Real Estate's Platinum Agent Era Is Over

🧐 What It Really Takes to Buy Your First Home in 2025

• Nearly half (47%) of first-time buyers are between 25–34, but more older buyers (35+) are entering the market than in past years up to 39% in 2025

• The median income among first-time buyers has surged to $105,000, compared to $60,000–$90,000 just five years ago.

• 40% of buyers are receiving down payment gifts, averaging $74,570 nationally and over $ 140,000 in B.C to help close the affordability gap.

• Over half of first-time buyers co-purchased with someone other than a spouse including siblings, friends, and even parents.

• Young buyers are leaving Ontario and B.C. for cheaper markets like Montreal and Alberta.

Why This Matters: The image of the young solo buyer scraping together a down payment is fading fast. In today’s market, entering homeownership increasingly requires assistance from parents, partners, or roommates. It’s not just about saving, it’s about strategy, support, and sacrifice.

😶‍🌫️ The Platinum Agent Bubble Has Burst

• Between 2013–2023, Toronto’s pre-construction market was dominated by “Platinum Agents”

• Developers and agents created artificial scarcity by holding back inventory and then re-releasing it at higher prices.

• Many projects sold out in hours but only on paper. Phantom inventory and insider deals were the norm.

• Commissions reached absurd levels up to 8% per unit plus bonuses, trips, and even cars.

• Now? Interest rates are up, buyers have vanished, and platinum agents have nothing left to pitch.

• Developers who go direct-to-consumer are seeing slower but healthier sales based on real demand, not hype.