The Sacramento Bee reports from California. "California's slowing housing market has dampened sales at Sacramento's largest high-rise condominium and hotel project. John Saca's 53-story project has presold a little less than 50 percent of the 799 units to date, and sales in August and September have been particularly slow. 'Our sales are slower than I'd like,' Saca said, 'but I think that things will get better when the housing market improves.'"

"'Some people may have planned to use home equity to pay the deposit,' Saca said. 'A lot of people don't have that kind of cash laying around.' The sales slowdown may also reflect a change in buyer psychology, said Bob Bronswick,of Coldwell Banker Residential Mortgage's Sacramento-Tahoe region. 'A lot of people are sitting on the sidelines, waiting to see what will happen next,' he said."

The Orange County Register. "The grand mystery to many watchers of the Orange County housing market remains, 'Who can afford these prices?'"

"By researcher Chris Cagan's math, Orange County has 79,000 of these 'exotic mortgages,' loans that delay big house payments at risk, and 18,601 mortgages will default in the next five years. Bankers and loan investors will lose $3.9 billion on these busted mortgages. Cagan insists that's a manageable pain."

"So, the housing market must wait to see how many lending mistakes were made, and what's the fallout from the ensuing mess."

The Desert Sun. "Longtime Coachella Valley real estate agent Michael Lambert admits it has been awhile since he's seen many foreclosure signs in front of valley homes. But on Tuesday he put out his second in only a few months, notifying potential buyers of a home being listed for $799,000 in an exclusive, high-end Palm Springs neighborhood."

"Initially, the owner had hoped to recoup about $925,000 by auctioning off the property, Lambert said, but now it's in foreclosure. 'I think this is the tip of the iceberg, unfortunately,' said Lambert, a broker in Palm Springs."

"Lenders notified 3,040 homeowners in Riverside County during the third quarter that they were in default of their loans. That was a 140 percent increase compared to 1,266 default notices sent out during the third quarter of 2005. In San Bernardino County, 2,548 default notices were sent out during the third quarter, nearly a 101 percent increase compared with 1,269 a year ago."

"John Sloan, real estate agent in Palm Desert, said fewer and fewer investors are buying the foreclosed properties. Sloan said some homeowners who now are finding themselves in trouble took out home-equity lines of credit and bought cars and other personal items during robust economic times, and now they're trying to make payments on the original loan and a home-equity loan."

The Union Tribune. "As San Diego's housing market continues to slow, home sellers have started turning to a new tool in hopes of drumming up buyers, the auctioneer. Tomorrow at Bressi Ranch in Carlsbad, 16 furnished, landscaped model homes will be up for sale via auction in what is believed to be the largest event of its kind in the county in years."

"A group of three Los Angeles area lawyers who purchased the 16 model homes from Bressi developer Lennar Communities, bought the Wisteria model for $853,500, according to county deed records. How much will it go for at auction? That depends. It may not sell at all."

"William Lobel, one of the partners in Model Homes, said the key to getting homes sold is to generate a lot of traffic from buyers. 'The fact is, San Diego is not the hottest place right now to sell homes,' Lobel said."

The Press Enterprise. "In a real estate market described as tepid at best, sellers are trying something different to drum up excitement and stand out from the crowd. They're putting their homes on an auction block. On a recent Saturday morning, a small crowd gathered on the front lawn of an attractive two-story house in Highland as an auctioneer issued the challenge: 'Who is going to win today?'"

"In less than five minutes, the Highland auction was over. The four-bedroom, three-bath house with swimming pool on a quarter-acre lot sold for $528,000, including a 10 percent premium to pay the auction company."

"After some deliberation, the owners, a middle-age couple looking to downsize and cash out their equity, accepted the bid. The buyers, young parents buying their first home, sat under a blue awning on the front lawn and signed papers opening escrow."

"Auctioneer Mike Grigg said he has seen mounting interest in auctions as the Southern California housing market softens, beginning with investors who are no longer able to 'flip' houses."

"The young couple who bought the house in Highland, got 'quite a deal,' said Sharon Smith, an agent in Fontana. Smith said a similar house on a similar lot in Highland closed escrow in early August, after 168 days on the market, for $97,000 more than the Amads' winning bid."

"The sellers, Henry and Joyce Higginbotham, said they were happy to avoid the months-long wait, a period during which prices could fall. They put the home up for sale about a month ago, intending to auction it. Henry Higginbotham said his selling price was about $30,000 to $40,000 less than he hoped but he wanted a quick sale."

"'We were worried about the value dropping too fast and not getting what we actually paid for (the house),' Joyce Higginbotham said."

"The Higginbothams said they bought their house two years ago for about $400,000 and paid for upgrades, including the swimming pool, spa and landscaping. In hope of feathering his retirement, Henry Higginbotham, said he plans to reinvest in Texas real estate."

"The biggest argument for auctions, auctioneers say, is an explosion of resale listings. The number of homes for sale in the San Gabriel Valley and Inland counties, excluding the Coachella Valley, have more than doubled in the last year."

"Auctions are not suitable for all sellers, said Todd Wohl, an auctioneer based in Manhattan Beach. 'We turn down probably nine to 10 auctions for every one we do for the reason the seller has unreasonable expectations or believes he can control the sales process.' he said."