Mad City Dream Homes Real Estate Blog, Madison WI

At Mad City Dream Homes, we're always in learning mode. One of the ways we’re honing our craft this year is by participating in “market analysis mastermind” sessions. In preparation for each session, each agent performs an independent market analysis for an upcoming listing. Then we meet over Zoom to share our individual price opinions and form a consensus on the best price for the property. 

Mad City Dream Homes Mastermind Sessions

We're noticing two nice outcomes from our sessions. First, our mastermind sessions are resulting in some great discussion and helping all of us stay sharp in this year’s fast-paced market. Plus, each session allows us to tap into our collective expertise as a way to add value for a home-selling client.  

Are you someone who needs help pricing your home in

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We love connecting our friends and clients with trusted businesses. This is just one of the ways we strive to keep serving you day-after-day and year-after-year. So please reach out to us anytime you need a referral to a reputable service provider. We’ll do our best to connect you with a business who’s a good fit for your needs. 

Mad City Dream Homes Real Estate Team

With working by referral in mind, we want to remind you we’re never too busy to serve your friends and family whenever they need real estate help. And as you already know, we'll always give your referrals our best service and advice -- and never with any sales pressure.  

At Mad City Dream Homes, the majority of our clients are repeat and referral customers. This is our sweet spot -- helping and serving others. We

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At some price points, cash offers and escalating prices have made it more difficult for financed buyers to be competitive - especially if they’re only able to put 3-5% down. But, there are ways buyers can stand out in this situation. One way to appear more competitive in a tight market is through your lender. Dave Grauwels of Guild Mortgage helps many of our clients. He recently chatted with us to share how he and his team help his customers go through the offer process with a competitive edge. Read his top three strategies below.

Dave's Tips for Being Competitive as a Financed Buyer

  1. Get your pre-approval underwritten so your offer is nearly as appealing as cash. If a buyer starts the pre approval process early in their search, we can
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Inventory is tight for single family homes, and it's tight for condos, too. Here's our latest scoop on the Madison area condo scene covering the first 6 weeks of the year. 

Percent of listings with accepted offers and months of supply

Right now 58% of all Dane County condo listings are under contract with an accepted offer, which is a very high number for mid-February. Competition is especially high for condos priced under $350,000. Overall there are only .7 months of condo supply in Dane County. This is the lowest inventory level that our team has ever reported for our market. 

Madison Condo Listings with Accepted Offers Feb 13 2021

New MLS condo listings

Only 130 new listings entered the Dane County condo market in January. This was the third lowest total on record for the month. 

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It may seem unusual for an organization to ultimately wish it didn’t have to exist. But for many local groups associated with the Homeless Services Consortium of Dane County, the issue of homelessness unfortunately isn’t going away anytime soon. And as long as these groups continue to receive funding and support for their needed services, neither are they -- especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic that is causing the housing gap to widen further. 

Among them is The Road Home Dane County, the only agency in the county that exclusively serves homeless families with children, which believes that every child deserves a home. The nonprofit provides case management services to help these families achieve self-determined goals and affordable, stable

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What's going on with Madison area real estate? The story of the year so far is low inventory. Here's our latest snapshot of the Dane County single family home market -- covering the first 6 weeks of 2021. 

Percent of listings with accepted offers

Right now 54% of all Dane County single family home listings are under contract with an accepted offer, which is a very high number for this time of year. The market for homes priced under $500,000 is especially competitive. 

Madison Single Family Listings with AOs Feb 13 2021 

Months of supply

Right now there are only .6 months of single family home supply throughout all of Dane County. Inventory is especially low for homes priced under $500,000. 

New MLS listings

Dane County property owners have been slow to put their homes up for sale

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If you're thinking of selling your home in 2021, now is the time to put your home on the market, even though we're in the middle the winter season. Here's why: so far this year new listings are entering the market at an extremely slow pace. And with so much demand in the marketplace, many sellers are receiving multiple offers and selling for tens of thousands of dollars over the list. 

For a little more context, here's a quick look at how new MLS listings are trending in early 2021. 

Dane County new single family home listings

New single family home listings reached a new low in January and fell by 32 percent from January of 2020. Last month was the only January on record to log fewer than 400 new listings. 

Madison WI New MLS Listings Jan 2021 

Dane County new condo

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Are you looking for a home in an established neighborhood, but can’t seem to find any options? We rounded up a selection of established neighborhoods that consistently have a good amount of inventory available. From communities with historic bungalows to houses in growing neighborhoods with a wide variety of inventory, these neighborhoods have options for many types of buyers. Check out the neighborhood profiles for each community to see all the latest listings.

Photo of Grandview Commons neighborhood

Are you searching for your perfect home? Contact one of our experienced agents for a consultation. We would love to help guide you through the process of buying your dream home!

Birchwood Point - Located on the far west side of Madison, Birchwood Point is near shops and dining in Madison

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It may seem hard to believe, but there are some real dangers for sellers to be aware of in this year’s real estate market. If you’re planning to sell your home this year, these 3 tips will help you avoid the pitfalls that some Madison area sellers are experiencing in 2021. 

Madison WI Home Selling Advice

Our 3 big tips for Madison area home sellers in 2021

#1: Don't get caught up in the hype. 

These days it’s so easy for sellers to read the news headlines and social media hype and be lulled into overconfidence. Perhaps you’ve come across a few of these sellers. These are the folks whose listings are sitting on the market, with no real prospect of selling, because they’ve underestimated all that is required for a successful sale.

#2: Remember to focus on the

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In one way or another, we each live in a bubble. And as we encounter new experiences, that bubble may widen so we are able to see beyond our own viewpoint. Like many others in my mostly white sphere, we were seeing the world through rose-colored glasses...until 2020. 

"The death of George Floyd woke more people up who weren't tuned into the atrocities that the black community has been enduring for centuries," said Vanessa McDowell, CEO of YWCA Madison. "We at YWCA Madison are glad people are starting to wake up and learn about racial injustice and want to do something about it, but quite frankly, it is about time."

Vanessa is a Madison native and the first Black woman to lead the 111-year-old nonprofit, which addresses challenging issues such as

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