 425 6753
Colleges & Learning Institutes:
CDI College | 9939 Jasper Avenue – 888 707 0573
Norquest College | 10215 108 St – 780 644 6000
Cultural Connections Institute – The Learning Exchange | 10621 100 Ave – 780 944 0792
MC College | 10018 – 106 St – 780 429 4407
Metro Continuing Education | 8205 90 Ave – 780 428 1111
Parks & Recreation
Art Gallery of Alberta | 2 Sir Winston Churchill Square – 780 422 6223
Winspear Centre | Sir Winston Churchill Square NW – 780 428 1414
Citadel Theatre | 9828 101A Ave – 780 425 1820
Downtown has 6 parks within its boundaries and direct access to bike trails and hiking trails in the Edmonton river valley.
Access
Downtown has 36 points of access to help with traffic flow. There are about 6120 condo units in the Downtown neighbourhood, which equates to one access point for every 170 homes. Therefore the Access Score is 170 (lower is better). Downtown, Edmonton is a special case, because so many people work there as well. There are lots of roads for all the residents of Downtown, but since so many people come every day for work, that congestion makes it hard to get around. Still, 36 points of access is very good.
Transit
There are bus stops pretty much everywhere downtown – as with most downtown areas. There are 5 LRT stations within the Downtown neighbourhood:
Churchill Station | 99 St & 102A Ave
Central Station | 101 St & Jasper Ave
Bay/Enterprise Square Station | 104 St & Jasper Ave
Corona Station | 107 St & Jasper Ave
Grandin/Government Centre Station | 110 St & 99 Ave
* Source: 2006 Census of Canada, Statistics Canada
– All other data is provided by the MLS® system through the Realtors Association of Edmonton (formerly the Edmonton Real Estate Board)
by +Alan F Macdonald REALTOR® | Copyright © – gimme-shelter.com
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