The Sun News reports from South Carolina. "The Grand Strand housing market is showing its first sign of quarter-over-quarter price declines. 'The condo market will see continued price declines that is going to get worse,' said Al Parish, economist at Charleston Southern University."

"Skyrocketing insurance premiums have hit the condo market harder than the single-family market, Parish said. He cited up to 100 percent increases in single-family premiums and up to 700 percent increases in condos. Another factor, folks who bought a home they couldn't afford on an interest-only loan to sell because of rising mortgage payments. Growing inventory is also adding to price declines."

"Nationally, many areas that saw high speculative activity are seeing the quarter-over-quarter median price declines, said Mark Vitner, an economist at Wachovia in Charlotte, N.C. 'A lot of folks that were buying homes never intended to close on them. A lot of folks are offering those homes for sale in the resale market,' Vitner said."

"Brunswick County posted a year-over-year median price decline for resale single-family homes, but experts say the drop is due to builders building more lower-end homes than last year. The median price dropped 23 percent to $200,000 from $260,000 for resale single-family homes."

"(Broker) David Sandifer said motivated sellers are cutting prices in certain parts of the county, and he expects a buyer's market for the next three months."

"Several builders in the N.C. 211 corridor have lowered prices between $20,000 and $50,000 to move inventory, said Cathy Six, new homes director for Coldwell Banker Sloane in Sunset Beach, N.C. In Georgetown, new condos saw the quarter-over-quarter drop, from $143,900 to $117,900."

"One developer is hoping to transform downtown Myrtle Beach by tearing down unused buildings and selling upscale lofts. Large-scale single family developments are also adding their own live/work town centers, like Centex Homes at RiverGrand in Little River. And local developers will soon build the same concept at Woodsong in Shallotte, N.C., and another loft-style project at Sunset Quarters in Sunset Beach, N.C."

"'Our downtown area is not like Chicago where you have a lot of executive people looking to live to be close to work. It's pretty bleak down there,' said Tom Maeser, president of the Fortune Academy of Real Estate. 'What I've found is that buyers...will look around at what's there now and that's a hard sell.' At $600,000, buyers could choose oceanfront condos instead of downtown living, Maeser said."

"Robin Roberts, developer and architect of Palmetto Lofts, knows it could be a hard sell for downtown Myrtle Beach, a district that has been going downhill for years. 'If you build it, they will come,' he maintained."

The Palm Beach Post from Florida. "The music in the residential real estate market has stopped, but the players still are changing seats. Developers with unbuilt projects are weighing whether to sell, sit on or find some other use for their dirt."

"Rodolfo Gonzalez is an owner of three prime condo sites in West Palm Beach, but Gonzalez said he is selling one site and may redo another into an office/retail complex."

"In downtown West Palm Beach alone, (realtor) Kenneth Close said, the real estate slowdown has led to the cancellation of 1,000 new condo units. About 450 condo units are still available for sale, Close said."

"Gonzalez isn't alone in trying to navigate today's fickle market. The developer of the Eighty Point West condo planned for North Flagler Drive is in the same boat. Officially, the sales center for the luxury waterfront condo remains open. But since sales have dried up, developer Cliff Preminger said he will delay the start of construction indefinitely."

"Building into a falling market is not an option. 'Real estate is no field of dreams. We don't build it and hope people will come,' Preminger said."