The roller coaster ride the residential real estate market has been on over the last few years has made it all the more difficult to tell what the coming year will bring. We’ve been in an upside-down market for so long now, a lot of Chicagoland brokers can’t even remember a time when things were stable.

Will interest rates continue to rise? That’s the big question. How about home prices? Will first-time homebuyers catch a break in 2023? What’s keeping brokers, lenders and builders up at night? Once again, we’ve assembled our annual panel of experts to read the tea leaves and tell us what they see.

We have industry leaders from @properties, Baird & Warner, Belgravia Group, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Chicago, Coldwell Banker, Compass, Engel & Völkers Chicago, eXp, Guaranteed Rate, GreenState Credit Union, Jameson Sotheby’s International Realty, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Key Mortgage Services, Lendlease, Regions Bank, Wintrust and Wolf Development Strategies.

We shift gears in our Association News column this month with a message from Heartland REALTOR® Organization CEO Jim Haisler, who gives us the lowdown on how associations are helping — often behind the scenes — to build a stronger industry and make brokers’ lives easier.

Buffini & Company joins us this month as guest author of our Top Coach column with a number of tips on how to succeed in a “pro’s market.” The shifting market calls on brokers to sharpen their skills to guide clients through the rapidly changing market.

What do you see coming down the pike in 2023? How are you preparing? We want to hear from readers on their predictions for the future. Contact me at Tim.Inklebarger@agentpublishing.com and let us know what you’re thinking.