All current issues you mentioned considered i was referring to detached and semi detached properties with more land share in the suburbs are on the price hike. Small businesses are turning to home deliveries and virtual aswell. More over they are opting to move to suburbs. Those industries who cannot will be taking the burden of survival for sure. The price hikes in the suburbs are very well self explanatory as to who are making them, mostly families with good income and impacted less by the pandemic and cannot be ignored as to what this economically stable group is doing to the market (Real estate experts predictions did not stand a chance). As you said earliar with lower interest rates speculatory applicants in the past years already are making use of the opportunity.There are many small business owners who are home owners. It isn't only low level employees being impacted. Many making little actually may have ended up ahead during the pandemic. In some places like Alberta the economy wasn't strong prepandemic. There is no guarantee that the economy will come roaring back. Pandemic is not going away anytime soon between those who will refuse vaccination and needing to vaccinate the rest of the world. We are still likely talking years to get close to where the world was precovid. Even though employers have moved more virtual I don't see people moving away from the big cities. Many will still need to go into the office but employers may now consider remote work for most employees that was unheard of before covid. A large percentage of workers aren't able to work virtually. The major sector that will get hit are the smaller units. There are still many who have no desire to move to the suburbs. Many employers are still not hiring and even the skilled workers usually need a mortgage. Many of the true consequences of covid haven't been seen yet like evictions, bankruptcies, closures, etc. The US is also in for huge economic issues because of minimal economic support after the cares act. There is a segment who will come out of the pandemic with minimal economic consequences but there is a large amount of people who will end up broke. homeless and needing to start over. Canada is a small economy so our recovery is very dependent on the rest of the world. Repaying all the money we have spent is also going to be a huge issue for generations so there will eventually be pushback when it comes to unlimited spending and we may be in for an election next year that could change plans. Would add that the increase in housing prices for the past 20 years isn't a good thing. Yes certain people made money but housing is extremely unaffordable compared to salaries which means current generation is likely to struggle economically more than their parents.
Pandemic affected housing market in the coming years will majorly be lower cost condos and lower cost houses that "may be" on foreclosures and will again be flipped by very eager real estate flippers only to boost residential housing growth.