The Hudson Reporter from New Jersey. "In the past year, three construction permits have been issued by the town for the construction of three additional housing sites which were all approved. These sites, in addition to the housing that was already being built on the Meadowlands Parkway, will lead to the addition of 2,280 new units in Secaucus."

"With all of this new available housing, one concern is that there will not be as great a demand for the properties once they are built. Realtor Denise Michaels said that Secaucus is one of many towns where apartment and condo prices have dropped in the past year by six percent of what it was in 2006."

"'There is an interest, but buyers do not seem to be worried that the prices will rise anytime soon,' said Michaels. 'And it looks like they won't.'"

"'Buyers feel that they are more in control now. It used to be a question as to whether or not they would be able to meet the asking price for a residency or a home,' said Michaels. 'Now, they're the ones [who are] making the prices.'"

The Record from New Jersey. "This year's slow market is likely to become even slower as the leaves turn and the weather grows colder. That is more good news for buyers: A slow market is a buyer's market."

"If you are house-hunting, you have options and you have leverage that buyers didn't have 18 to 24 months ago when houses were being bid up and snapped up within days of listing. 'Buyers have power in this market,' said Cathy Denis of Century 21 Mainstream in New Milford."

"Bob Lindsay of Coldwell Banker in Wayne, said: 'You want to be able to look at the most recent sales of comparable homes. If you look at property that sold and closed six months ago, that property would be worth less today. What you really want to see are very recent sales and very recent contracts, even if they have not yet closed.'"

"'If you see someone who's just listed a house, and you can see that the seller and the agent have got a clue about pricing, then I'd go ahead and consider the house,' Lindsay said. 'But, if the price is unrealistic, I don't think I'd act on it.'"

"The contract can be written to say that your offer expires in 24 or 48 hours, forcing the sellers to respond promptly. 'I have seen that done a lot more lately,' said Leah Selig of Kern & Rogers in Wyckoff. 'It puts a little fire under the sellers when you say, 'In 24 hours, this offer is over, and we're looking somewhere else.'"

The News Journal from Delaware. "Real estate investor Mike Lundregan, of Manhattan, N.Y., has been sitting on his 1910 Victorian in Lewes for 14 months, unable to sell the historic home."

"He bought the 2-bedroom house for $389,000 in December 2005 and spent $80,000 in renovations. An appraiser told him last year that he should price it between $590,000 and $600,000."

"'Subsequently, the market did a bit of a nosedive,' Lundregan said. 'I'm the classic case of somebody who tried to capitalize on the red-hot market and then saw the bottom fall out.'"

"He dropped the price to $525,000 after the house sat for six months. Last month, he dropped the price again, to $489,000. Interest has improved, but he still hasn't sold. 'I think buyers are waiting to see how low prices are going to go,' he said."

"'It's really hard to argue that prices have not fallen,' said Vince Grillo, a Realtor (in) Greenville. 'Homes are just not moving. There's a lot of homes that are still grossly overpriced.'"

"In other words, if all the homes languishing on the market were priced lower, they would sell -- and statistics would show home prices going down, Grillo said. 'There's an expectation gap between what sellers perceive the market to be and what buyers believe the market to be,' said Grillo. Two years ago, 'homes were selling faster than you could get signs in the front yard. ... the train was leaving the station and you had to get on it.'"

"'Now we've done a 180 [degree turn] where it's perceived that there's no value in real estate. There's no sense of urgency. It's been a challenge to get people to even look at properties,' Grillo said."

The Washington Post. "During the real estate boom, many mortgage companies were willing to make loans to people with spotty credit, known as subprime borrowers, or with no money for down payments."

"Two years ago, Jose Rodriguez and his wife bought a $550,000 three-bedroom townhouse in Alexandria with a pay-option adjustable-rate mortgage. They also got a second mortgage of $55,000. They refinanced that one with HSBC to obtain a fixed rate and now owe about $105,000 on it after tapping into their equity for renovations."

"Rodriguez said he has always paid on time, but he suspects that will change in December, when the lender for the first loan, Countrywide, will begin requiring them to pay principal and interest."

"'We are responsible people, we are working people, we have never been late,' he said. 'We're trying to resolve this before December. Once we get there, it'll get nasty.'"

"They are selling the house and got an offer for $499,000, which would cover what they owe Countrywide but not the HSBC loan and closing costs. They are now waiting for the lenders to agree to a short sale. If that doesn't work, Rodriguez said, they will consider foreclosure or bankruptcy."

The Star Exponent from Virginia. "The Three Flags development in Culpeper County is in need of a new builder after Ryan Homes has pulled out of the project. Located off U.S. 29 South and Route 299, the subdivision contains about 72 homes but is zoned for 1,012 single family units and condominiums."

"The Reston-based company provided a letter to all subdivision homeowners regarding its decision to drop the project. It states that Ryan Homes is 'more disappointed than you know with the status of Three Flags.'"

"'With the change in the marketplace, we were placed in a situation where the prices we were under contract to pay for future home sites made it impossible to operate in the black,' the letter states. 'We have tried unsuccessfully to come to an equitable agreement with the developer on home site prices in order to continue. We were forced to walk away from an enormous deposit rather than make poor business decision to operate at a loss.'"

"Broker Sally McDevitt said homes were once selling in the subdivision between $300,000s and $400,000s but the prices dropped because building has slowed."

"'It’s just because there is so much competition right now,' McDevitt said. 'There’s so much on the market and so many of the houses are being resold for much less than these people paid for; so the market to build one is not as good as it was at one time. Why have one built if you can buy one for a song?'"

"Joan and Bert Benning bought their ranch-style home in Three Flags for $304,000 in January. The Bennings hope that Ryan returns to the project because there are amenities they bought into that are not yet complete."

"In the meantime, the Bennings said nearby empty lots are 'messy and the weeds are blowing over.'"

"'We’re hoping they can work something out because we feel they can make a winning community,' Joan Benning said. 'It’s already a winning community, but a finished winning community.'"