A recent survey showed that nearly three out of four restaurant meals are now eaten off-premises. Delivered. Picked up. Consumed on a couch, half-watching Netflix, often in pajamas. Who needs to talk to a waiter when you can swipe.

There’s no question technology has changed how real estate is delivered.
But it hasn’t changed how people find their way through moving.

When someone decides to buy or sell one of the largest assets of their life, they still want a human involved.

Decades ago, buyers scanned newspapers and went to open houses. Without access to MLS listings, they relied on agents to provide the details. That has changed. Today, buyers jump onto Realtor.ca or brokerage websites and do much of their early searching themselves. That shift has improved efficiency. But when the search becomes serious, a laptop is not enough.

When someone gets hungry and orders food online, they open an app, add a credit card, and wait. If the meal is cold or disappointing, it’s irritating but not life-altering.

A bad real estate decision can be.

The appeal of convenience exists in housing too. There are websites that “pre-qualify” you instantly. Apps that show walkability scores and crime statistics. Tools that promise certainty. But accuracy is not guaranteed.

A true pre-approval is not a form that spits out an answer. It is a process.
It requires employment verification, pay stubs, bank statements and credit reports.
And a proper home search is not just about listings. It is about context.

I can show you areas in Durham Region where identical houses backing onto each other on different streets can vary by $50,000 simply because of the street itself. That is not data. That is local knowledge.

Ease and convenience now dominate how we order food, get haircuts and buy groceries. All can be done with a phone. But major financial decisions — whether buying a home, investing, or planning retirement — still depend on judgment.

Homes are bought and sold for deeply human reasons:  a growing family,  an empty nest, divorce,  death and financial pressures.

These are not transactions. They are transitions.

There is comfort in knowing that when life becomes complicated, someone is guiding you through a process that carries both emotional and financial risk. Someone whose job is not just to facilitate a deal, but to protect your interests.

Technology has greatly enhanced how we realtors deliver service. Electronic signatures mean you can be most anywhere in the world and sign agreements. On demand email notifications in real time when homes come on the market gives Buyers an edge on other interested parties. Technology has made real estate better, it has not made it less personal. 

In the end I feel most Sellers and Buyers want a guide, to help them navigate the complexity of moving. Back to the “home delivery of food” you can order without dealing with a grumpy hostess, you can sit back and have someone else do the deep frying, however when it comes to buying or selling a home, you can’t digitize decades of local knowledge or negotiating expertise of knowing which streets are the ones to avoid. After 4 decades of selling homes I have come to realize that most issues that arise in real estate, happen during the looking process, not as a surprise once the moving trucks have long left.

If you are planning on buying or selling a home, I can be reached at lindsay@buyselllove.ca or 905-743-5555