If you had any doubt that there’s been a high level of home buyer interest lately, new data on the number of showings across the country should convince you. That’s because, according to the ShowingTime Showing Index – which tracks the average number of appointments an active listing receives – showings were up 8.5 percent last year. In other words, homes on the market last year received a lot of interest from potential buyers. Daniil Cherkasskiy, ShowingTime’s chief analytics officer, says last year’s numbers may be an indication that 2018’s housing market will feature a high level of home buyer demand. “While, unsurprisingly, December is always the slowest month for showings, activity in December 2017 was substantially higher than the previous year due to lack of inventory,” Cherkasskiy said. “This points toward higher demand in early 2018 because of new buyers and those coming back to the market from last year.” More here.