A report from the Idaho Statesman. "The Treasure Valley single-family residential market promises to remain in the doldrums for some time to come, according to a report released this week. Metrostudy reported this week that demand for housing has slowed because of saturated housing market and a lack of consumers who can afford the price of a new home."

"Don Hubble, owner of Hubble Homes, said Tuesday that his firm is offering agents who bring a qualified buyer a $5,000 bonus, over and above their commission, and $5,000 in upgrades for the buyer."

"'That amounts to about 5 percent to 7 percent off our price,' Hubble conceded. 'But sales have been so slow that we're trying anything we can to stimulate the market.'"

"According to the IMLS statistics, the Ada County inventory of homes for sale at the end of June was 5,054 homes, of which only 1,624 were newly constructed. Canyon County's total inventory of 2,583 included just 767 new homes."

"Heinrich Wiebe, co-founder of Boise-based Genius Realty, said the consumer should remember that they're dealing with a builder's 'asking price.'"

"He said builders in the Valley have routinely been dropping prices between 3 percent and 7 percent in order to sell homes. In a couple of 'extreme cases' the builder has given a 20 percent cut to unload a home, he added."

"'Their price on a home is just a starting point. Most builders are willing to negotiate a lower price,' Wiebe said."

The Mail Tribune from Oregon. "Armed with a bit of hopeful foresight and the right location, Rob Patridge and his partners Matt and Chris Smith are making a frontal assault on the slumped real estate market. The 1,605- and 1,990-square-foot plans begin at $349,900 in an area where several nearby homes sell for $600,000 or more."

"'We saw the market niche that was there and what was missing,' said Patridge. 'Our price point of $350,000 to under $400,000 is unique in east Medford. You're not going to find single-family residential houses like this and there is a lot of inventory over the half-million price range.'"

"Indeed there is a lot of inventory all over the map: Southern Oregon MMLS reported Tuesday that 3,041 single-family residences, including condominium units, are now on the market, up 15 percent over last year."

"The median price for new homes dropped 11.6 percent to $318,000 during the rolling quarter ending July 31, with 93 new homes sold. SOMLS reported 481 existing homes were sold for the period ending July 31, compared to 554 during a similar period in 2006."

The Wall Street Journal on Washington. "The number of homes on the market in 18 major U.S. metropolitan areas...increased 19% from a year earlier. The biggest increase in supply was in the Seattle metro area, up 6.1% in July. Until recently, the supply of Seattle area homes on the market was lean."

"But now 'we're seeing a significant slowdown in Seattle,' said Pat Lashinsky, CEO of ZipRealty. Sellers generally have been reluctant to trim their asking prices, he said, and 'buyers are sitting on the sidelines, trying to figure out what's going on.'"

The Seattle Times. "Prices of King County houses and condominiums last month increased 9 percent compared to a year earlier, even while the number of available properties grew 51 percent."

"Likewise, the number of homes for sale was up 57 percent in neighboring Snohomish County and 47 percent in Pierce County, according to July numbers released Monday by the Northwest MLS."

"July pending sales were down 6.5 percent in King County compared with the previous July. They dipped 14.2 percent in Snohomish County and 15.8 percent in Pierce County."

"That gave buyers in some areas a distinct advantage. 'People are able to shop around for quality and value,' said broker David Milot. 'Anything substandard is not being snapped up.'"

"'Two years ago, if a seller wanted to [insist on a maximum] price, it might sit on the market for a couple of months, then appreciation would catch up and it would sell,' noted Windermere Real Estate general manager Matt Deasy. Now they may wait awhile but will eventually drop their price to land a sale."

The Olympian from Washington. "Thurston County sales of single-family homes and condominiums are struggling to measure up to last year’s hot real estate market as sales dropped about 15 percent in July, the Northwest MLS reported Monday."

"July data for single-family house sales show a drop in sales of 14.4 percent to 387 units, down from 452 units, (and) a 22.9 percent increase in inventory to 2,306 units, up from 1,877 units."

"July condo sales data show a drop in sales of 25 percent to nine units, down from 12 units, (and) a 43.1 percent increase in inventory to 73 units, up from 51 units."

"While higher inventory levels mean more choices for buyers, it doesn’t mean that homes aren’t selling, Van Dorm Realty Manager Jeff Pust said. But the home has to be priced correctly, he said."

"'The price has to be on or (a sale) is not going to happen,' he said."

"Besides higher inventory levels, other factors that have slowed down the South Sound housing market include higher mortgage interest rates, more new construction and slower rates of home price appreciation, Abbey Realty real estate agent Ted Leland said."

"'A lot of people got spoiled with low mortgage interest rates and the high rates of appreciation,' Leland said."

"Now that home prices aren’t appreciating 20 percent a year as they did two summers ago, some buyers aren’t nearly as excited to invest in property, Leland said."

"Five of Leland’s real estate transactions this year have fallen apart because the buyers couldn’t qualify for home loans, he said. A year ago, it wouldn’t have been a problem qualifying, Leland said."

"Because of the shakeout in the subprime mortgage market and the American Home Mortgage bankruptcy, there has been a major contraction in home loan products, said Terry Wilson, Heritage Bank’s home loan manager."

"Increasingly harder to find, for example, are zero-down loans that don’t require income verification, he said. 'I don’t think it’s a shock that they are going away,' Wilson said. 'The shock is that some of them even existed.'"