In Ontario, the government is gradually reopening the economy, allowing facilities from retail stores and parks to open with restrictions to prevent COVID-19 spread. Premier Doug Ford hasn’t set hard deadlines for things to go back to normal completely, but over the next few weeks, people are expected to slowly return to their offices — with caveats. “If there are two words that will characterize the post-pandemic world, it would be behavioural change,” says Ram...
Thanks to the proliferation of apps, social media and other online platforms, there is widespread availability of data that can be used to improve products. It’s known as big data, and it’s a big deal: new, complex and robust data sources can be tapped into to solve new problems. But, much of this data is also unstructured, meaning that a lot of current and traditional software can’t manage it, according to Oracle. What does this...
There are countless tedious tasks associated with owning or managing a property. Whether you’re a landlord, a homeowner selling a home, or a tenant seeking a home, you likely have to deal with contracts, open communication and property viewings. However, the rise of machine learning — a subset of artificial intelligence which, put simply, allows computers to learn from data without being trained to do a specific task — has made automating these tasks easier....
Five Canadian real estate firms have called on Canadian governments to implement consistent building regulations and requirements for disclosing energy and carbon data. Why? Because energy benchmarking and data transparency programs can help set performance baselines, identify efficiency opportunities, reduce GHG emissions, and meet environmental targets. Buildings contribute almost 40% to global carbon emissions — existing AI technology (like energy management platforms) can help reduce building energy output by 30-40 percent across Canada. Rethinking how...
So you want to make a major home renovation. Congratulations! Now, you’ve got to find the right contractor for the job. While doing a thorough online search or asking family and friends is an important first step, once you find a potential contractor, it’s time to start treating the process like a job interview. Being prepared with the right questions protects you from future headaches, but also ensures that you’re happy with the end result....
Virtual and augmented reality may be well-known as a technology used for entertainment, but it has important uses in health, retail, and of course — real estate. Using VR and AR for real estate is not exactly new, as companies have been perfecting the technology over the last several years. However, a lot has changed about how the industry uses it, how technologists build it for optimal use and how we think about its future....
Nearly everything that we do is inside of a building. Whether it’s going to work, living at home, shopping or eating at a restaurant, the expectation is that the buildings we live and work in are safe and built with high standards. However, one blind spot for many buildings is energy efficiency. According to one University of British Columbia report, in Canada, operating a building draws 50% of the energy produced, and buildings emit 35%...
In 2018, Isaac Olowolafe Jr., founder of diversified asset management company Dream Maker Inc., launched Dream Maker Ventures. Focused on providing venture capital funding to tech companies founded by entrepreneurs from marginalized groups – such as women, people of colour and people with disabilities – Dream Maker Ventures is an important part of the Dream Maker Inc. family, which works in verticals like real estate, property management and development. For Olowolafe Jr., launching a venture...
Selling your home can be an extremely stressful experience. Between thinking about moving logistics and financials, it’s easy to miss the small details in between the process. With that in mind, we’ve built this checklist for selling your home to help you keep track of the things that will get a potential buyer interested. Turns out, it’s not as simple as just fluffing pillows or doing a light dusting. “Put your buyer’s hat on and...
While technology is having a major impact on how properties are managed and sold, it’s also having an impact on how properties are created. 3D printing, which allows people to create three-dimensional objects with digital files, is changing the way that we design and create homes and other buildings. With lower cost for materials and a healthier carbon footprint, 3D printing is set to make housing more accessible and design structures previously impractical using current...