Google search trends for the terms "buying a second home" and "buying a vacation home" reached a five-year high in July, jumping 235 percent annually. Home sales in vacation destination areas started accelerating in July 2020 and posted a 34% annual gain this past fall, NAR data shows.

C.A.R. data shows that sales in resort markets like Lake Tahoe, Lake Arrowhead, Mammoth Lakes and Palm Springs saw sales more than double during the second half of 2020 from where they were the previous year. While many of these buyers are newly minted work-from-homers seeking a new primary residence, many are shopping for vacation homes, figuring hotels won't be safe for some time now. Funds that may have once been allocated to travel expenses can now be funneled directly into the down payment.

Virtual showing and closing solutions aren't new, but thanks to the pandemic, they're now ubiquitous. Buyers are growing increasingly accustomed to the Facetime walkthroughs and 3D tours, so much so that new listings without these features may give buyers pause. With the pandemic still underway, these virtual solutions show no sign of diminishing soon-and many REALTORS are likely to continue using them well after the pandemic ends.

Looking into the future, we see Zoom consultations as a continuing service. Zoom consultations have become a very safe way for REALTORS to share their value proposition and assess a potential buyer or seller's needs and motivations prior to meeting the face to face.

There's nothing like having to spend all your time at home to make you fully grasp the importance of your living space. As soon as real estate was listing as an essential service last April, buyers with the financial wherewithal started competing for homes with more square footage, outdoor spaces, home offices and larger kitchens. CAR's monthly Consumer Housing Sentiment Survey also showed the percentage of consumers who thought it was a good time to buy a home actually increased with the onset of the crisis. More first-time buyers have entered the market, too, reaching the highest share in 10 years (a 38% market share), according to CAR data.