Now that there appears to be a (somewhat distant) end to the COVID-19 pandemic on the horizon, you can’t help but wonder about all the things that may have changed too much to go back to the old status quo. Sure: with enough time, our comfort with human contact and general proximity to other people will most likely revert to pre-pandemic levels–that’s pretty much a given. But other societal shifts such as remote working and...
Canadian cities are often part of discussions involving the most expensive property markets in the world, news that shouldn’t be remotely surprising to anyone in the Great White North. Over the past year, our list of least affordable cities has reshuffled in somewhat unexpected ways and may continue to do so in the future as people gain greater flexibility to work remotely. This has caused an overall shift in the Canadian real estate market. Once...
When Canada first went into lockdown last year, we braced for the worst. As much of the economy shut down, many Canadians suddenly found themselves jobless and in a precarious financial state. Experts warned of the dire effects this would have on households, and their ability to pay off their debt and mortgages. Without steady income to keep up payments, people were likely to face insolvency and foreclosures given what we knew at the time....
It’s a remote-access world now, with everyone making the leap to digital services together. Truth be told, the real estate industry has been heading this way for some time now—the COVID-19 pandemic just sped up the timetable. Before the virus, the incentive to digitize operations stemmed from a desire for convenience and efficiency. Instead of relying on mountains of paperwork (which needs to be sorted, filed, and secured), it made sense to implement modern software...
“There’s no place like home”, although with the way things are going, perhaps “there’s no place but home” is more accurate. Shelter-in-place, stay-at-home, quarantining, self-isolation – however you want to slice it, we’re all stuck in our homes whether we like it or not. With COVID-19 case counts rising in some regions, that doesn’t appear to be something likely to change anytime soon, either. But there are silver linings even to these dark, dark clouds....
By this point in 2020, the broad beats of this pandemic have been pretty thoroughly played out. While we face continued uncertainty about how much longer we’ll have to live with this virus, the changes it has wrought on our lifestyles and living situations are quite apparent. We now know working and learning remotely are likely going to be prominent parts of the months (perhaps years) to come, even once we’re out of the woods....
There’s a simple answer to that question, with a somewhat counterintuitive explanation. How has COVID-19 affected housing sales? Well: housing sales have hit record highs, with housing prices closely following suit in July and August. From the looks of things, I’d say that far from hindering the housing market, the pandemic has actually boosted it. While that alone is a remarkable testament to the resilience of the Canadian real estate market, the factors contributing to...
As we approach the end of 2020, much of the country is still contending with the pandemic. As some provinces approach zero-cases, others are beginning to see daily COVID-19 cases rising at discouraging rates. This has considerable implications for people’s health, livelihood, and homes. Self-isolation and quarantine requirements have made stable (and accessible) accommodation more important than ever – something that has been addressed in different ways across the provinces. In light of that, the...
Here’s your challenge: you have a single space that needs to function as an office, classroom, gym, recreation area, kitchen, and dining area all at the same time. What do you do? If that sounds like an impossible proposition to pull-off successfully, that’s because it is – there’s almost no way to make a single space work effectively for all of those functions at the same time. And yet, that’s precisely the predicament so many...
The breakneck pace of technological change has fundamentally affected the way industries operate and innovate, and banking is no exception. Accessing financial services online has been the norm for years now, with an overwhelming majority of the population using digital channels for most banking transactions. The infrastructure that makes all of this possible, routinely processes massive amounts of sensitive data and needs to constantly evolve to ensure it all remains secure. To gain a better...
