Real estate can sometimes have an overly glamorous image that is at odds with its most basic premise: to provide people with homes and shelters for living. “What I love about this career is that it connects you with people,” says Manal Boutros, real estate broker with RE/MAX Aboutowne Realty Corp. in Oakville, Ont., just west of Toronto, in a recent interview with Dolce. “It’s not only about finding them a home, or selling a house or finding a property. It is also about becoming part of their family and having this feeling of responsibility. When someone really wants to find a home, or needs to find a house or even to rent a place, even if it is a basement apartment, whatever it is — someone needs to find shelter.