The Roanoke Times reports from Virginia. "Foreclosures are up an estimated 35 percent to 45 percent in the Roanoke Valley, according to Kathy Nunnally, president of the Roanoke Valley Association of Realtors. Virginia recorded 1,455 foreclosures in April, according to RealtyTrac. That's a 400 percent increase over the same period last year."

"Wesley Stroop, an agent in Roanoke, said he has seen more foreclosures this year than in the 20 years he has been in the business. In February alone, Stroop had 40 real estate listings for homes that had been previously foreclosed upon. Five years ago he would have dealt with that number in the entire year."

"'A lot of it I blame on the loan officers because loan officers are paid on a commission basis and they are pushing to get that loan through,' said Bonnie Hall, an agent in Roanoke."

"Borrowers have the option of getting out of default by catching up on late payments, but often the debt is insurmountable. 'Ninety-nine percent of people can't do it,' Hall said. 'If they can't pay their payment on time, how are they going to pay three times that amount all at once?'"

"Stephanie Hicks and her husband took out a $204,000 construction loan to build their house. They said their lender had promised to roll that loan into a subprime mortgage that would cost them $1,000 a month. Their combined income was $34,000 last year."

"But two months after they moved in, the lender withdrew its loan offer as troubles mounted in the industry. The Hickses said the lender instead offered new terms with a payment of $1,172 per month. But the couple decided they couldn't afford that. Soon they will be looking for another home."

"'I blame it all on the subprime market,' Stephanie Hicks said. 'It's not good for anyone.'"

"But some in the mortgage industry believe the increase in foreclosures is only temporary and that long-term effects will be minimal. 'The economy in the state is good,' said Steve Baugher, executive director of the Virginia Association of Mortgage Brokers. 'Real estate is still holding its value.'"

"Subprime lending is not solely to blame for recent foreclosures, Baugher added. 'I think a lot of the new homeowners may have stretched and got in on a shoestring,' he said. 'They don't have much margin for error.'"

"After several years of rapid home price appreciation in the industry, a phenomenon that caused many to jump into risky investments, increases in real estate values have leveled off, causing investors to lose money. Appreciation has gone from 10 percent to 12 percent earlier in the decade, and back to 1 percent to 2 percent now, according to Baugher."

"'I think we just have to give it time,' he said."

The Times Dispatch from Virginia. "More people in Virginia are having trouble paying their mortgages. Virginia foreclosures nearly doubled in the first three months of the year from the same period a year ago, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association."

"Nationally, the percentage of subprime ARMs at least 30 days late was 13.87 percent in the first three months of the year, up from 10.58 percent in the same period a year ago. Subprime mortgages serve people with poor credit."

"Virginia saw a similar rise with 12.93 percent of all subprime ARMS past due, up from 8.6 percent a year ago."

The Times Democrat from Virginia. "In Fauquier County, property values are declining. Presently, properties are remaining on the market an average of 90 to 110 days. Only one out of five listings goes under contract, and we currently have a year and a half of inventory on the market, making it even more likely that the borrower who is caught up in a bridge loan will find themselves not being able to afford both payments."

"They may be forced into having to renegotiate with the bank or do a short sale. In our present mortgage climate people are willing to walk away from the debt they owe the bank, and the bank is willing to take the loss as long as it makes sense."

"One truth behind foreclosures with a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insured bank is that the bank must put aside eight times the amount foreclosed, which means the bank is unable to lend that amount to another client. This is not a good scenario for a bank.'

From WVNS 59 in West Virginia. "The economic bubble that has brought substantial second home and resort home construction to Greenbrier County may be losing a little bit of air, local developers say."

"'The bubble didn't burst, but a little of the air went out of it,' said Robert Samples, a Charleston businessman who founded Eimors Construction in 1984."

"A significant amount of Eimors' work has been focused in Greenbrier County in recent years, thanks in part to the rapid building of luxury homes in gated developments. And the company is betting its future, Samples said, on construction continuing for years to come. But right now, Samples is a little nervous."

"'It's a nice new thing to have resort growth in West Virginia. I'd love to be more excited by it,' Samples said. 'It's kind of frustrating though, but I guess it's typical West Virginia. When there is a boom, it's not happening here. When there is a bust, it doesn't happen here either because there was no boom.'"

"Realtor Mardi McMillan said the market in Greenbrier County is still going strong. 'We have a very steady and solid real estate market in Greenbrier County,' she said. 'We did not experience the same bubble as the rest of the nation.'"

"'The market of the early 2000s and in the last couple of years couldn't continue forever. It is going to plateau,' said Craig Picken, director of sales at The Greenbrier Sporting Club."

"In fact, in the past month, six properties either have been put up for auction or are about to be auctioned at The Sporting Club. Samples said four homes at the exclusive development were almost auctioned off on May 22, but the sale was canceled when only one potential buyer showed up. Realtors in the county said another two lots are expected to be sold by BB&T bank at a foreclosure auction June 28."

"Does that mean the bubble isn't just leaking air, but on the brink of bursting? Not necessarily. '(The auctions) don't worry me at all,' Picken said. 'It's something that could happen at any development.'"

"People see the homes at The Sporting Club as an investment, he said. Owners view the property not only as a place to relax or retire, but as a lasting, stable investment they may leave their children."

"'We had one couple purchase a home, and I asked them what made them decide to buy here,' Picken said. 'They said, 'We've been coming to The Greenbrier for 25 years.' Plus they know the home is going to appreciate.'"

"But the plateauing is enough to make Samples and his partners change their focus a bit. Instead of doing a lot of speculative projects, the company is now reaching out to end users."

"He said his eyes have been opened a little bit. 'You realize how slow it's going to happen,' Samples said. 'Things like this just take time, and right now we just have to wait for the end-user market to catch up.'"

The News Star from North Carolina. "The Wilmington housing market, but sales continued to track below the past three years. The Wilmington Regional Association of Realtors reported 601 home sales in May, 20 percent lower than May 2006 and 35 percent lower than in 2005, when the area's housing market was in full churn."

"'It's a little more quiet than what we're used to,' said Jonathan Barfield, president of the Wilmington Realtors. 'I think the market is just trying to level out.'"

"The Brunswick County Association of Realtors saw a bigger drop in sales volume. The number of homes sold dropped to 150 from 230 in May of last year, a 35 percent decline."

"With fewer properties flying off the shelves and prices staying relatively flat, many investors are content to sit back and wait for the market to make a move, said Pete Chilberg, an officer in the Coastal Carolina Real Estate Investors Association."

"'Everybody is waiting for it to go in one direction,' Chilberg said. 'Even investors are being really, really cautious these days.'"

"The Wilmington association has 2,200 primary members. But experts expect reductions to escalate eventually, Barfield said. 'I think in another year or two we're definitely going to see the number of people declining,' he said."

"The current climate, however, is nothing new for agents who have been doing business here for a while, he said. 'The market we're in now is the market I came into nine years ago,' Barfield said."