COVID-19 impacts Canada’s real estate markets

The Bank of Canada dropped its key lending rate in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to a nationwide drop in mortgage rates. The pandemic is forcing realtors to adapt to cooling sales in recently hot markets. The real estate industry, is a prime example of one that will need to drastically adapt if it’s to be “business as usual.” While brokerages and real estate agents have been deemed “essential services” by the Ontario government, there have been some key changes to the way agents must operate—and it remains unclear how the market will perform as the pandemic evolves.