The COVID-19 pandemic has required almost all areas of society to pivot and rethink their business strategies. The real estate industry is no different. As the CEO of Fusion Homes, we’ve had to rethink how we develop homes and communities given our new reality. We don’t know how long this will last, and chances are many things will be permanently different as an outcome.
Despite how challenging our current reality may seem, in several years we’re going to look back and recognize that this experience informed and provided a foundation for why we are the way we are today. With that in mind, there are a number of trends in the real estate industry that I believe will take shape as a result of COVID-19, many of which are already happening.
Safety Measures for New Home Buyers
Sanitation will take on an entirely new meaning when it comes to purchasing a home. As a builder, we have already had to re-evaluate and create new safety guidelines on cleanliness. While the safety of our team and customers have always been a top priority, all protocols have been thoughtfully re-evaluated and reconsidered given the current situation. We will continue to see this in all elements of real estate, from construction to rental properties to buying a condo. Moving forward, I would recommend any new home buyer to do their proper due diligence before considering a purchase and to ensure the place you are looking at has undergone a full disinfection process.
Types of House & Condo Offerings
The outbreak has given communities the opportunity to pause and reset. As a result, many industries will undergo a radical transformation from this pandemic and real estate is no different. We’re going to see a big change in how people live and work which will in turn impact the types of homes and spaces people are interested in living in. For example, I imagine we will see an increase in people looking for 1 Bed + Den or Two Bedroom Condos to allow for a more comfortable work-from-home environment. Similar to how many of us are operating right now, families may continue to have more than one person working from home and will need more space to accommodate these changes.
De-Urbanization
With people looking for more space to accommodate more time-at-home, we will likely see an increase in families moving to areas outside of the city. These outer bureaus often offer a promise of cheaper real estate and more space. With an increase in work-from-home options, many families may not need to live in the crowded downtown core and can simply commute when absolutely necessary.
Digital Everything
It’s interesting to imagine how the world will look after all of this, becoming even more digital than ever before. This is already happening with many different sectors and we’re seeing the same thing in real estate. Everything from digital purchase agreements to virtual colour and finishing selections is already happening and we will continue to see this evolve even further as time goes on. As a society, we are learning to do more things digitally without any physical interaction, which will likely continue long after this pandemic is behind us. This has allowed us to be more efficient with our time in many ways and really evaluate what face-to-face interactions are necessary.
At the end of the day, adversity is our greatest teacher. This is an opportunity for us to become stronger and more resilient because the world is going to be different after this and we will all have to serve our customers, our employees and ourselves in a different way.
We’re not here to just survive, we’re here to thrive. Together, we’ll come out of this stronger and better than we were before.
Lee Piccoli
CEO, Fusion Homes & Fusion Ventures
