Sometimes in real estate we get too wrapped up in quantity. We tend to measure ourselves by the number of closings or the volume of sales that we have in a year. As a home or condo seller, your concerns are more about quality. For example, when you hire your listing agent, how do you know you're getting a good one? Fortunately there are 3 simple measures that will help you answer this question. 

View our home selling results here. 

Measure #1: Listing Success Rate

A listing can either sell or it can expire. This simple measure identifies the percentage of an agent's listings that actually sell.  We calculated the listing success rate for the entire South Central WI MLS on May 17th and found that the average listing success rate in 2016 is 68%.

These days a lot of our real estate news comes from social media chatter and headlines. In this post we summarize the latest market trends with some objective data straight from the MLS. Here are the latest scoops on the 2016 Spring markets in Fitchburg, Madison, Middleton and Verona. 

Fitchburg Homes and Condos

Inventory is tight in both the single family home and condo markets. Below are a couple of quick nuggets followed by more market info on our SlideShare real estate page. 

• Fitchburg single family home inventory is especially tight for properties priced under $400,000. Right now there is only 1 month of supply for listings in this price range. Sixty-two percent of these listings are under contact and scheduled to close soon. 

Where are the hottest markets in Dane County? In this post we take a quick look at the larger markets in the western half of the county, specifically Fitchburg, Madison, Middleton, and Verona. 

We use two key measures to gauge market momentum - months of supply and the percent of listings with accepted offers. When we use these two statistics there are two markets which stand out above the rest. 

Dane County's Hottest Condo Market

Condos are selling very well across all of Dane County, but the Verona condo market is the market that stands out above all others. Right now there are only 1.5 months of condo inventory available for sale in Verona. Amazingly, 64% of the condo listings in Verona are under contract and are scheduled to close soon. 

April is the perfect time to sell a home in Madison. In fact it may be the best month out of any month in the year to put your home on the market. Below we offer 5 reasons why right now is an excellent time to sell your home. 

Reason #1: Seasonality

Year in and year out April is one of the hottest months for real estate in Madison. In 2015, more offers were submitted and accepted in the month of April than in any other month of the year. If your goal is to list your home when buyers are most active, April is the month to make it happen. 

Reason #2: Low Supply

Housing supply remains unusually low in Madison. As of this post there are only 1.3 months of inventory available for sale in the single family home real estate market. This

I love shopping at Metcalfe's because from the moment I enter until the moment I leave I feel relaxed and calm. The store is organized and visually appealing, and there is plenty of room to maneuver throughout the aisles. Metcalfe's is filled with products that I'd like to buy, and the staff throughout the store are happy to help me. In fact at Metcalfe's I don't need to ask for help. Very often an employee will notice that I'm searching for something and offer to guide me to my destination.

The best part about MetCalfe's is the check-out. There are no long lines and no long wait. There's always a friendly cashier available to help me on my way out the store. 

The Opposite Experience

There are other stores in town where the experience is the

It's only February, but the hot Spring market has already arrived in Madison. This year's single family home and condo markets are already chaotic with buyers fighting over a limited supply of properties.

Sellers will enjoy 2016. Buyers will need a solid game plan for finding the right home at the right price. Below are a few quick real estate stats which show why 2016 is already proving to be a hot seller's market. We also offer some tips for making your real estate goals happen in 2016. 

Current Trends: The Madison Condo Market

The $250,000 and under price category is the hottest segment in the Madison condo market. As of this post there are only 1.6 months of supply available for sale in this price range. An amazing 46% of the listings in this

How's the market shaping up this year? Here are our 8 predictions for the 2016 Madison real estate market. 

Prediction #1: The Madison rental market will remain tight. 

Apartment vacancy rates will remain low, even though construction is booming with thousands of new units planned for 2016 and 2017. Dane County's apartment-hungry population continues to absorb new inventory, thanks in large part to the growth of Epic Systems and other local tech companies. The latest vacancy rate data from MG&E shows apartment availability is very tight. 

Prediction #2: Madison apartment rents will rise. 

A shortage of available rentals means rents will rise in 2016. And rising rents will force some apartment dwellers to choose home ownership over

For most home owners the definition of a successful sale is a real estate listing that sells quickly and for a high market price. The catch is a successful sale usually doesn't happen overnight. Rather, it's usually the result of a lot of advanced planning and preparation by both the listing agent and the client. 

So how can you plan for a successful sale of your own? You're bound to do well if you keep the "5 P's" of selling a home in mind. 

Preparing for a Successful Listing: The "5 P's" of Selling a Home

1. Price your home correctly from the start. 
2. Work with a professional home stager to ensure a great and lasting first impression.  
3. Enlist the services of a professional photographer for the very best listing photos. 
4. Use a

When is the best time to buy a home in Madison? Contrary to conventional wisdom, right now is actually an excellent time to buy a home in our market. To be a little more specific, November, December and the first half of January offer a nice window of opportunity for local home buyers. The graph below, which shows the number of Madison accepted offers by month, shows why. 

The Best Times to Buy a Home in Madison

November, December and January are the 3 slowest months in the Madison real estate market. During these 3 months fewer showings are scheduled, fewer offers are written, and fewer offers are accepted compared to any other month in the calendar year. Buyers have much less competition from other buyers during the cold weather months, which

We've added "hyperlocal" market data to our Mad City Dream Homes website which makes it easy to learn about the real estate market in your preferred neighborhood or condominium association. Our market data is sourced directly from our MLS data feed and updated every 15 minutes, so you can count on it for timely and accurate information. Below we offer 4 examples of how the data works and how you can use it to understand the nature of the market in your target destination.

Example 1: Neighborhood with a Hot Sellers' Market

The screenshot below shows market data from the Midvale Heights neighborhood on the near west side of Madison. Scroll to the middle of our profile page and you'll find it. This data provides several clues which point to a very