“It’s the first time in a long time where I’ve seen listings go at asking price or over asking price,” he said, noting the last time he experienced a market like this was in the early 2000s. “I was just speaking to another agent about this: Houses are up for 48 hours and they’re gone.”

New real estate players are trying to grab a piece of Canada’s booming real estate market, taking on traditional brokerages in the latest battle for a share of the lucrative business.

The opening of Japanese retailer Uniqlo’s first Quebec store last week had the markings of a major happening in downtown Montreal, as hundreds of people lined up for hours outside the Eaton Centre location for chance to shop at the trendy chain’s largest Canadian outlet. For most in the crowd, it marked their first trip downtown in months.

Real estate investors are increasingly trying to get out of closing on their newly built condos in the Toronto region, as rents plummet and banks toughen borrowing qualifications for rental properties.

After an increase in wildfires, storms and other natural disasters, many cities have begun both short and long-term planning for infrastructure that will blunt the effects of climate change. Their current property values could be at stake as well.