The Illinois realtors report on October sales. "October home sales were down 9.7 percent, compared to 14,430 sales in October 2005. Year-to-date home sales (including single-family and condominiums) totaled 145,678 in 2006, down 7.1 percent from 156,746 homes sold from January through October of 2005."

"The Illinois median home sale price in October was $198,777, off 3.5 percent from $206,000 a year earlier."

"'Sidelined buyers should have confidence in the market and take advantage of the low interest rates and ample choices,' said Robert Zoretich, president of the Illinois Association of REALTORS. 'It’s shaping up to be the third best year for Illinois home sales.'"

The Chicago Tribune. "With the housing boom becoming an ever-more-distant memory, Chicago home sales took another hit in October, and real estate experts are saying wait until spring. Or until next fall. Or maybe longer."

"The Illinois Association of Realtors said Tuesday that October's combined single-family and condo sales in the Chicago area were 15.4 percent below last year's sales. Chicago-area condo prices fell about 5 percent."

"Pat Callan, a broker in Wheaton, said sellers who have reduced their prices are improving the logjam of properties for sale in DuPage County, where sales of all types of homes declined by nearly 28 percent in October. 'The higher-end properties aren't moving,' Callan said."

"'There are still people out there waiting to see prices come down,' Zoretich said. 'But buyers are not listening. They're really not. If people need to sell right away, they need to adjust their prices.'"

"The downtown condo market has slowed from jet-propelled to a mere chug, chug, chug. 'Right now, sales for newly constructed condos are down about 10 percent from last year,' says analyst Gail Lissner. She adds that statistic doesn't really tell the tale because in 2005, the downtown market grappled with selling not only new construction, but also the conversion of 4,000 rental units to condos."

"'In 2008, we're looking at 6,200 [new condos downtown], providing that everything currently announced gets delivered,' she said. 'That's double the volume delivered this year.'"

The Sun Times. "If you own a home or property in Chicago, it's probably worth more, maybe two or three times more, than it was three years ago, according to the Cook County assessor. And you'll be taxed accordingly."

"'You don't have any choice, you pay it or you have to move,' said Leonard Gilbert, whose taxes on his Rogers Park home are jumping from $4,604 to $6,513. 'I pay more in taxes now than on my mortgage.'"

The Times Herald from Michigan. "Struggling to make sales in a tough housing market, a Novi company interested in Port Huron development auctioned about 100 Livingston County properties last month."

"William Russell, vice president and general counsel at Michigan Group Realtors in Brighton, said property auctions indicate sellers are 'grasping at straws' in their effort to sell properties at decent prices."

"'They don't want to believe the degree the market has fallen,' he said. Greeneisen said it is most difficult to sell higher-priced homes, especially homes priced at $500,000 or more - because people in the market for those houses can't sell their current properties."

"Some developers are using buyers' interest in new homes to ensure success. Jeff Curtis is the principle developer for a 124-unit development of duplexes on Lakeshore Road set to break ground in the spring. 'Everything has to be low cost,' Curtis said. 'It makes it affordable for people.'"

"'If you can go buy something new for roughly the same price you can buy an existing home, people tend to buy the new one,' agent Pat Moore said."

"Until the housing market turns around, the glut of new subdivisions could make things worse for owners of existing houses. New homes in the area could force sellers to cut their price tags, experts said."

"The developers' optimism does little to soothe Mayland Skinner of Fort Gratiot, whose home has been on the market for four months. 'I don't have an optimistic feeling for the market,' said Skinner."

"Skinner is planning to lower the price on his home from $239,000 to $229,000 and may take it off the market until spring if there's no buyer by December. The drop in price will put the house below its appraised value. 'It will sell when the market's ready,' he said."