In some respects, real estate is all about confidence. Sellers have to have confidence that their home will sell, and for something close to their asking price. Buyers have to have confidence that the home they are buying is really the home. Investors have to have confidence that the market will support their venture. Nothing in real estate happens without confidence of some sort. That’s why metrics like the Alabama Real Estate Confidence Index are so important; they give us an idea of what the overall confidence level is in the market. According to the most recent report from the Alabama Center for Real Estate (ACRE), the index rose in March, suggesting more confidence overall from industry professionals. The index is rated on a scale of 0 to 100, with 50 suggesting that there is no overall change in the index. The higher the number, the better. In March, the index stood at 58, which is in the positive territory that suggests future growth and expansion. The area with the highest score was the southern region, at 61. For the Birmingham – Tuscaloosa – Anniston area, the score stood at 57, which improved by two points from the second quarter of 2013. Most experts in the area expect prices to continue to improve, as well as sales and overall inventory. We discussed previously statistics from the latest ACRE report on the city’s market and discovered that prices are continuing to rise throughout the area. Homeowners and professionals alike are confident that housing prices are continuing to rise and will do so in the foreseeable future. Inventory will likely remain somewhat tight in some market segments.