Carol Lloyd writes for the San Francisco Gate. "To hear the off-the-cuff remarks of real estate agents is enough to inspire a new horror genre. 'It's cratering underneath my feet,' muttered one agent after his pristinely marketed, cautiously priced listing engendered only a single, below-asking offer."

"Another agent, whose characteristic optimism had evaporated like the sheen on a new floor after an open house, bluntly described the market as 'flat-lined.'"

"During the boom, buyers just wanted a roof over their heads. Now it seems they want every little thing on their 'under heaven' wish list. But short of that, agents say, they'll settle for that lovin' feelin' that only a buyers' market can bring."

"'Buyers want a good deal,' says (realtor) Carren Shagley. 'They want to feel as if they've gotten something for their money.' Who can blame them? "

The Santa Rosa Press Democrat. "A home building company considering two big projects in Petaluma has backed out of one land purchase and negotiated a $2.35 million discount on the other. The discount stems from a slowing housing market and an estimated $1.85 million in fees."

"On the other Centex project near the downtown Turning Basin, the company backed out of buying the property, between Copeland and Weller streets, after holding an option for 18 months. 'It wasn't a total surprise, but it was a shock,' said Gina Pittler, one of the property's owners."

"Centex was willing to revise its plans in July but canceled those plans this month in the face of a slowing housing market and the risk involved in starting over in the approval process."

The Sacramento Bee. "Neither Ron Rael of Novato or Kirk McKinney of Pacifica nor any of their Bay Area investor colleagues much care now for Sacramento's languid market. 'You got more bang for your buck a couple of years ago than you do today,' said Poppy Stercl, a mortgage broker who lives in Rocklin. 'It's dropped off a lot,' said Stercl."

"Collectively, these sentiments have become key factors in Sacramento's flat or falling prices and its record pileup of more than 15,000 homes for sale as summer's big buying season comes to an end. The wave of investors and Bay Area arrivals who helped drive the region's real estate market to what many believe were unreasonable heights has primed it now for an aftermath that no one can yet measure."

"Some believe Sacramento is particularly vulnerable because outside forces that propelled it skyward have dissipated. In the first quarter of 2004, more than one in four houses sold in Sacramento County were to investors and second-home buyers. But at last count this summer it was closer to one in six, according to DataQuick."

"'A few years back you could buy a three-bedroom, two-bath for $150,000 to $170,000, rent it out for $1,200 a month and get positive cash flow,' Rael said."

"Altogether, investors bought more than 73,000 homes in Amador, El Dorado, Nevada, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo and Yuba counties between 2000 and June 2006, DataQuick reported. More than 22,000 of them were from buyers with Bay Area addresses. But those numbers are now falling greatly."

"By early this summer, 'flipping' represented only 2.4 percent of sales in the capital region, while 28 percent of investor-sellers reported losing money on their deals, Ela reported. Adding to the uncertainty is the continuing inability of many locals to afford even today's weakened prices as the market slowdown enters its second year."

"Bay Area residents aren't the only ones who can't afford to take the homebuying plunge. Though prices here are still less than in the Bay Area, the median price of new homes can top $562,000. 'The prices aren't competitive anymore. They're just lousy California high,' said Stephen Levy, of the Center for the Continuing Study of the California Economy. 'For eight, nine or 10 years, the Sacramento median price was near the national average and now it's more than double the national average.'"