Economic conditions improving in Alberta, mortgage report suggests

An aerial view of housing in Calgary is shown on June 22, 2013. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

The number of homeowners who are behind on their mortgage payments has reached one of the lowest levels since the beginning of the pandemic, new statistics indicate.

On Wednesday, the Canadian Bankers Association released its latest report on the number of mortgages in arrears – situations where payments haven't been made in three or more months.

Out of the 5,104,550 mortgages in Canada, just 7,426 (0.15 per cent) are in arrears, it said.

When it comes to Alberta, the association found that while the province had almost 30 per cent of Canada's arrears total, the percentage of homeowners who have fallen behind is continuing to drop.

The latest report shows 2,176 of Alberta's 605,353 mortgages, which the association says includes those in N.W.T. and Nunavut, are in arrears.

The figure is just 0.36 per cent of the total – the lowest it's been since 2008.

"Canada's oil-producing provinces were hit hard by the pandemic and therefore faced more difficult economic conditions as they recovered, in part due to the cyclical nature of their economies," said Mathieu Labrèche, director of media strategy and communications with the Canada Bankers Association in a statement.

He says favourable economic conditions are returning, which is relieving pressure on many residents.

"As unemployment figures in Alberta have started to return to their pre-pandemic levels, the province is seeing a corresponding drop in arrears rates. The mortgages in arrears rate in Alberta is well below one per cent."

The highest rate of mortgage arrears is seen in Saskatchewan at 0.61 per cent, but it has been steadily decreasing since the beginning of 2019.