The Orlando Sentinel reports from Florida. "The inventory of available properties total 20,319, still near record levels, the Orlando Regional Realtor Association said Friday in its monthly report. September sales in the Realtors' core Orlando market (mainly Orange and Seminole counties) totaled 1,965 homes, down 33.7 percent from September 2005, the second straight month in which sales have been down by one-third from a year earlier."

"Agents are having to work harder or smarter in this slowing market, and successful sellers are definitely cutting prices, said Realtor Beth Goldstein. 'If you really want to sell your house, you've got to price below appraisal and probably 10 percent below the last [comparable] sale in your neighborhood,' she said. 'A lot of sellers are still not accepting that change.'"

"Goldstein has organized an open house today for a home she has listed in Oviedo, a nicely appointed pool home that has languished for three months without a showing. 'This a home that would have sold within a week a year ago,' Goldstein said. Now, however, 'there's just so much out there.'"

"Shelly and Richard Taylor recently sold their east Orlando home by trimming the price and making other concessions. It took a little more than three months, and they accepted $310,000 for the four-bedroom, two-bath home, $25,000 below their asking price."

"'We consider it a success story,' Shelly Taylor said Friday. 'We paid the closing costs and met some other demands, too, but that's really what you have to do. We were holding our breath there,' she said, as the home competed with six others for sale nearby in the neighborhood."

"Housing prices have been declining across much of Florida and in many other states in recent months, raising fears that a more serious plunge in values could derail the economy overall. All four Metro Orlando counties posted year-to-date declines."

The Ledger. "Are you a wannabe homebuyer eyeing a particular property that's captured your fancy? Yet are you petrified that you'll pay too much? Smart buyers narrow their search to the precise area where they're looking, says Leo Berard, charter president of the National Association of Exclusive Buyer Agents."

"Factor in neighborhood economic trends before you bid. At a time when real estate markets are relatively volatile, as they are now, you need to look beyond closed deals to see where values are heading, according to Berard."

"Check inventory levels before crafting any offer. At present, many neighborhoods have a surplus of homes for sale. That means the supply of housing has outstripped demand and sellers must cater more to buyers."

"'An on-the-ball purchaser operating in a strong buyers' market should be able to negotiate a healthy discount on the overall price or gain valuable concessions from the sellers,' says author Sid Davis."

"Often sellers are much more willing to yield to such valuable 'concessions' than to give way on price, Davis says. This helps protect their pride."