Some of the people we work with in North Toronto also have a condo in Florida, a family house in Europe, or a plan to buy one. Others are arriving here from another country and need a clear path into the Toronto market. In each of those cases, the question is the same: do you really have to start over with someone you have never met?
You do not. Through the Sotheby’s International Realty network, we can help you buy or sell abroad, and we can help international buyers settle in Toronto, while remaining your point person here at home. We have put together a new International Buyers & Sellers page with the details; this post is a closer look at how it actually works.
Sotheby’s International Realty was founded in 1976 to help clients buy and sell homes well beyond their own city. As of September 2026, the brand’s network includes more than 1,100 offices across 86 countries and territories, with nearly 26,000 sales associates worldwide. In 2025, that network generated nearly US$7 billion in global referrals, and sothebysrealty.com attracted approximately 42 million visits. In Canada, Sotheby’s International Realty Canada has over 30 offices nationwide.
Those figures matter because they describe a working system, not a slogan. When a client in Lawrence Park wants to sell a property in Florida, or a family in Bedford Park wants to buy in Europe, we do not send them to a search box. We introduce them to a vetted Sotheby’s advisor in that market, and we stay involved.
The most important part of an international purchase or sale is trust. You already have a relationship here. Our job is to extend that relationship, not replace it.
It usually starts with a conversation about what you own, what you are hoping to do, and when. We then use the Sotheby’s International Realty referral network to identify a local advisor who knows that market well. We make the introduction, share the context you want shared, and remain available as your familiar point person in Toronto while the local advisor handles the work on the ground: pricing, showings, negotiations, and the legal and tax landscape of that jurisdiction.
We are not licensed to practise real estate in Florida, Japan or France. The local advisor is. What we can do is choose that person carefully, coordinate the work, and make sure you are never left wondering who to call.
That coordination is often what clients value most. Time zones, different contracts, and different customs can make a transaction feel farther away than it needs to. Because we already know you, we can help translate the process, keep the timeline clear, and step in if something does not feel right. You should not have to manage two conversations that never meet.
A surprising number of our clients have a second property they are no longer using the way they once did: a Florida condo that sits empty most of the year, a house in Europe that has become more responsibility than pleasure, or a place they inherited and have not quite decided what to do with.
If you are thinking of selling, we can connect you with a Sotheby’s advisor in that market who can give you a clear, local picture of value, timing and the steps involved. You do not have to start by cold-calling an office you found online. You can start with us, and we will stay with you through the process.
The same is true if you are not ready to sell and simply want a current read on the property. A conversation is enough to get started.
Florida is the destination we are asked about most often, and for good reason: many of our clients already spend part of the winter there, or have family who do. But the same process applies elsewhere in the United States, in Europe, and farther afield. This year, we referred a client through the Sotheby’s network for a purchase in Tokyo. We have also previously referred a client through the same network in Los Angeles.
Whether you are looking for a winter place, an investment, or a home in a city you already spend time in, we can help you think through the brief, introduce the right local advisor, and stay in the conversation as you view properties and weigh an offer. You get local expertise where you need it, and a familiar advisor in Toronto who already knows you.
The network works in both directions. If you are buying in Toronto from abroad, or moving here for work, school or family, we can help you understand the neighbourhoods, the process and the numbers, and we can work alongside the Sotheby’s advisor who already represents you in your home country.
Our day-to-day work is North Toronto: Lawrence Park, Bedford Park, the Cricket Club, Wanless Park and the communities around them. That local knowledge is often what international buyers want first, and it is what we have been building for more than thirty years.
If you own property in Florida, elsewhere in the United States or in Europe and would like to sell, or if you are thinking about purchasing abroad, or if you are planning a move to Toronto, we would be glad to start with a conversation. There is no obligation, and you do not need a finished plan.
Visit our International Buyers & Sellers page, send us a message, or call or text Adam at 416-804-9589. You can also email adam.parsons@sothebysrealty.ca.
Adam Parsons Group
Sotheby’s International Realty Canada
adamparsons.ca ยท Office 416-960-9995
Sources: Sotheby’s International Realty, “The Sotheby’s International Realty Brand Outpaces the Industry, Tripling the U.S. Sales Volume Growth Average,” Extraordinary Living Blog, 3 September 2026 (sothebysrealty.com); Sotheby’s International Realty Canada, About Us (sothebysrealty.ca/en/about-us/). Each office is independently owned and operated. General information only, not legal, tax or immigration advice.