Modern Homebuying: How Digital-First Homebuying Is Changing the Game in Canada

From AI-powered insights to co-buyer apps, digital tools are transforming every stage of the homebuying journey, empowering Canadians to make smarter, faster, and more transparent real estate decisions.

By Kristin Doucet | 7 minute read

From AI-powered insights to co-buyer apps, digital tools are transforming every stage of the homebuying journey for Canadians.

Twenty years ago, the search for a home meant scanning newspaper listings, driving from open house to open house, browsing a plethora of listings sites, and waiting for your agent to send over new options or comparable sold listings. Prices were harder to compare, local data wasn’t widely available, and buyers often had to rely heavily on an agent’s expertise to gauge what was a fair price. 

Even with today’s digital advances, the process is still somewhat fragmented and cumbersome. Buyers still juggle multiple platforms for listings, mortgages, and legal documents, with little integration between them.

Still, those same digital gaps have fueled innovation. As technology continues to evolve, the democratization of data has reshaped what buyers expect from the experience.  Buyers are less willing to tolerate uncertainty or guesswork because they no longer have to. Today’s homebuyers have access to digital tools and insights to make the homebuying journey easier, smarter and more efficient. Yet even in this data-rich environment, REALTORSⓇ play an essential role helping buyers interpret complex information, navigate local market nuances, and make confident and informed decisions. With technology transforming nearly every stage of the process, from search to closing, Canadians are entering an era where the process of buying and selling real estate is faster, more transparent, and, in some cases, even saves you money. 

Mobile apps, smarter home searches, accessible market data and digital tools now guide buyers through what used to be a maze of listings, agents, and paperwork. Instead of relying solely on phone calls or weekend open houses, today’s  homebuyer can compare properties, book viewings, and even apply for a mortgage online, often from the palm of their hand. For many, this digital-first approach isn’t just convenient; it’s the only way they want to buy.

The Digital-First Homebuying Experience 

A digital-first homebuying journey begins where so much of our daily transactions now happen: on a smartphone. Buyers can filter listings in real time, compare neighbourhood data, get notifications about a property, and track price changes as they happen. They can tour homes virtually, chat instantly with agents or mortgage specialists, and collaborate with a co-buyer in real time.

 Instead of navigating multiple websites and email chains, buyers can now access everything, including market insights, comparable sales, mortgage rates, and even historical listing data, through a single platform. It’s a complete ecosystem that connects buyers, sellers, agents, and lenders in one digital space. This helps to automate paperwork, simplify scheduling and reduce travel time. 

A Faster, Smarter, and More Informed Homebuying Process

The homebuying process has evolved over the last two decades. Most buyers now start their home search online, long before they ever connect with a REALTOR®. Virtual tours allow them to “walk through” properties from anywhere. Price history, property value estimates, school rankings, walkability scores, and neighbourhood safety data are available instantly. Even financing has evolved. Mortgage pre-approvals can be completed digitally, documents can be e-signed, and closing can also be done digitally through secure online portals. What once took weeks to complete can often happen in a matter of days. This transformation hasn’t just made the process faster, it’s also made it smarter.

Tech-Savvy Buyers Are Leading the Charge

According to Wahi’s 2025 Homebuyer Intentions Survey, younger Canadians are most likely to purchase a home in 2025 compared to older generations. Millennials and Gen Z are also driving the demand for a more digital, data-driven homebuying experience, and expect the homebuying process to be similar to other parts of their digital lives. For these generations, convenience, speed, and transparency are basic expectations. Whether they’re planning a vacation, ordering food, or buying a home, technology is essential to their lives. They want the same intuitive experience they get from other digital transactions: personalized recommendations, instant updates, and clear data they can trust.

Information at Your Fingertips 

Perhaps the biggest shift in modern homebuying is access to information. Data that was once only available to Realtors is now widely available to consumers. On Wahi’s listings, for example, buyers can see how long a property has been on the market, track recent comparable sales, get AI-powered insights about a property, and access market data to see if a local market is a buyer’s, seller’s or a balanced market. Wahi’s market data insights are baked into the property listing pages, providing valuable insights and data on the local market all in one place.

The 2025 CMHC Mortgage Consumer Survey found that buyers are increasingly relying on online research and digital resources before making major decisions. The survey indicates that 77% of mortgage consumers conducted online research when gathering mortgage-related information, 85% used online tools to compare interest rates, 73% used an online mortgage calculator, 52% completed a financial self-assessment and 47% applied for a mortgage online.

Transparency Is the New Normal

For years, buying a home was seen as an opaque process in which agents were the only ones who had access to key details and insightful information that would impact the decision to buy a property. But today’s buyers expect clarity, and that’s where Realtor expertise and data-driven insights work hand in hand.

Digital platforms now include detailed cost breakdowns (including property taxes, mortgage estimates, sold data, and home value estimates), neighbourhood insights, and real-time updates on price drops and more. Yet Realtors remain an important part of the homebuying journey, providing guidance and an in-depth understanding of local markets and neighbourhood nuances.

More transparency means buyers can budget more accurately, avoid unexpected costs, and make more informed decisions. Sellers can also benefit from clearer communication and potentially faster closings. And for Realtors, transparency helps build trust in a competitive market.

Co-Buying and Collaboration

Another major change in modern homebuying is how people can collaborate when buying a home together. A 2024 Wahi survey shows that 77% of Canadian homeowners bought their home with their romantic partner. Rising prices and affordability challenges have made co-buying, whether between partners, friends, or family members, more common.

Some digital platforms and apps have adapted accordingly, allowing multiple buyers to share searches, flag favourite listings, and communicate directly with their agent in one place. This is similar to platforms like Airbnb, which streamlines the booking and communication process, making it easier for multiple users to coordinate.

The Wahi app is the only app that lets you search for homes with a co-buyer or partner to see which properties you both love. Your co-buyer will see your favourite properties, you’ll see theirs, and you’ll see which homes you both love. You can even chat about the homes you’re both excited about with your Realtor, book showings together, and get recommended listings based on your matches. The collaborative experience eliminates the need to email listings back and forth, making the home search process faster and more efficient.

As technology continues to evolve, the homebuying process will only get smarter. Artificial intelligence is already being used to estimate property values, match buyers with homes that suit their lifestyle, and flag potential risks before offers are made.

Meanwhile, mortgage platforms are using automation to pre-qualify borrowers in minutes, and other online tools are digitizing closing processes that once required a lot of paperwork and multiple appointments.

But perhaps the biggest benefit of this digital approach to modern homebuying is empowerment. Buyers today have more power than in previous decades to make more informed, confident choices.

Buying a home has always been one of life’s biggest decisions, not to mention one of life’s biggest purchases. What’s changed is how much control buyers now have over the journey. They can explore, compare, and decide at their own pace, guided by data and the expertise of a Realtor and empowered by technology.

In an era where nearly every major purchase, from cars to vacations, begins online, it’s only fitting that homebuying is catching up. For Canadians, that means the dream of homeownership is becoming not only more accessible, but also more transparent, collaborative, and efficient than ever before.