Readers suggested a topic on housing terminology and the media. "I would like to see someone get onto the mass media for their use of real estate industry spin terms, such as 'housing boom,' instead of factual ones, such as 'housing bubble,' 'housing mania,' 'something-for-nothing-stampede,' and 'mass hysteria.' 'Housing boom' implies something wonderful happened and benefited everyone who owned a house, with no suggestion of something radically amiss."

"Since most of the bubble was fueled by across-the-board criminal fraud, and could never have happened in a sane or ethical climate, the terms invented by those involved in the scam are hardly the ones the media should be adopting. 'Boom' and 'correction' are intentionally deceptive. 'Bubble' and 'crash' are factual."

"Despite its 100% bogus forecast record, the NAR is still being consulted by reporters for juicy quotes and exciting predictions, and its ludicrous, painstakingly contrived vocabulary is still being treated as god’s word."

One replied, "There is certainly a tendency to describe rising asset prices as a good thing, whether stocks or houses. The 'housing boom' was in fact an affordable housing disaster."

Another relates, "On that subject (good vs evil), I had a brief exchange with (a reporter) for the St Petersburg (FL) newspaper. His articles had been attacked by HBB types, but really by persons more extreme and shrill than those here. His piece that I read was in fact somewhat balanced, but persistently described falling prices as 'bad news' and the stability of St Pete relative to neighboring markets as 'good news.'"

"I wrote, acknowledging some balance in his reporting, but criticizing the 'good/bad' usage. I said it would be better for all if home prices were in line with incomes and rents. He wrote back saying that higher sales volume and stable prices would be the best thing. Well, yeah, but stable at what level?!?! - was my thought, but I didn’t bother writing again."

One had this, "Higher volume is better for agents and brokers and some other businesses, but it isn’t the best deal for everyone else. Selling your house (in a stable price market) means you have to move. It could be a move to a 'better' job opportunity but that implies that you couldn’t find a better opportunity in your area."

"Until people can sell their houses with little loss of value (to broker, lender or transfer taxes) it is better for a typical home owner to stay put. I acknowledge it is bad for people to be so scared of the market that no one is buying, but that doesn’t mean a high level of sales is a really good thing at any price level."

And one looked at perspective, "It was a boom, in the sense that there was a residential construction boom and thousands of units were built. There was the resulting boom in unoccupied units as well."

"All depends on what you’re looking at. These were boom years if you worked in construction."

The Kitsap Sun from Washington. "If you were waiting for the peak time to sell your house, it may have already passed you by for now."

"The median home selling price in Kitsap County in May was up 7 percent from the same month a year ago, according to statistics compiled by the Northwest MLS. But Glenn Crellin, director of the Washington Center for Real Estate Research at Washington State University, said that doesn't mean your house's value went up in value from a year ago."

"'My expectation is it will pretty much be on par,' Crellin said, though in some cases the price might have even dropped a percentage point or two. Buyers, on average, may have 7 percent more to spend, but they use it on more elaborate or newer homes, he said."

"Crellin points out that it's not necessarily bad news, because few people sell their homes a year after buying it."

"Nonetheless, it's clear the market was hotter for sellers a year ago. The 2,488 active listings in May was 41.5 percent higher than the number a year ago. At the same time, there was a 12 percent drop in the number of sales and a 15.4 percent decrease in pending sales."

"'It's not quite the seller's market from a year ago. Buyers are more cautious now; days on the market have gone up, prices have gone down. They're not jumping on the first thing they see,' said Rich Jacobson with Windermere Real Estate in Silverdale."

"Crellin and Jacobson agree that even though conditions are not what they were a year ago, the pendulum is still on the seller's side. Part of that has come because the Puget Sound region has not suffered the problems other areas have. Crellin said he believes innovative lending was not as popular around here as it was in other parts of the country, meaning people here are not foreclosing at the rate their peers are elsewhere."

"There might be hope ahead for sellers."