The Houston Chronicle reports from Texas. "Until recently, Houston has avoided the housing slowdown that's been felt in other parts of the country. The number of homes built in the Houston area this year is expected to drop for the first time in more than a decade. Builders are projected to construct roughly 40,000 homes this year, about a 20 percent decline from last year when home building reached its peak, said housing analyst Mike Inselmann."

"The slower pace of construction has not been the result of a sluggish economy, but rather brought on by the industry itself, said Inselmann. 'Things are just fine,' he said. 'They're not as good as we want them to be, but there's a recovery in our future.'"

"As long as that recovery isn't too far off, the local economy shouldn't be seriously affected. 'When you start building fewer homes, you're selling fewer appliances, less carpeting, less cement and less wood to the local suppliers,' said Jim Gaines, a research economist at the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University."

"The slowdown in construction, however, might not altogether be a bad thing, as it can help keep home prices stable in a market with fewer buyers. And the multifamily market is benefiting from the single-family malaise, as would-be buyers unable to qualify for loans are continuing to rent."

"'That's good news, because we have a lot of apartments coming on line,' said Bruce McClenny, president of Apartment Data Services. He said there are about 17,000 multifamily units under construction throughout the city."

"'First-time buyers probably for the next six months are probably going to have trouble if they don't have good credit ratings and some money they can use for down payments,' said Gaines, the A&M economist."

The Denver Post from Colorado. "Denver is the only county in the metropolitan area that has seen an increase in the number of building permits issued in the first four months of the year, compared with last year, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau."

"Jefferson and Adams counties saw the sharpest declines in buildin permits issued but for different reasons. Jefferson County's limited land supply is the main reason the number of building permits plummeted nearly 70 percent to 323 in the period through April."

"But in Adams County, where land is abundant, the residential market is overbuilt and foreclosures are rampant. The number of permits issued declined nearly 60 percent to 431, compared with last year."

"'Foreclosures are having a psychological impact,' Willis said. 'Potential buyers are nervous about selling their homes, so they're not buying.'"

"In Weld County, where homes are cheaper and foreclosures are high, the number of permits issued dropped almost 31 percent."

'"Those low price points are really getting hurt with the foreclosures,' said Mike Rinner, senior analyst with the Genesis Group. 'There's either too much competitive supply or people are having a tough time selling their houses.'"

The Greeley Tribune from Colorado. "While activity goes up in the summer, overall sales in 2007 have been down so far, said Chalice Springfield, CEO of Sears Real Estate."

"In 2007, there have been 844 homes sold in Greeley and Evans and there were 894 home sales in the same time in 2006, about a 6 percent reduction in sales, Springfield said. Also, the Greeley area is still far away from its peak of home sales. The area hit a record high in 2001 when there were 284 sales in August 2001. In August 2006, there were 173 sales."

"'That was a pretty big drop,' said broker Nate Buie."

"According to Information and Real Estate Services. Greeley has a nine-month inventory of homes to sell. 'The Greeley market in 2007 is still favoring buyers at this time,' Springfield said. 'If there are more homes for sale and less buyers to purchase those homes, it will affect the time period in which sellers are able to sell homes.'"

"She said it's a great time for buyers looking for a home, but sellers need to price their homes right and make sure that homes are in top-notch condition for selling."

"Part of the reason for so many homes on the market was an influx of home building that outpaced growth in the area and also a foreclosure rate so high it led the nation for five months at the end of 2006. Home prices are brought down in areas where there are a lot of foreclosures, broker Norma McMillen said."

"'That does affect the price of homes that are not in foreclosure, making it tougher to sell,' she said."

The Arizona Republic. "Arizona housing-help agencies, many of which had representatives at the town hall, are getting calls from struggling homeowners and are afraid they soon will be deluged. Many don't have the resources or funds to handle the wave of homeowners in default that they fear is coming."

"Joann Hauger, executive director of Community Housing Resources of Arizona, said many homeowners on the verge of foreclosure who are calling for help now are too upside down on the financing of their house, meaning they owe more than it's currently worth, to keep it."

"'Almost everyone we have given default counseling to recently has already refinanced, tapped their equity and now owes more than their house is worth,' she said."

"A panel of housing experts agreed the No. 1 way to stem foreclosures is to educate buyers before they get a mortgage and homeowners on their best options when they get in trouble."

"'People have more education about buying a car than a home,' said Sheila Harris, director of the Arizona Department of Housing."

The Arizona Daily Star. "The number of homes sold and the median prices in the Tucson area dropped in May, according to a monthly report published by a local housing consultant."

"The Southern Arizona Housing Market Letter, released Monday by John Strobeck of Bright Future Business Consultants, showed new home and resale home closings were both down about 22 percent compared with the same month a year ago."

"The median prices also fell 6.7 percent for new homes and by less than 1 percent for resold home in May compared to May 2006, according to the report."

"Permits for single-family homes dropped to the lowest level for May since 2001, according to the report. Last month, there were 602 permits pulled, down more than 40 percent from 1,032 in the same month last year. There were 534 permits in May 2001."

"Strobeck said May's permit numbers were relatively strong, given that the monthly number of permits has dropped as low as 328 within the past year."

"He anticipates that prices and sales will start to increase again sometime between the end of this year and the summer of 2008, 'Although I get a little more pessimistic each month,' he added."