In Alberta, the average monthly utility bill is $320.50. The average monthly utility bill in Calgary is $470.
How much do Calgary utility bills cost?
A gas-powered furnace will most likely heat your Alberta home, blowing hot air via vents in the rooms.
Winter bills in Alberta are much greater than summer bills due to the harsh winters.
Total monthly energy and gas expenditures for a three-bedroom modern townhouse can range from $280-$350 in the coldest months to $100-$200 in the warmer months.
The cost of heating and hot water is included in the monthly rent in certain apartments and condominiums.
Is it pricey to use the utilities in Calgary?
“To locate a cheap property in Vancouver or Toronto, you have to move much further out of the city center,” explains Harish Consul, President and CEO of Ocgrow Group. “However, inner-city living in Calgary is still relatively inexpensive.” Consul and his crew recently started ground on SOLA Calgary, a new condominium development in Calgary’s Northwest.
In the communities surrounding Calgary, the median price of a property varies substantially. The median list price for all homes in nearby Chestermere is $539,000, whereas it is $415,000 in Cochrane. The median price in Airdrie, to the north of the city, is $361,000, whereas in Beiseker, to the east, the price is lower at $263,000.
Median Home Price
In Calgary, the median list price for single-family detached homes is roughly $478,000. Calgary condominiums for sale, on the other hand, have a typical list price of $226,111, while Calgary townhouses have a median list price of $319,000.
The average sale price of a home in Calgary varies substantially depending on the neighborhood. Elboya and Whitehorn, two of Alberta’s most popular neighborhoods, had average sale prices of $517,000 and $298,000, respectively. Bel Aire is another popular but pricey neighborhood, with an average transaction price of $2.5 million.
The average sale price in the Red Carpet neighborhood, which is seeing a downturn in real estate activity, is $90,750. With an average transaction price of $448,358 in the Cliff Bungalow neighborhood, real estate activity has slowed. Deer Ridge, Huntington Hills, and other affordable Calgary neighborhoods include Deer Ridge, Huntington Hills, and others.
Median Rent
On average, studio apartments in Calgary rent for between $750 and $1,000 per month. Apartment rates for two bedrooms range from $800 to $2,000 per month, depending on location and square size. Monthly rent for three-bedroom apartments or townhomes ranges from $1,200 to $2,800.
Rents in the trendy Southwest and Northwest Calgary districts tend to be pricier. The Brentwood neighborhood has a median rent of $1,422, while the Montgomery neighborhood has a median rent of $1,220. The typical rent in the Maryland Heights neighborhood, just east of downtown, is roughly $985.
Utilities
For a 915-square-foot apartment in Calgary, the cost of utilities, which includes electricity, heating, cooling, water, and garbage, is around $208 per month.
The total monthly combined electric and gas expenditures for a three-bedroom townhome will range from $280 to $350 during the coldest months to $100 to $200 during the summer months. Water, sewer, and waste collection costs can range from $70 to $110 per month.
In Calgary, internet service costs around $60 per month on average. A average monthly TV, telephone, and Internet package costs between $120 and $180. A monthly mobile phone plan with unlimited speak, text, and data costs around $100.
Alberta’s average home insurance premium is the second highest in the country. In Calgary, the average cost of homeowner’s insurance is $900 to $1,000 per year, or $75 to $83 per month. This is more than the national average, which is around $840 per year.
The typical cost of renter’s insurance in Calgary and Alberta is around $25 per month, or $300 per year.
What is the average Alberta utility bill?
You will almost certainly be responsible for paying your utilities, whether you rent or own. The average home in Alberta spends $2,893 per year on water, fuel, and electricity.
In Calgary, what is the average enmax bill?
The cost of utilities has increased, and some Calgarians may receive a pricey surprise in their mailboxes this month.
Enmax users, in particular, have seen their utility bills increase by roughly 50% in the previous few months.
During the winter, her typical expense is over $400, and during the summer, it is around $350.
“Don’t get me wrong: it’s winter, so anticipate it to rise slightly. She explained that when it’s unusually cold for a week or two, your house tries to keep up.
“But there’s no reason it should be another 40% higher on top of that, especially in the last month or two.
Enmax now offers Howes a floating electricity and natural gas pricing.
This implies the rate might fluctuate throughout the year depending on supply and demand. As a result, costs are often higher in the winter and lower in the summer.
February cold snap to blame?
According to an Enmax spokesman, many people’s current high bills are actually a reflection of consumption from February.
A polar vortex hit the city at the time, causing a week-long cold spell.
They stated that there was no price increase, contrary to popular belief.
The floating rate for natural gas achieved a price of $4 per gigajoule in February, according to data on Enmax’s website, up from $1.80 at the same time previous year.
Aside from seasonal variations, the elevated rates, according to the Enmax website, were caused by other reasons. The lifting of the Alberta power price cap, as well as the federal carbon tax, were the main factors.
The former was discussed at length at a recent NDP press conference in Calgary.
Rachel Notley has urged the UCP government to reestablish the energy rate cap and provide direct consumer help to Albertans affected by the epidemic, among other things. The Regulated Rate Option was phased out in 2019.
According to the Office of the Utilities Consumer Advocate, average electricity rates in January, February, and March of this year exceeded the prior cap (6.8 cents per kWh).
EPCOR, which charged an average of 8.95 cents per kilowatt hour in February, had the highest pricing.
“There’s a snowball effect here, and it’s wreaking havoc on household budgets, according to Notley.
“Many Albertans who work from home or spend more time at home must consume more natural gas and electricity to help protect their communities against the spread of COVID. When you add in rising natural gas and electricity rates, you have large bills and little relief for households.
The consumer relief program is based on a similar program offered by the provincial government of Ontario.
In Calgary, do you have to pay for water?
The rates of water and wastewater are vary. They’re calculated by multiplying the amount of water your family uses and returns to the system by a rate.
- Each bill, your wastewater use is decreased by 10% (residential), 8% (commercial), and 3% (multi-family) to reflect the fact that not all water used is returned to the system for treatment. This percentage accounts for seasonal variations in water consumption, such as outdoor watering.
Water, sewerage, and stormwater service rates are all set fees. These are a one-time price based on a 30-day period, and they are unaffected by your water usage.
Why are enmax’s bills so exorbitant?
“Even with increases, we were able to ride that wave for 13 years and it was extremely manageable. This has now gotten out of hand. We are aware of the type of residence in which we reside. We live in a bungalow built in the 1960s with a 1970s addition. Because of the construction, we have two furnaces “she stated
“We have a good idea of what to expect. We’ve had our windows replaced and our roof replaced in the last year. So far, we’ve done a lot of energy-saving measures, but nothing could have prepared us for what we’ve received this month.”
Increased energy consumption, higher natural gas costs, and increasing concentration of ownership in Alberta’s power sector, according to University of Calgary economist Blake Shaffer.
He claims that the writing has been on the wall for some time, and that it became evident last autumn that energy market prices will hit new highs this winter.
“In Calgary, while fixed rates were still available at six cents per kilowatt, the Regulated Rate Option was around 16 cents per kilowatt. They’re still accessible for seven cents nowadays… therefore it’s a significant increase in the energy component “he stated
“In the fall, I was shouting at the top of my lungs to go on a fixed-price plan to anyone who would listen.”
Why are Alberta’s utility costs so high?
“In January and February, for example, the regulated rate option price for electricity was the highest it had ever been. This reflects tremendous electrical consumption.
Customers who aren’t on a contract will pay a monthly fluctuating rate known as the Regulated Rate Option (RRO). Enmax Energy supplies small companies and residential properties in Red Deer that consume less than 250,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per year with monthly prices approved by city council, which are now 14.418 cents per kWh. Enmax’s Default Supplier Rate Schedule will apply to customers who use more kWh and are not on a contract.
The RRO of energy for small enterprises and residential houses consuming less than 250,000 kWh with Enmax in January 2021 was 7.981 cents for the remainder of Alberta. It was 15.876 cents in January 2022.
The RRO for natural gas utilizing Direct Energy for small enterprises and residential dwellings using less than 2,500 gigajoules (GJ) per year in January 2021, including Red Deer, was 2.784 cents. It reached 3.893 cents in January 2022.
Multiple causes, according to Scotton, have contributed to the huge increase. The current cold snap, along with supply and demand, enhanced already higher-than-usual use. In addition, charges such as the carbon tax have increased the overall cost of the bill.
Residents such as Jonasson, on the other hand, say that consumption rates are not the issue.
“Everything we can has been converted to LED. When we’re not at home or asleep, dim the lights and turn the heat down to a low setting. The issue isn’t with the way it’s being used. We were able to reduce that number. The problem is with the costs. Levies for delivery, carbon fees, and administrative costs. Those are continuing to rise, she stated.
She states that she used to spend only $7 per month for power when she lived in a two-bedroom apartment because she was rarely home. Her cost eventually increased to $50 per month in delivery and administrative fees once the carbon price was implemented.
Because those fees are imposed by either the federal government or the energy provider, Scotton also mentioned transmission and distribution as a role in growing costs.
Transmission charges cover the transportation of electric energy from producing facilities to transformers via high-voltage transmission lines, which is the first phase in the power generation process. The expense of transporting electric energy from transformers to local, lower-voltage lines to consumers is covered by distribution charges.
Transmission and distribution charges account for roughly 17 and 33 percent of one’s power bill, according to the Utilities Consumer Advocate (UCA).
In late 2019, the Alberta government eliminated the price cap program for RRO payers, according to Jonasson, and rates began to rise.
The NDP government implemented this initiative in 2017 to mitigate the risk of price variations as the province transitioned from an energy-only to a capacity market. Generators are paid based on the fluctuating wholesale price of electricity in an energy-only market. Energy companies would auction contracts to the government in capacity markets, and a newly appointed agency would choose the contract that best fulfills the province’s needs.
The price cap of 6.8 cents per kilowatt-hour for electricity was also eliminated when the plan to shift to a capacity market was canceled.
“Albertans’ monthly electricity rates are currently two-to-three times higher than they were a year ago at this time,” said NDP Leader Rachel Notley.
This significant price increase is a direct outcome of the UCP government’s choices.
Notley believes the UCP has been slow to encourage innovative technologies like energy storage that would lower costs, and that the price ceiling, a temporary reverse rate rider, or an electricity rebate should be reinstated.
There are better options than the price cap, according to Alberta Energy, such as fixed-price contracts, equalized payment plans, or the floating regulated rate, all of which may be compared using a comparison tool on the UCA website.
“Unlike a rate cap, which simply hides the cost of power and shifts the burden from consumers to taxpayers, these price protection solutions do not add to the national debt, according to Associate Minister of Natural Gas and Electricity Dale Nally.
The provincial government also claims that the withdrawal of cheaper coal choices had an impact on supplies.
“The energy-only market is responding, with over 40 generation projects under construction that will add 4,000 MW to the grid in the coming months and years. This increase in supply, he explained, can help lower costs over time because of the investor-friendly climate fostered by the energy-only market.
For Albertans like Jonasson, the government should either reinstate the ceiling or provide a family rebate.
“All that implies is that we’ll have to tighten the reins even more. We already steer clear of takeout and delivery. All of the meals are prepared at home. Because of my husband’s schedule during the day, I may have to look for midnight work, and the cost of daycare would prevent me from working, she stated. “For many families, however, this is not an option. Some people do not have access to credit. They don’t have a lot of money and are living paycheck to paycheck. I’m fortunate in that we’ll be fine. Others, on the other hand, will not.
In their budget, the Alberta government announced that they will create an energy refund and consumer protection program, however they did not provide a timeline or specify electricity rebate programs.
Is living in Calgary affordable?
Calgary has the second lowest cost of living in Canada, and it is less expensive than many large North American cities. We also have North America’s most affordable housing market.
Alberta has among of the lowest provincial taxes, personal income taxes, and inheritance taxes in the country. Not only is provincial health insurance free, but Alberta is also the only province in Canada without a sales tax, with a 5% GST.
Check out Statistics Canada’s Consumer Price Index to see how Calgary compares to other Canadian cities when it comes to the cost of goods and services: