That's right, here we are again, knee deep in our brackets and preparing for what appears to be surprisingly hot spring. I guess we shouldn't be that surprised though considering how seasonally warm our winter ended. This is all thanks to what weather experts are saying was a jet stream that didn't drop down into the states much of this year.

But enough about basketball and the weather, this is a real estate site and what I wanted to talk about was the March madness we see with home sales in the spring. Yes, once the weather starts to get warm, spring fever takes over and we find ourselves with renewed energy to get out of the house and get stuff done. This year, it appears that will include finally getting off the proverbial "fence" and jumping back into the housing market. Around Greenville, I have seen some pretty strong signs that we might finally be having that recovery everyone has been anticipating.

What does that mean for you as a buyer? It means that you might be looking at more to choose from as you begin your new home search. It also means you might be seeing more competition for those homes as well. Some of the more established neighborhoods that haven't seen as much action during the recession are really starting to pick up. New construction is also coming back strong with several new national builders making strides in unfinished developments that had suffered during the recession.

What does this mean for you as a seller? It means more homes will be coming on the market from sellers who have also been trying to wait out the downturn. Prices are still down, but it appears buyers are at least out there and that means homes can be sold. One reason pricing won't be coming back up very quickly remains the restrictions banks now have in place on the appraisal process. If the comparable sales aren't there, you won't be seeing many exceptions for the exceptional homes.

What this all translates to is that March Madness isn't just happening in college basketball. If you have been sitting on the fence waiting to make that move, it appears now might be a good time!

J. J. Bowers
Realtor/Owner
greenvillescrealestatetoday.com