A report from the Courier Journal. "The number of Kentuckians buying homes reached an all-time high last year. But some of those buyers are having trouble keeping up with the payments. One in every 57 residential mortgages across Kentucky, nearly 2 percent, was in foreclosure last summer, according to the national Mortgage Bankers Association."

"In Indiana, the rate was nearly 3 percent, putting it second in the nation behind Ohio. Kentucky was fifth, behind Michigan and Katrina-ravaged Mississippi."

"In Louisville, there's been a flurry of foreclosure sales, Jefferson Circuit Court ordered a record-tying 2,620 sales last year and is on a pace to set an all-time high this year. 'We are scheduling 125 parcels every other Tuesday for 2007,' said Daniel T. Albers Sr., master commissioner for Jefferson Circuit Court. 'If this holds for the year, we will schedule 3,125 parcels this year.'"

"Lenders don't want to 'set people up to fail,' said Chris Evans, president of the Mortgage Bankers Association of Kentucky. 'On the other hand, you do have to reach out to different segments of the market and give them a little bit broader guidelines and a little bit broader underwriting approval to get them in a home.'"

The Journal Gazette from Indiana. "Complex real estate deals involving more than 100 Fort Wayne houses appear similar to transactions that have spawned lawsuits and federal indictments in other cities."

"In March 2006, Mel Hochstetler was selling the last of his five rental homes when he was approached by Jeff Radabaugh, he said. Hochstetler ccepted Radabaugh’s offer to option the property. Two weeks later, Radabaugh had a buyer lined up, and closed on the house."

"'The only thing I can say about that closing is I don’t know who bought it in the end,' he said. 'I think it changed hands at least twice while we were sitting around the table. I was aware that it appeared there was an inflated price on the sale,' Hochstetler said. 'But I got my money and the check didn’t bounce, and I left it go at that.'"

The Daily Telegram from Michigan. "Home mortgage foreclosure is the only business on the increase at the Lenawee County Register of Deeds office, department head Vicki Daniels reported Tuesday to county commissioners. Deed transfers and mortgage recordings declined for the second year in a row during 2006, she said. The slowdown has worsened since the start of this year, she added."

"One day last week only 30 documents came into her office, she said, a fraction of the normal volume. 'We really went down, except for the foreclosures,' she said."

"Rather than lowering prices, most sellers are holding on longer and waiting for buyers to offer more, said equalization department director Martin Marshall. Buyers are also in a waiting mood, he said, expecting prices to eventually come down."

The Pantagraph from Illinois. "Real estate agents have repeatedly said Bloomington-Normal has a strong housing market. Whether residents agree clearly depends on whether they’re trying to buy or sell."

"Larry Bloyd is a frustrated home seller. For nearly five months, the Normal man has been waiting patiently for his bi-level home on Nottingham Chase to sell. The three-bedroom house has been on the market since last fall, far longer than the two months it took to sell his last home seven years ago."

"'After this long, I have no clue,' Bloyd said. 'I’m sure we’re not the only ones in this predicament either. It’s definitely a buyer’s market,' Bloyd said. 'We’ve dropped our price.'"

"Meanwhile, Philip Blaxton is a hopeful home buyer. The Bloomington man and his wife have been house-hunting in the Twin Cities for about two months. They’re excited about the prospect of a good deal and patient enough to wait for the right house at the right price."

"'I’ve noticed the prices going down. We’ve been watching a few specific houses, and those prices have been slowly dropping,' Blaxton said. 'A lot of the houses we’ve been looking at have been on the market for more than a little bit of time.'"

"Blaxton said he sees more for sale signs than sold signs outside of houses. A handful of houses that were for sale when he moved to Bloomington about eight months ago still are for sale today. He’s encouraged by his observations because he hopes it means a seller will negotiate more on price when the couple is ready to buy. But he also worries about what might happen five or 10 years down the road if they want to sell."

"'We’ve had a long run here with a great housing market, but it seems to be cooling off,' Blaxton said. 'How long is that cooling off going to continue and how will that affect the future?'"

The Pioneer Press from Minnesota. "Private boat docks on a lake stocked with walleye, hiking trails, trophy home designs with some lots nearly the size of football fields. What's for the wealthy not to love about Spring Lake Estates? That's what Toll Brothers is trying to figure out."

"The national luxury home builder, which entered the Twin Cities market just two years ago, is re-evaluating one of its three developments in the area, saying Spring Lake Estates, southwest of Minneapolis in Prior Lake, is not attracting buyers as planned."

"Toll Brothers Inc. won't say whether it will pull out of the 120-acre Spring Lake project it opened last March with Edina-based Arcon Development Inc. Toll, which owns 42 of the 120 lots there, has sold just five homes."

"Homes range in price from $545,000 to the $1.4 million estate house with a wine grotto, an individually vented cigar room and a resort-like stone spa off the master bedroom."

"'We're taking a good hard look at Spring Lake in terms of the position of that,' said Michael Noonan, president of Toll's Minnesota division in Eagan. 'Maybe it's too expensive. Maybe it's not matching up with what the area there is saying.'"

"Noonan said he suspects the Spring Lake Estates, sitting at the edge of the metro area, might simply be too far away for many buyers. Sitting in Toll's spartan construction trailer at the site, project manager Jon Henson agreed. Toll's lack of name recognition in the Twin Cities doesn't help, he said."

"'In the Philadelphia market we're the Mercedes of builders,' quipped Henson."

"The developer of Emerson Hills, a 35-unit condominium building on West St. Paul's South Robert Street, had no luck luring preconstruction buyers last year. So the developer, Minneapolis-based Sherman & Associates, sounded out the city about converting the homes from owner-occupied to rental units."

"No way, said city officials, who have invested $1.3 million in upfront tax-increment financing for the project. 'When we redeveloped that block, we met extensively with neighbors, who said, 'We have quite enough rental, and we're not interested in having any more,' West St. Paul Mayor John Zanmiller said. 'We're not interested in revisiting the rental issue, because we promised people, and we're going to keep that promise.'"

"Now, just like many developers in today's soft housing market, Sherman & Associates is turning to financial incentives."

"The developer doesn't want to reduce the condos' sticker price, which ranges from $140,000 for a one-bedroom unit to $263,500 for a two-bedroom unit. Most of the condos are priced at less than $200,000, said Brad Goering, director of sales and marketing."

"'We chose value-added incentives in lieu of discounted prices, which would hurt us and the home-buying community,' Goering said."

"Loren Brueggeman, vice president of development for Sherman & Associates, said that, while he doesn't regret getting involved in Emerson Hills, he doesn't know when the housing market will turn around. 'It's just part of the business,' Brueggeman said. 'We're all affected by the housing market.'"

"And it's tough all over. Many cities have been forced to react to a flattening condo market and a rise in construction costs."