As a realtor, the question I always get is "how's the market?" And you might expect that going into an election year, with the political climate as it is, things might be slowing down, but... that's not what we're seeing here in Cambridge and Somerville.
Granted, I have heard from agents in other markets, including some neighborhoods in Boston proper, that they are seeing a cooling, but even in these markets, it tends to be irregular, with some price points and neighborhoods still super hot, and others not so much. The situation also varies from house to house, condo to condo. From what I'm hearing and seeing, move-in ready homes that show well and are priced appropriately are still very much in demand, and often still getting multiple offers and selling way over the list price.
The mild weather (so far, knock on wood!) I'm sure is contributing to bringing the buyers out to open houses -- in some cases, in droves. Case in point, the week of January 6, I listed two Cambridge condos. Temps were in the 70s and sunny that weekend, and between open houses and private showings, we had over 75 parties through one property and more than 125 through the other. At our Tuesday deadline, we received 12 offers on the former and 19 on the latter. (And lest you think this is just my listings or just in Cambridge, word on the streets is that same week a single family in Arlington received 24 offers!)
Anyway, I wasn't necessarily surprised to see so much activity so early in the spring, as both my listings were gorgeous and in great locations, but I WAS surprised that so many of the offers that came in were from brand new buyers who I wouldn't normally expect to be making offers yet. Could be due to the continuing low interest rates. In any case, you should take any reports of the market turning in buyers' favor with a grain of salt. At least for now.