For the last 18 years, Dane County home building has been occurring at a subdued pace compared to the peak construction years in the early 2000's. This is one of ten reasons why we expect inventory to be low and prices to be high in 2024. For more info, check out this recent post. 

Thank you to Dominic Collar, who's been generously sharing his housing start data with us for the last 15 years. With Dominic's help, we've been able to stay on top of the new construction market and share our insights with you. We appreciate your generosity, Dominic! 

For many of us the holiday season is a time for reflection and resolutions. It's also the season when we start making our homeownership plans for the coming year.

What are your real estate goals for 2024?

Do any of these goals speak to you? 

#1) You have some home improvement projects in mind and you need recommendations for reputable contractors. You'd also like some insight into which home improvement projects offer the best return on investment.

#2) You've been dreaming of a new home and you need some guidance on how to make it happen. Inventory is tight right now, and you need help finding the home that's the right fit for your lifestyle and your stage of life.

#3) You'd like to meet with an expert about your home's current market

A little bird told us that prices will continue to rise in 2024, and here are the 10 reasons it gave us.

Why Dane County real estate prices will continue to rise

#1) Dane County’s rapidly-growing population 

#2) Our region’s continued economic growth

#3) Madison’s national reputation 

#4) Climate migration to the Madison area

#5) Significant pent-up demand from motivated buyers 

#6) Fewer people choosing to sell 

#7) A limited supply of new construction homes 

#8) A low supply of new construction condos

#9) Historically low levels of foreclosures  

#10) Rising costs for new construction  

Contact one of our full-time professionals for more insight into the 2024 market. We’re here to be a resource for you and help

Foreclosures were once a significant source of housing inventory in the Madison area, but those days are long gone. A lack of distressed property sales is just one of several key reasons why we anticipate low home and condo supply (and rising prices) for the foreseeable future. Stay tuned for much more info on this topic, coming to our blog real soon. 

Dane County home and condo listings edged a little higher in November, but in the big picture listing activity was still much lower than we'd like to see it. 

Here's how single family home listings trended in November:

Here's how condo listings trended:

Will more home and condo owners choose to sell in 2024? Stay tuned. We'll have plenty of timely updates to share with you in the months ahead.

The Mad City Dream Homes team enjoys finding creative ways to support local businesses and nonprofits through client appreciation events and giveaways, articles on our blog, social media, and newsletters, in-kind marketing support, sponsorships, donations, and volunteer efforts. In 2023, we built upon the relationships formed over the years and made some new connections, too. 

As we reflect on another year of investing in the communities we serve, we wanted to highlight some of these organizations doing neat things in the Dane County area – from making memorable chocolates and art to creating safe, brave, and welcoming spaces for local citizens to thrive. 

We are proud members of the Monroe Street Merchants Association and love to frequent many of

The holiday season is one of the better times to be buying a home, and now lower mortgage rates are adding to the holiday the cheer. Rates for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage were recently in the range of 8 percent. Now, a 30-year mortgage is available for around 7 percent. 

Check out the chart and data below from the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey, which is updated each Wednesday.  

What questions do you have about buying or selling Dane County real estate? Call us whenever you need a little guidance and advice. We're here to help! 

Here are our tips for finding a great buyer agent in another market:

#1: Research agent reviews on Zillow and Google. Focus more on the written comments than on the numerical ratings. Look for agents who consistently receive high praise from grateful clients. 

#2: Review each agent's recent listings. Do the listings consistently display beautiful photos of well-staged properties? The quality of an agent's listings can offer insight into each agent's standards and level of professionalism. 

#3: Interview each agent and ask all of the questions that are most important to you. In the end we encourage you to follow your intuition and choose the agent who you believe will offer you the best working relationship. 

Of course you can also ask your Mad

We'd like to offer a special thank you to Just Bakery, which recently baked 200 Thanksgiving pies for our clients and friends. Mad City Dream Homes purchased the pies from Just Bakery as part of our annual "thank you" event. 

As many of you know, Just Bakery is a local initiative that helps people who are experiencing significant barriers to employment with opportunities to gain vocational skills and valuable work experience. All bakery proceeds are reinvested back into the program, which allows Just Bakery to invest in more training and employment opportunities for more people. 

We'd also like to say thank you to all of you who support our team and give us the opportunity to pursue meaningful work each day. We sincerely love what we do, and for

This holiday season is a season of change for Maureen Moran and her husband Kevin, who are moving to Atlanta to be close to their daughter, son-in-law, and two grandchildren.

We'll surely miss Maureen's warm wit, joyful presence, and professionalism. But we're very happy to know that Maureen and Kevin will be soaking up the sun and time with family. 

If you've worked with Maureen in the past you know her dedication to her clients and her craft. And now you will have the opportunity to work with other like-minded team members whenever you need real estate help. 

You can still reach Maureen in the ways you have in the past. She will then introduce you to a team member who's a great fit for your needs.

Maureen, we wish you and Kevin all the best