According to a recent report by CoreLogic, January 2013 saw the pending supply, or shadow inventory, of homes for sale down 28 percent from its all time high in January 2010. Shadow inventory is the combined number of homes that are seriously delinquent on a mortgage payment, in foreclosure proceedings or owned by the mortgage servicer (REO), but not currently listed on the market for sale. 

Mortgages are often thought of as a two-person operation, but that trend is starting to shift in the real estate market as individuals are increasingly seeking home loans on their own. Buyers who choose to go it alone enjoy some unique freedoms – like not being tied to another person's credit or employment history. However, they also may encounter some issues that might surprise them.

The recession of the late 2000s scared a large number of homebuyers out of the housing market, but recent improvements and increased stability have helped lure millions of Americans back in. In fact, the last three months of 2012 proved to be one of the strongest quarters in recent years, which led many experts to declare that the housing market finally turned that all-important corner and re-attained some of its stability from before the recession.

Although the nation's housing market is a long way from recovering fully from the recession of the late 2000s, several indicators suggest that significant progress was made during the third quarter of 2012. In addition to improving in basic measurements of health like property values, the housing market has also seen a large reduction in the number of foreclosures left over from the economic downturn.

Many factors are involved in deciding whether it is the right time to sell your house: the condition of the property, the state of your neighborhood and, of course, whether it's a good time for you and your family to move to a new location. However, perhaps even more important than any of these factors in determining whether to list your home is the overall health of the housing market.

The list of housing markets showing measurable and sustained improvement held virtually unchanged in May at 100, down from 101 in April, according to the National Association of Home Builders/First American Improving Markets Index (IMI). The number of states represented on the list also held firm from the previous month, at 35 (including the District of Columbia).

This month’s NAHB/First American Improving Markets Index reveals that the number of improving housing markets continued to expand for a fourth consecutive month, rising from 30 in November to 41.

The index identifies metropolitan areas that have shown at least six months of improvement in employment and housing prices as well as an increase in housing permits.

The December list featured 20 new additions, including several major markets such as Washington, D.C., San Jose, Calif., and Toledo, Ohio. Meanwhile, nine smaller markets dropped off the list, primarily due to softer house prices.

See a complete list of the metros featured in the December NAHB / First American Improving Markets Index.