Why? If you live in Alberta and you're lucky enough to still have a job you might think the current real estate market presents a buying opportunity. Because I work in finance I'm often asked about my opinion on when the best time to buy is and where I think prices are going. Obviously, real estate markets are hard to predict because there are many factors at play but if you understand how these factors impact price I think you'll have a much better chance at making the right decision. The Basics Like almost everything else in the world real estate prices are based on supply and demand and can be graphically shown using a chart like the one below. Basically, where the willingness to supply new houses meets the demand to purchase those houses you have an equilibrium. If you then draw two lines across and down from that intersection you will find the price where the market is balanced and the quantity where that market is balanced. This is the basic approach to de