The entrance to your home is the first thing to greet guests, and a place everyone in your household passes through daily. Yet it’s strangely easy to neglect this introductory space: perhaps the familiarity of seeing the same planters, door, and stoop every day makes us blind to any shortcomings. Luckily, a few simple adjustments are all you need to give the entry to your abode a good sprucing. Try one of these eight ideas to boost your home’s curb appeal.

When you think of the world of condos and new-build apartments, “unique” may not be the first word that springs to mind. Condos have a reputation for being uniform, but thanks to a new crop of savvy architects and technology-embracing designers, the best modern condos on the market feel more custom than cookie-cutter. From virtual personal assistants capable of ordering in-home beauty treatments to personal chefs hirable at the tap of a button, it’s never been easier to design a lifestyle that feels entirely bespoke. These modern condos are called smart homes for a reason.

As one of the most walkable cities in Canada, Toronto has a lot to offer the daily wanderer. Living a short distance from restaurants, bars, shopping, and cultural institutions is an important aspect of the urban experience. Whether it’s the hustle and bustle of the centre of the city or a tranquil enclave you’re after, these six neighbourhoods are some of the most walkable in the city—ideal for a place to call home.

Renting a condo in Toronto keeps getting more expensive.

The average monthly rent for a condo in the city jumped 7.6 percent in the third quarter from a year ago to a record high C$2,385 ($1,829), according to Urbanation Inc. While the number of new condo rental leases signed grew slightly in the third quarter from last year to 8,186, the market still remains exceptionally tight. Average lease prices in purpose-built rental buildings completed since 2005 in Toronto surged 17 percent to C$3.09 per square foot as higher-rent properties were completed in the past year.

Toronto recently made waves on the web with the news that the Ontario capital had become North America's fastest-growing tech market. According to the CBRE's 2017 North American Scoring Tech Talent report, Toronto added 22,500 new technology jobs to eclipse tech hotbeds New York (5,370) and San Francisco (11,540) combined. In doing so, Toronto leaped from 12th to sixth in the overall annual ranking.

Toronto's housing market has seen a marked slowdown since a new non-resident tax successfully pushed many foreign buyers out, but a forecast from real estate agency Engel + Volkers says a new phenomenon is about to take over as the driver of Toronto's housing boom: The tech industry. The influx of tech companies into Toronto's downtown core in recent years has already had "a huge effect" on the real estate market, said Anthony Hitt, president and CEO of Engel + Volkers North America.

Let’s play a little game. Imagine you have a $15 million real estate budget. You can buy any house, anywhere. What matters to you? What a $15 million house looks like varies—both in terms of square-footage and amenities—depending on the home’s location around the world. Most everyone knows that real estate in New York City or Monaco, for example, is more expensive in terms of square footage than, say, in Houston or Atlanta. Would you prefer to spend the $15 million on roughly 2,418 square feet of space in the hustle and bustle of New York City? Or would you splurge on 11,248 square feet (not to mention the 1.71 acres of land) in quieter Houston?

Transactions reached $16.5 billion. That’s 38 per cent more than the previous record, set in the first quarter of last year, and more than twice the five-year quarterly average, CBRE Group Inc. said in a report Monday. Deal volume for the first six months was $26.8 billion, a half-year record.

There’s a subtle shift under way in the Greater Toronto Area’s presale condominium market in 2018: As developers are launching fewer towering projects designed to woo investors, they are finding there’s still a strong market for people looking to pay a little more money for a larger, family-friendly unit in neighbourhoods outside the downtown core.

With 50 Scollard, the developer set out to build something for the ages.

At this point in the architecture history of downtown Toronto, with each new building aspiring to outshine what came before, it’s not easy to build something iconic.

But when Lanterra Developments, the company behind much-praised projects like Ice Condominiums at York Centre, The Brit Residences at Bay and Wellesley and One Bedford, acquired 50 Scollard Street, they knew they had all the ingredients to make something special. The prime Yorkville location, at the corner of Bay and Scollard across from the Peter Clewes-designed Four Seasons Hotel and Residences Toronto, certainly demanded excellence and elegance.

Strengthening consumer engagement and robust economic fundamentals in the nation’s largest housing market are projected to drive Canadian top-tier real estate performance this fall, as sales over $1 million rebound in Toronto. New data compiled by Sotheby’s International Realty Canada reveal that Greater Toronto Area residential real estate activity over $1 million and luxury activity over $4 million are gaining traction, as summer sales rose 19% and 34% year-over-year respectively.

Toronto Real Estate Board President Garry Bhaura announced sales and price increases on a year-over-year basis in August. Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 6,839 sales through TREB's MLS® System in August 2018 – an 8.5 per cent increase compared to August 2017.

With the proliferation of home rental sites like Airbnb and VRBO, it’s never been easier to rent your house for the additional revenue and flexibility afforded by letting a space on a short- or long-term basis. Homeowners in peak markets make an average of $20,000 a year by renting out their homes—and that’s just through Airbnb.

As cities get more crowded and congested, there is an overwhelming need to get away from it all. “Our clients — executives, well- paid professionals and retirees — are looking to leave the city on weekend getaways or settle for a few months over summer and the fall,” says Rachael Werner, a sales representative at Sotheby’s International Realty Canada

Meet three Canadian architectural firms who are using their talents to make an impact on society. In this age of mounting social and political activism, architects are making a powerful statement in their own right. They’re tackling issues close to their hearts, from helping the homeless to supporting the cause for sustainable food and building better cities through design. We’ve rounded up three leading Canadian architectural firms who are boldly breaking new ground — with a conscience.

August appears to have cemented the Toronto region’s real estate recovery, with average resale home prices up 4.7 per cent year over year to $765,270, including single-family homes and highrise apartments. That is about $34,000 higher than the average a year ago.

In the most exclusive oasis with pink sand shores, impeccable service, and unmatched style of St. Regis, The Residences offer character and comfort that discerning owners desire. Enjoy unique access to amenities and the dedicated expertise that only the St. Regis can offer.

Toronto architect Brian Brisbin wanted to look behind the curtain on one of the world’s buzziest buildings, Milan’s Bosco Verticale, two towers that are widely acknowledged as the world’s first vertical forest — green buildings designed specifically to counteract the smog and heat of a city.

Toronto’s tech ecosystem is receiving endorsements from two of the world’s largest technology companies, with both Intel Corp. and Microsoft Corp. unveiling plans to expand in the city.

Chip-maker Intel is getting back into making dedicated graphics processing units (GPUs) for the first time in two decades, and on Wednesday the company will announce that the key engineering and design work for the project will happen in Toronto.

It goes without saying that architects leave indelible marks on our lives; they are the masterminds behind the homes we live in and the homes we aspire to. From time to time, architects soar above the baseline notoriety of their peers, pushing the envelope, and creating pieces of live-in art that alter the landscape of their industry.