When the province deemed real estate an essential service due to the coronavirus, it was recommended that realtors stop doing open houses.

Realtor Colleen Koehler said that when Ontario Premier Doug Ford kiboshed gatherings of five or more, that essentially put an end to open houses altogether. Koehler, head of the Kitchener-Waterloo Association of Realtors, says people in the profession have begun looking for creative ways — including virtual tours — to show homes without people actually going in them.

She says that instead of taking clients into a home, the agent will go in, film the house, and take questions in real-time.

Toronto realtor Melanie Piche seconded the notion, saying that realtors have begun to use technology to their advantage.

"Virtual open houses are a way to introduce people to properties and really reduce the number of times people are having to go into each other's homes," she said.

Her partner, Brendan Powell, explained that a realtor will show up at a home at a set time and date and will address people's questions on a live stream.

"People who want to do more than just look at a virtual tour can actually talk to the agent and say,'Can you show me what the flooring's like?' or 'Show me what the view from the top floor is like,'" he said. "People can see those things the same way that they might see it if they were there without actually physically being there."

In an attempt to limit the spread of COVID-19, realtors have also developed a questionnaire to determine someone's risk levels and have used some creative solutions for when people need to enter into houses.