Overview
Dalhousie went from 161 residents to more than 10,000 in eleven years. In 1968 the City counted 161 people here, and by 1979 more than 10,500. In the 2021 census, 77% of Dalhousie’s occupied homes dated from 1961 to 1980, against 26% across Calgary.
Each of the four sides is a major road. Crowchild Trail NW runs along the south-west, with Varsity across it. Shaganappi Trail NW is the south-east side, facing Brentwood, John Laurie Boulevard NW the north-east side, facing Edgemont, and Sarcee Trail NW the north-west side, facing Ranchlands. Every address is NW, and Dalhousie is in Ward 4.
Dalhousie Station, on the Red Line, sits on the community’s Crowchild Trail edge, with its bus loop and park and ride inside Dalhousie. The shops are on the south-east side, near the station and along Dalton Drive NW.
Of the 132 homes that sold here in the twelve months to August 2026, 62 were detached houses, at a typical $712,700, and 42 were apartments, at a typical $213,000. The rest were 14 townhouses, 11 semi-detached homes and 3 full duplexes. Most of the apartments and townhouses are in the south-east, between Dalhousie Drive NW, Dalton Drive and the station, and that is where two 15-storey towers went up in 2023 and 2024. On the west side, Baroc Road NW and Morley Trail NW keep lots of up to about an acre from before the suburb was built.
The public elementary and junior high schools are inside Dalhousie, and so is the Catholic elementary. Joining the community association is optional, and one of its two memberships is free.
David’s take
The vibe
Built in a decade and a half
Almost all of Dalhousie came into Calgary in 1961, and it filled up fast from 1968. The detached houses went up first, most of them between 1968 and 1974, and the condominium townhouses and apartments followed through the later 1970s. The population peaked at 10,770 in 1982, and the 2021 census counted 8,530.
Nearly every address is on a street whose name opens with Dal, from Dalcastle to Dalton. The exceptions are a few numbered roads and edge roads, and the three streets of the older pocket on the west side.
The ground climbs about 70 metres across the community, from the Crowchild Trail side up to the corner at John Laurie Boulevard and Sarcee Trail.
The older pocket off Sarcee Trail
The land along Baroc Road NW, Buckboard Road NW and Morley Trail NW was laid out before the rest of Dalhousie. The City’s heritage inventory traces it to a 1950 subdivision on farmland, which it calls the Barosy plan. Lots on Baroc Road are typically 30,834 square feet and on Morley Trail 34,890, and some of the houses on them date from the 1950s.
Buckboard Road is the same land divided up later. Its houses are mostly from 1989 to 1995, on a typical lot of 7,350 square feet, with a few rebuilt since 2010.
Who lives here
In the 2021 census, 21% of Dalhousie’s residents were 65 or older (Calgary: 13%), and households averaged 2.4 people, a little smaller than Calgary’s 2.6. Of every 100 households, 64 owned their home and 36 rented, against 69 and 31 citywide, and 42% of the owners carried a mortgage, where 65% did across Calgary. The median household income for 2020 was $85,000 (Calgary: $98,000).
With the station on the community’s edge, transit carried 14% of Dalhousie’s employed residents to work in 2021. Across Calgary it carried 9%.
A free membership and a paid one
The Dalhousie Community Association offers two kinds of membership. The Basic membership costs nothing. It is for residents with a Dalhousie address, it lasts 24 months from the day you sign up, and it gives adults a vote at the annual general meeting, as long as they are 18 or older and the membership is active two weeks before the meeting.
The Activity membership is the paid tier. For 2026-2027 it is $25 for an adult, $15 for a senior (60+) and $40 for a family of up to two adults and their children, and it runs from September 1 to August 31. The association requires it for a list of its programmes, among them out-of-school care, preschool, school-break and summer camps and spring soccer, and it brings discounts on others.
The association’s buildings are on Dalhart Road and Dallyn Street. The community centre at 5432 Dalhart Rd NW has the outdoor rink behind it, free to use, and the City’s tennis courts at the same address, which the association books for its tennis lessons, and where it runs pickleball.
Dalhousie has no residents association or homeowners association fee. Its condominium units are another matter, and each one carries the condo fee its own corporation sets.
Shops, parks and what is outside
Groceries are inside the community. As of October 2026, a Safeway and a Shoppers Drug Mart are in the shopping centre at 5005 Dalhousie Dr NW, by the station, among about 30 other businesses. Calgary Co-op has a store on the Shaganappi Trail side, and Canadian Tire is on Dalton Drive NW.
The City has 32 park sites in Dalhousie, with playground equipment on twelve of them. Two carry coulee names, the Central Dalhousie Coulee and the South Dalhousie Coulee. There are two City off-leash areas, one at the north end along John Laurie Boulevard and one in the South Dalhousie Coulee off Dalford Road NW, and neither is fully fenced.
Nose Hill Park meets Dalhousie at one point only, the east corner where John Laurie Boulevard and Shaganappi Trail cross, and both roads separate it from the nearest homes. Dalhousie has no library, pool or indoor arena. Nose Hill Library and the City’s Sir Winston Churchill pool are both on Northmount Drive NW in Brentwood.
Housing stock
The City’s 2026 assessments list 1,926 detached houses in Dalhousie, on a typical lot of 6,873 square feet. At the 2021 census, 54% of occupied homes were single-detached houses, close to Calgary’s 55%.
There are also 236 half-duplexes, each on its own title, and 35 duplexes held as whole buildings, nearly all built between 1968 and 1979. Dalhousie Drive NW, Dalhousie Crescent NW, Dalgleish Road NW and Dalton Bay NW hold most of them. In the sales figures, these half-duplexes are counted as semi-detached homes.
The condominiums number 1,271 units in 11 condominium plans. Among them are 428 townhouses and 395 apartments in two high-rise buildings on Dalton Drive NW, one from 1977 and one from 1981. The low-rise apartment condominiums date from 1976 and 1977, and from 1997 and 1998 on Dalhousie Drive NW. All but one of the eleven plans sit in the south-east, between Dalhousie Drive, the station, Dalton Drive and the Co-op. None of Dalhousie’s townhouses stands on its own freehold lot.
The newest apartment buildings are the two 15-storey towers on Dalton Drive NW. City building permits put them at 269 units, completed in 2023, and 177 units, completed in 2024. The community association describes them as rentals.
Since August 4, 2026, when Council’s repeal of citywide rezoning took effect, most Calgary lots are back on the zoning they had before. On the City’s current map most of Dalhousie’s land is R-C1, and the City now allows secondary suites in every low-density district. Check the parcel you’re buying on the City’s map before you count on what can be built there.
A half-duplex here shares a wall with the half beside it, so ask your lawyer whether a party wall agreement sits on its title. A condominium unit comes with its corporation’s bylaws, budget and reserve fund study for your lawyer to read. The post on homeowners association fees in Calgary covers what else can be registered on a Calgary title.
| Type | Median sale price | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | $719,750 | 56 |
| Semi-detached | $510,000 | 10 |
| Row / townhouse | $343,500 | 9 |
| Apartment | $206,194 | 36 |
| All home types | $567,500 | 111 |
Recent sales
Detached houses were 62 of the 132 homes sold in Dalhousie in the twelve months to August 2026, or 47.0%. They sold for a typical $712,700, in a range from $552,000 to $1,999,999, and half sold within 19 days. The typical one was a 1972 build.
The 42 apartments went for a typical $213,000, from $175,000 to $440,000. Half of them sold within 47 days, the typical one was built in 1979, and the typical condo fee was $578 a month.
The 14 townhouses sold for a typical $366,500, from $269,500 to $508,000, with half sold within 37 days and a typical condo fee of $351 a month. The 11 semi-detached homes went for a typical $515,000, from $473,500 to $659,000, and half of them sold within 19 days, as quickly as the detached houses. Three full duplexes, each sold as a whole two-unit building, make up the rest.
Across all 132 sales the typical price was $575,000, and the middle half sold between $310,000 and $722,500. Half of all homes sold within 32 days, and the typical seller got 97.56% of the asking price. Average all 132 prices and you get $541,340, which is $33,660 under the typical price. The 42 apartments, at a typical $213,000, go into that average beside the 62 detached houses at a typical $712,700, and they bring it below the middle sale. The average time to sell was 38 days.
In the twelve months to August 2026, a typical detached house sold for $918,500 across Crowchild Trail in Varsity and $723,000 across Shaganappi Trail in Brentwood, against Dalhousie’s $712,700. Edgemont’s apartments, across John Laurie Boulevard, sold for a typical $217,500, about the same as the $213,000 here.
Selling a house in Dalhousie begins with a home valuation of that one house. Buying here begins with the buyer’s guide.
Getting around
Dalhousie Drive NW and 53 Street NW are the main roads through the community, and 53 Street meets Crowchild Trail on the south-west side. Dalton Drive NW, Dalhart Road NW and Dalcastle Drive NW are the other main streets inside.
The station’s bus loop and park and ride are inside Dalhousie, and the northbound platform is on the Dalhousie side of Crowchild Trail. Pedestrian bridges cross Crowchild Trail at the station and at 53 Street, into Varsity, and another crosses Shaganappi Trail into Brentwood. No pedestrian bridge crosses John Laurie Boulevard or Sarcee Trail.
Calgary Transit has 58 stops inside Dalhousie, the northbound CTrain platform among them, and no MAX stop. Route 422 Dalhousie/Montgomery has the most stops here, on Dalhousie Drive, Dalton Drive, 53 Street and Dalhart Road. Routes 97 South Ranchlands/Scenic Acres and 76 Hawkwood run along Dalhousie Drive and 66 Avenue NW every day, and Route 113 North Ranchlands/Scenic Acres does on weekdays. Route 105 Dalhousie Station/Lions Park Station uses Dalton Drive and Dalhousie Drive, and Routes 9, 54, 77, 129 and 154 run from the station loop. The school routes run one or two trips each way, on school days only, which is not service to plan around.
If you work or study at the University of Calgary, the drive from the middle of Dalhousie comes to 9 minutes when the roads are clear. On the same clear roads, the drive to Foothills Medical Centre comes to 11 minutes, to the Municipal Building downtown 19 minutes and to Calgary International Airport 21 minutes. Weekday traffic lengthens every one of them.
| Downtown | 19 min |
|---|---|
| University of Calgary | 9 min |
| Foothills Hospital | 11 min |
| Airport (YYC) | 21 min |
Schools
Of the six schools Dalhousie is designated to, three are inside the community, and the list is the same at every address.
As CBE publishes it in October 2026, a Dalhousie child’s public schools are West Dalhousie School, 6502 58 St NW, for kindergarten to grade 6, and then H.D. Cartwright School, 5500 Dalhart Rd NW, for grades 7 to 9. Both are in Dalhousie. For grades 10 to 12 they cross Shaganappi Trail to Sir Winston Churchill High School, at 5220 Northland Dr NW in Brentwood.
On the Catholic board, as CSSD publishes it in October 2026, St. Dominic School, at 4820 Dalhart Road NW inside Dalhousie, takes kindergarten to grade 6. For grades 7 to 9 it’s St. Jean Brebeuf School, 5030 Northland Drive NW in Brentwood, and for grades 10 to 12 St. Francis High School, 877 Northmount Drive NW in Collingwood. St. Francis stays Dalhousie’s Catholic high school when CSSD’s 2027-2028 boundaries take effect.
Dalhousie School, at 4440 Dallyn St NW, is easy to mistake for the local school. It teaches a Spanish Bilingual programme only, a programme of choice, and no Dalhousie address is designated to it.
A designation can still change for a later year, so look up the address in CBE’s Find a School and the CSSD school finder while your offer is conditional. Attendance areas and programmes of choice are explained in the schools resource.
West Dalhousie School
Public, K-6
Every Dalhousie child in the public system starts here, kindergarten to grade 6, as CBE publishes it in October 2026. It stands inside the community, at 6502 58 St NW. Check the exact house number in CBE's Find a School before your conditions come off.
H.D. Cartwright School
Public, 7-9
All of Dalhousie is designated to it for grades 7 to 9, as CBE publishes it in October 2026, and it's on the same road as the community centre, at 5500 Dalhart Rd NW. Enter the house number in CBE's Find a School and choose the matching address from its suggestions.
Sir Winston Churchill High School
Public, 10-12
Dalhousie's teenagers cross Shaganappi Trail to Brentwood for grades 10 to 12, to this school at 5220 Northland Dr NW, as CBE publishes it in October 2026. CBE's Find a School holds the answer for each address.
St. Dominic School
Catholic, K-6
Catholic kindergarten to grade 6 for every Dalhousie address, as CSSD publishes it in October 2026. The school is inside Dalhousie, at 4820 Dalhart Road NW. Confirm it in the CSSD school finder before the deal is firm.
St. Jean Brebeuf School
Catholic, 7-9
For grades 7 to 9, Dalhousie's Catholic students go over Shaganappi Trail to Brentwood, as CSSD publishes it in October 2026. The school is at 5030 Northland Drive NW. The CSSD school finder will show it for the address you're buying.
St. Francis High School
Catholic, 10-12
Catholic senior high, grades 10 to 12, as CSSD publishes it in October 2026, and still Dalhousie's school under CSSD's 2027-2028 high school boundaries. It is in Collingwood, at 877 Northmount Drive NW. The CSSD school finder settles it for one address.
Frequently asked questions
What do homes sell for in Dalhousie?
Detached houses and apartments sit far apart here, so the type decides it. In the twelve months to August 2026, 62 detached houses sold for a typical $712,700, from $552,000 to $1,999,999, and 42 apartments for a typical $213,000, from $175,000 to $440,000, with a typical condo fee of $578 a month. The 14 townhouses went for a typical $366,500 and the 11 semi-detached homes for $515,000, and 3 full duplexes also sold. Counting all 132 sales, the typical price was $575,000, and the middle half sold between $310,000 and $722,500. One particular house needs a home valuation of its own.
Do Dalhousie homeowners pay an association fee?
Not a required one. Dalhousie has no residents association or homeowners association fee. The Dalhousie Community Association has two memberships, and neither is required to own a home here. The Basic membership is free to residents and lasts 24 months. The 2026-2027 Activity membership is $25 for an adult, $15 for a senior (60+) and $40 for a family, and the association requires it for programmes such as out-of-school care, preschool, camps and spring soccer. A condominium unit is different, because each condo corporation sets its own condo fee. The apartments that sold in the twelve months to August 2026 had a typical condo fee of $578 a month, and the townhouses $351. Whatever the purchase, your lawyer goes through its title.
Is Dalhousie Station inside Dalhousie?
Partly. Dalhousie Station, on the Red Line, sits on the community’s Crowchild Trail edge, with its bus loop and park and ride inside Dalhousie. The northbound platform is on the Dalhousie side, and the station’s pedestrian bridges cross Crowchild Trail to Varsity. The City’s land corporation is studying the station park and ride for housing, and nothing has been approved.
Which schools are Dalhousie homes designated to?
It’s one answer for the whole community, on either board. As CBE publishes it in October 2026, a Dalhousie child goes to West Dalhousie School for kindergarten to grade 6 and H.D. Cartwright School for grades 7 to 9, both inside the community, then crosses Shaganappi Trail to Sir Winston Churchill High School in Brentwood for grades 10 to 12. As CSSD publishes it in October 2026, Catholic schooling starts at St. Dominic School inside Dalhousie, kindergarten to grade 6, continues at St. Jean Brebeuf School in Brentwood for grades 7 to 9, and finishes with St. Francis High School in Collingwood, grades 10 to 12, which stays Dalhousie’s school under CSSD’s 2027-2028 high school boundaries. Dalhousie School, on Dallyn Street NW, is a different case: it teaches a Spanish Bilingual programme only and is not the designated school for any Dalhousie home.
Does Dalhousie back onto Nose Hill Park?
No. Nose Hill Park and Dalhousie meet at a single point, the community’s east corner, where John Laurie Boulevard NW and Shaganappi Trail NW cross. Both roads lie between the park and the nearest Dalhousie homes. Inside Dalhousie the City has two off-leash areas, one at the north end along John Laurie Boulevard and one in the South Dalhousie Coulee off Dalford Road NW, and neither is fully fenced.
Are there acreages in Dalhousie?
A pocket of large lots is left on the west side, near Sarcee Trail and Crowchild Trail. The typical lot is 30,834 square feet on Baroc Road NW and 34,890 square feet on Morley Trail NW, and some of the houses there date from the 1950s. The City’s heritage inventory traces the area to a 1950 subdivision it calls the Barosy plan, which came before the suburb around it. Buckboard Road NW is the same land divided up later, with a typical lot of 7,350 square feet and houses mostly from 1989 to 1995.
Is there a community centre, pool or library in Dalhousie?
A community centre, yes. A pool or a library, no. The Dalhousie Community Centre is at 5432 Dalhart Rd NW, with a free outdoor rink behind it and City tennis courts, which the association books for its tennis lessons, and where it runs pickleball. Nose Hill Library and the City’s Sir Winston Churchill pool are both on Northmount Drive NW in Brentwood, and Silver Springs Outdoor Pool is in Silver Springs.
How old are the homes in Dalhousie?
Most were built between 1965 and 1981, and the detached houses mostly between 1968 and 1974. Typical build years for homes sold in Dalhousie in the twelve months to August 2026 were 1975 across all of them, 1972 for detached houses and 1979 for apartments. The later additions are low-rise condominiums from 1997 and 1998 on Dalhousie Drive NW, houses on Buckboard Road NW from the late 1980s and the 1990s, rebuilds on scattered lots, and two 15-storey towers on Dalton Drive NW completed in 2023 and 2024.
Sales data current as of 2026-08-31. Includes 132 residential sales in Dalhousie over the twelve months to August 2026. Source: Pillar 9 MLS® System. Copyright 2026 Pillar 9. All Rights Reserved.
