"It was just the craziest experience," says Skinner of that day in February when, seven months pregnant with her first child, she set off on her buying adventure. "My husband Shaun was at work, so he had to rely on me to make the decision and do the deal for both of us."

Skinner knew she had to think, and act, fast. She and Shaun had made an offer in January on a townhouse. "We were the eighth offer that day, and we didn't get it. We knew the real estate market in Calgary was getting frenzied, but we weren't prepared at all. We were blown away."

On Wednesday, CREB reported that the average price of a single-family home in Calgary hit an all-time high of $363,370, a jump of more than $86,000 in one year and a number that now puts Calgary's price growth at twice the national average. MARKET UPDATE: The average price of a SF home in Calgary was $410,076 for the period Jun 01 - Jun 20, up 51% from same period last year.

Whether they're coming to Calgary for the first time or returning after being away for a year or more, those entering the city's real estate market today are finding themselves in for the shock of their lives.

"It was pretty scary," says oilpatch engineering manager Frank Brezsnyak of his return to Calgary after three years of living in South America and the United States. "There seemed to be a 40 per cent jump in what things cost," says Brezsnyak, who bought a half-duplex in Killarney in February. "It was like going backwards and still paying a lot more."

"Absolutely astonished and amazed" is the way Sylvia Smith describes her out-of-town clients when they hit Calgary soil. "You try to prepare them as best as you can, but they still can't believe it until they see it with their own eyes." Smith, an owner-agent of Keller Williams Platinum Realty, works with several corporate clients to help their employees relocate to our city.

In her 25 years in the business, she's seen nothing like what's happening right now. In addition to the unprecedented cost of real estate here, buyers are experiencing the added stress of a market so hot that once-rare tactics -- think bidding wars, waiving all conditions in an offer and sealing the deal in one day -- are now par for the course.

"It's a frenzy, there's a sense of urgency for buyers like never before," she says.

To lessen the blow for newcomers to town, Smith picks up her clients at the airport in a shiny white Cadillac, complete with refreshments and food in the back.

It may seem like just another perk, but for Edmontonian Jennifer Ursenbach, it was a lifesaver. When Smith took her and husband Andrew on a whirlwind day that included viewing 10 houses and an accepted offer by sunset, Ursenbach was so stressed she forgot to eat. "Sylvia said, 'Oh, here's something,'" she recalls with a laugh.

Like so many others new to town, the Ursenbachs discovered they had to lower their expectations in order to find a home in Calgary's far southwest.

"We ended up paying nearly $100,000 more for a home comparable to the one we had in Edmonton," says the expectant mother, whose engineer husband recently got a promotion requiring him to relocate to his hometown.

"This is probably the worst time to buy here," she says, "but we're still excited to be coming to Calgary."

Christina Hagerty says the new real estate landscape requires a whole lot more from newcomers hoping to buying their dream home.

"People need to not only be mentally prepared, they need to do their homework," says the agent with Remax Professionals. "They should get educated fast about what's going on here, or at least have a realtor who knows and can guide them."

Curtis Birchall is one of those well-educated relocators. The 25-year-old businessman, who grew up in Cochrane, knew what he was in for when he decided to come home after spending the past year in Toronto. Three hours after viewing a penthouse condo in Lower Mount Royal, he had "signed the papers and had a new home."

His advice for other prospective home owners coming in to the market? "If you find something you like, grab it," he says. "If you don't, it will likely be gone tomorrow." Smith agrees. "All those things that cities like Toronto and Vancouver have had for years, multiple offers, bidding wars -- is now a fact of life in Calgary," she says. "I tell them before we get started, 'Better bring your chequebook with you.' "

After all, says Smith, the era of the real estate tire-kicker is officially over.