This year has undoubtedly been one like no other.
2020 has brought with it many challenges, most notably the COVID-19 pandemic.
Throughout it all, CREA Café has continued to provide important information to REALTORS®. Over the past 12 months, CREA Café published more than 300 blogs in both official languages on topics ranging from new technology and housing statistics to the REALTOR® community’s advocacy efforts.
Today, we look at the 10 most popular blog posts from 2020.
Bank of Canada Does Not Expect to Raise Interest Rates Until 2023
Published November 2, 2020
On October 28,2020, the Bank of Canada maintained its overnight lending rate at 0.25%. The Bank noted economic headwinds were rising as the number of COVID-19 cases continued to rise across the country. In this blog, our team of economists break down what that meant for the real estate industry.
Five Photos Your Listing Might Be Missing
Published October 13, 2020
With many people limiting face-to-face interactions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year it was more important than ever to make the right first impression online. That means providing high quality photos that capture the essence of the property as well as interest of potential clients.
While most listings will include photos of staples like the primary bedroom, kitchen and living room, we examined five other shots REALTORS® should consider adding to their gallery.
Go Live on REALTOR.ca: Showcasing Homes Through Technology
Published April 7, 2020
As COVID-19 spread around the world, buyers and sellers became fearful of strangers entering their homes. With open houses cancelled from coast-to-coast, REALTOR.ca pivoted to ensure REALTORS® were able to move forward with virtual tours and live stream open houses.
In April, the ability to highlight live streams directly on REALTOR.ca listings was added. In this blog, we showcase the new feature and explain how REALTORS® can add their live event to their listings.
The Scoop on Five First-Time Home Buyer Programs in Canada
Published November 27, 2020
From rebates to tax credits, there are a variety of initiatives available to support prospective first-time home buyers on their journey to homeownership. Our friends over at REALTOR.ca Living Room gives us the scoop on five first-time home buyer programs available in Canada. This is perfect information to share with your clients!
No Wild West: What FINTRAC and Other Regulators are Saying During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Published April 14, 2020
While recommendations surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic seemed to evolve daily, it could have been easy to assume it was the wild west when it came to legal obligations for REALTORS®. In this blog we explained what obligations REALTORS® had and how they could safely satisfy them in a world shaped by COVID-19. We also looked at what guidance regulators such as the Financial Transaction and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) offered during the early days of the pandemic.
10 Tips for Going Live
Published May 7, 2020
During the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, real estate professionals were encouraged to use alternatives to in-person open houses. Virtual tours and live stream open houses gained popularity, but not all REALTORS® were comfortable using the new technologies. We came up with these 10 essential tips to help make sure your next live stream went off without a hitch. From safety tips and preparations to promoting your event, we covered the entire process.
Current State of Canadian Housing Markets
This year, CREA’s Senior Economist Shaun Cathcart provided a monthly update on the current state of the housing markets in Canada and broke down what the data meant for members. We could have included several of the updates on this “most popular” list, but we decided to group them all together here.
- Current State of Housing Markets in Canada – May 2020
- Current State of Canadian Housing Markets – June 2020
- Current State of Canadian Housing Markets – July 2020
- Current State of Canadian Housing Markets – August 2020
- Current State of Canadian Housing Markets—September 2020
- Will 2020 Wind Up Being a Record Year for Canadian MLS® Home Sales?
- Canadian Home Sales Expected to Set Record For 2020—and Forecast to be Even Higher in 2021
Why are the Bank of Canada and CMHC Buying Mortgages?
Published May 5, 2020
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Bank of Canada and government crown corporations took extraordinary measures to ensure the Canadian financial system continued to operate. CREA Economist Doug Blissett explained what the Bank of Canada and the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) were doing to bolster the Canadian economy and how these plans would work.
Everything You Need to Know About Adding a Live Stream Open House to Your REALTOR.ca Listing
Published April 16, 2020
As the COVID-19 pandemic took away REALTORS® ability to do in-person business, we adapted to ensure our members had the tools they needed. In this blog, we explained what real estate professionals can use livestreaming for, how to get started, how to schedule their live stream on their REALTOR.ca listing and more.
What REALTORS® Should Know About COVID-19
Published March 13, 2020
There’s no question the COVID-19 pandemic is the biggest news story of the year. As the World Health Organization declared the outbreak a global pandemic, we published a blog to help answer questions and calm concerns our members had. The situation rapidly evolved and this blog was soon out of date. Since it was originally published, we’ve continued to provide information to our members on CREA Café, on our COVID-19 hub on CREA.ca and to consumers on REALTOR.ca Living Room.
Do you have a topic you’d like to see cover next year? Tell us your ideas in the Comments below.
The spike in consumer prices that left inflation at a four-decade high of 6.8% in November prompted the Federal Reserve to dramatically shift its approach as it eyes earlier and faster interest rate hikes.