What makes some Madison neighborhoods more popular than others? There are a number of contributing factors, but most of the neighborhoods on our "10 most popular list" are located near the city center on either the near west side or near east side of town. These parts of the city offer a rare combination of amenities that's hard to find in many other metropolitan areas.

The near east side and near west side offer Lake Mendota, Lake Monona, and Lake Wingra; parks and conservancy spaces; and bike paths that make it easy to travel about the city. Our top 10 neighborhoods are located near a number of excellent restaurants and shopping venues - as well as many of the area's largest employers. The state government, Madison's four hospitals, and the

You don’t want to find your perfect home, and then realize you can’t afford it. Likewise, you don’t want to underestimate what you can afford, and limit yourself to less than your dream. The first step to starting a real estate search is to talk with a lender. 

There was a time when a buyer needed 20% down to consider purchasing a home. Today, the market has changed, and the rules for qualifying have too. Buyers are finding they can afford more home than originally expected, or that qualifying is possible, even without a sizable down payment.  A variety of options exist to allow buyers to purchase with as little as 3% or possibly even 0% down.  Between gifted down payments, reductions in closing costs, or seller-assisted closing costs, there are many

Our weather may be cold and snowy right now, but the Madison real estate market is heating up. Right now a huge window of opportunity is opening up for local home sellers. In fact, this spring promises to be one of the best sellers markets we've seen in many years. Sellers who take advantage of this opportunity and who also do the right things will be rewarded with a quick sale and a high market price. Below we cover why the time is right for home sellers. We also cover a few things sellers can do to properly prepare for a successful listing. 

A Time of Opportunity for Home Sellers

In real estate timing can be everything, and right now a perfect storm is forming to the benefit of many Madison area home sellers. Here are 4 key reasons why this spring

Your local MLS has the most accurate and most comprehensive listing data available. But this isn't how the general public sees it. The real estate consumer is turning to Trulia, Zillow and other data aggregators for what it views as the latest and greatest listing data. Despite plenty of evidence to the contrary, there's a growing perception that these two internet giants are the best places to go for local real estate information.

The data aggregators are popular because they make price history, days on market, and other key listing data available. Accurate or not, the information on Trulia and Zillow provides answers to some very basic questions. You don't need to call or email a real estate agent to get your information. Those days are long gone.