Some reports from Florida. "Over the past five years, South Florida has gone through the most explosive housing boom in its history. Now the big question is: Is the wild ride over? Yes, experts say. The signs are already there. Prices have wobbled in recent months, with sellers..lowering their expectations. The number of homes for sale in Miami-Dade County has nearly doubled since April."

"There are, for instance, 15,080 units under construction in the city of Miami alone, compared with 11,241 built in the entire past 10 years. And that doesn't even count the more than 28,000 units approved to go up in Miami. To summarize the market, developer Henry Harper scooped up the milky froth on his cappuccino at a Miami restaurant with his spoon. 'This is now gone,' he said."

"'There is severe overbuilding of condos,' economist Hank Fishkind said. 'People will get hurt, banks will go bankrupt.'"

"Real estate agents and home sellers throughout the Palm Beach County describe a dramatic shift from what only six months ago was a strong seller's market. The chill came quickly. Just last year, the typical home's value rose at a rate of nearly $1,900 a week."

"Four months after putting their Wellington home on the market and cutting the price $40,000, John and Mary Porter are still waiting for an offer. The Porters initially asked $409,000 for their house, but they've cut the price to $369,000, said their real estate agent, Randy Bianchi. The Porters paid $279,000 for the house in 2004. 'They have a beautiful home,' Bianchi said. 'It's just a tragedy of timing.'"

"Indeed, the slowdown is spurring a backlash from once-beleaguered buyers, who suddenly feel free to drive hard bargains, said Mike Dooley, a broker in Hobe Sound and president of the Florida Association of Realtors. 'We're seeing buyers coming in and making very low offers,' Dooley said. 'That's just evidence of the pendulum swing.'"

"Sellers simply roll their eyes at low-ball offers, Dooley said. But buyers suddenly have more choices, and now they enjoy the luxury of making a discounted bid without the fear of losing out to another buyer."

"The spread of buyers' revenge is bad news for sellers such as Brian Williams. The marriage counselor and his wife put their Lake Worth home on the market in September. Williams has not lowered his $496,000 asking price, even though offers have been scarce."

"'I'm disappointed that there isn't more traffic,' he said. "I'd consider reducing the price if houses started selling in the area at lower prices, and if people were making offers that were lower. But I haven't seen any evidence that it's about prices yet.'"

"Meantime, Williams cannot miss the telltale signs of a cooling market: 'For sale' signs are multiplying in his neighborhood. 'There seems to be 5,000 homes for sale on Lakeside,' Williams said, 'and nothing's selling, so that's a little frustrating.'"

"A couple of blocks away, Sharon Gorman is asking $369,000 for her home. That once was a price guaranteed to attract offers, but the house has languished on the market for three months. 'The market is full of houses right now,' Gorman said. 'It looks like half the county is for sale.'"

"Their agent, Bo Allen, said sellers need to get used to a new reality. The days of aggressive pricing, eager buyers and house-hungry speculators are over. 'You've got a lot of investors starting to bail out,' Allen said. 'And you've got all these talking heads on TV telling people the market's going to crash.'"

"Which begs the question: Will prices plunge, or is this slowdown just a return to normalcy? Realtors in other once-hot markets such as California and Washington, D.C. report a growing inventory of homes and more restrained buyers. 'It is a little disconcerting to drive down some of these streets and see every other house for sale,' said (realtor) Brad Westover in Jupiter."

"Even if there's no crash, area sellers will have to get used to the idea that their homes are not the gold mines they once were. Westover said one of his clients recently accepted $650,000 for a home listed for $750,000. 'If she had not run with that offer, in all likelihood she'd still be sitting there with that property,' Westover said. 'For the first time in five years, people are actually taking a breath, instead of just buying.'"