Effects Of COVID On Real Estate: Can It Enhance It?

How could the effects of COVID on real estate help? Isn’t the virus supposed to hurt the economy? What has Hamilton done to improve their home buying location?

I know what you’re thinking, how can a pandemic help Hamilton’s housing market? It was an article in the New York Times that caught my attention. I am a big believer in cause and effect. So, for example, World War II saw Germany and Japan bombed so badly that they regrouped and rebuilt it into economic powers. With the pandemic, many Americans are starting to relocate from urban cities to the suburbs. We will review what is happening in the States and correlate how the same effect could happen here.

Changes at Work

Many Canadians are learning quickly that their job can easily be done at home. For mortgages in large Canadian cities such as Toronto, they are realizing they can get homes which are better and in cleaner environments. Living in large cities is expensive. Time, money and housing costs are great benefits to the average home owner as is better schools.

Work in the future will change with technology. The employment positions will likely remain, but it will come at a cost and I suspect it will be the exodus of large urban cities in the GTA.

Changes in Lifestyle

Urbanites social life spend most of their time at the office, bars, gyms, restaurants, sporting events and the theatre. Now they have nothing. They are stuck in their small homes or more likely, even smaller condo apartments. Many couples and small facilities are reluctant that this lack of space is affecting their mental happiness.

Population Density

The coronavirus is proving that large urban centers, whether in Europe, the US or Canada, has a much higher incidence of infection. Density and avoiding crowds has been such a concern in America that one in three citizens in large cities is considering moving to the suburbs. It should be no surprise that Toronto is by far the worst city in Ontario for the virus. Will it make Torontonians consider moving?

Mortgage Interest Rates

The silver lining to this pandemic has been interest rates. With the economy sliding, the Bank of Canada has lowered rates to record levels. In fact, financial experts have predicted that they will remain low in the foreseeable future. Interest rates are low and for many urban dwellers, it may never be cheaper.

If US trends come over the border, Hamilton and the Niagara region will be great benefactors for purchases of real estate. An online real estate brokerage, Redfin, has seen online listings for houses in the suburbs and small towns outpace big cities by 164% in the past two months. The factors of changes of work, lifestyle, population density and low interest rates bode well for future Hamilton real estate prices. Toronto, we thank you.

Robert Floris has been in the mortgage industry for 30 years, including working as a Sales Manager for a major chartered bank. Over his career, he has personally lent over 1 billion dollars and proudly continues to advise and tutor his valuable clients.

Robert Floris is a Mortgage Broker. His office is located at 651 Fennell Avenue East in Hamilton, Ontario. If you would like to speak with Robert, he can be reached at 905-574-9200 #215. Alternatively, you can contact Robert here.

If you would like to apply for a mortgage online, please follow this link.

If you would like to see our Google reviews or leave one yourself, you can do so here.