This may surprise you, but the fashion forward aren’t the only people who monitor the trends and styles that designers send down the runway.  Economists and realtors like myself also look to cool hunters in the fashion world to forecast consumer consciousness and behaviour. Of course, fashion and real estate don’t have a direct cause-and-effect relationship, but what’s in style can be an excellent barometer for feelings about financial security.

For instance, just like the June 2011 cover of Vogue Africa, the increasing use of heavy metal in 2011 fashion appears to correlate with the drastic rise in the demand and value of gold this year. Could there be an economic indicator here?

Did you know the lengths of women’s hemlines have been studied to help track dips and rises in the stock market since the late 1920s? The hemline indicator suggests that the higher the hemline, the more free-spending consumers are, and the lower the skirt the more modest we are. This fall it’s all about calf-length hemlines, indicating we are becoming more conservative and cautious in our spending.

But note this doesn’t mean compromising the rich shimmery jewel tones that convey wealth as was seen in the 2011 Fall Gucci Collection. Interesting eh?

Here’s one more. As affluent Chinese buyers are dominating the Vancouver and Toronto real estate markets, Asian opulence is a blossoming global trend in fashion right now. Simple flowing silks and fluttering kimonos are taking centre stage, providing they’re styled with the right degree of subtlety. This superpower is poised to play a growing role influencing the Canadian real estate market. The time is now to explorehow your home respects the Chinese systems of Feng Shui in order to appeal to this growing segment of the market.

After several seasons of excess and artifice, the world of fashion is proclaiming the conspicuous displays of the last decade are gone. From 2011 into the 20-teens, fashion will evolve into a drive for subtle consumption mixed with obvious quality. Consumers will be buying less but spending more. They’ll choose items which are less bland but better quality. And they’ll purchase fewer indulgences but better statement pieces. Which, I believe, translates easily into our world of real estate.

In our 2011 Fall Forecast, urbaneer,com predicts Torontonians will buy (and move) less frequently but ultimately spend more. They’ll eschew ubiquitous Big Box Store fixtures for custom and designer fittings. And they’ll opt for less space providing it’s finished to a higher quality (or custom-tailor it as such without losing money).

Are you curious for more?

At urbaneer.com, we spend as much time focusing on how you want to live as much as what you might buy. With a comprehensive understanding of Toronto’s 42 village neighbourhoods, and an acute awareness of how fashion influences our built environment, we pride ourselves on being one of the city’s more personable real estate boutique services offering a pressure & hassle-free approach to real estate sales and marketing.

Are you thinking of selling? Our business is as much about promoting properties for sale as placing buyers. Ranking in the Top Ten of Bosley Real Estate’s 200+ sales associates, we are your friendly, effective realtors!

We welcome your call at 416-322-8000!