Anyone who has been in Birmingham for the past month knows that the weather has been less than kind. Between two major bouts of snow and ice, and a smattering of messy sleet in between, cold weather has dampened virtually every part of life – including, apparently, real estate activity. According to the latest stats released by the Greater Alabama MLS, residential sales for the Birmingham metro area fell by 7.4% in January, which was well below the monthly forecast for last month. Only 635 units were sold, which was 114 units below the forecast. All of this can reasonably be blamed on the cold weather and winter storms that rocked the region and put the city in a standstill. Of course, there’s no real reason for alarm. Homes that weren’t sold last month will merely be pushed into February’s figures, or into March at the latest. It’s not as if those individuals decided to simply not buy or sell because of a bit of snow. With that in mind, this year is actually shaping up to be a good one, if forecasts can be believed. ACRE predicted a substantial 8.2% increase in residential sales for 2014 over 2013’s numbers, which was one of the highest predictions in the entire state. Even with the spate of winter storms we’ve had to deal with, real estate should still be in great shape and ready for investors interested in a fast-growing market with plenty of upside potential. Learn more about how Birmingham real estate continues to heat up, or check out how we believe the rental market is about to explode –in a good way. And contact gkhouses.com for more information on how you can tap into a market that is primed for greatness.