A report from the Columbia Missourian. "Boone County witnessed its first spike of foreclosures in 2003, when the number rose from 99 the previous year to 150, according to the Boone County Recorder of Deeds office. Banks foreclosed on 143 homes and other properties in Boone County during 2006, and that number increased to 231 in 2007. During the first four months of this year, 103 foreclosures were recorded in Boone County compared to 58 during the same period in 2007."

"'I think this year is definitely going to be a record year in terms of foreclosures,' said Bob Peery of Premier Mortgage Service. 'In the near future, they’re going to get worse.'"

"Subprime loans were very much in play as recently as 2006. In 2004, 20 percent of home loans were subprime in an area that includes some of Columbia’s First Ward, according to the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act. The next year, subprime loans accounted for about 51 percent of the loans in the same area. In Centralia, subprime loans made up 7 percent of all home loans in 2004 and 19 percent in 2005."

"Some buyers purchase their homes by borrowing 95 to 100 percent of the cost with little or no down payment. Then, somehow, they fall behind on their payments."

"'If I put $20,000 on a house, I’m going to do everything I possibly can, because if I lose that I’ve lost my house and $20,000,' Peery said. 'If I do a 100 percent financing, what do you give up? It may hurt your credit, but as far as financially, there’s no consequence. That’s why some of these people are letting it go back.'"

The St Charles Journal from Missouri. "Amidst a housing market where homeowners laugh tonight only to cry tomorrow when their dream of home ownership is broken by foreclosure, two local real estate agents have decided to spruce up the boulevard of broken dreams in St. Charles County."

"On May 4, agents Laura Ellis and Lorrie Travers rented a 24-person coach bus to take would-be investors, young home buyers and those looking for a fixer-upper through a tour of nine foreclosure properties throughout St. Charles County."

"'Prices in St. Charles County have dropped low enough to where people can afford to buy up these properties, whether it's an investor or even just a regular buyer,'said Ellis."

"'People shouldn't be afraid to throw in any offer. It just depends on how much the owner owed on that house,' Ellis said. 'Especially if it doesn't sell in a couple months, they shouldn't be afraid to throw in any offer.'"

From Medill Reports in Illinois. "With the Trump brand now a permanent fixture in the neighborhood, downtown Chicago residents and workers have mixed feelings about what its presence means during times of a flimsy economy, depressed housing and the gap between the rich and poor growing wider."

"Trump Tower condominium residences range in size from 580 to 6,800 square feet with prices that vary from $580,000 to more than $9 million. Costing anywhere from $850,000 to over $3 million, the hotel condominiums are 530 to 2,245 square feet. According to the website, current prices hotel condominium room rates range from $385 to just over $1800."

"According to Peter Raisch of a public relations company that represents Trump Tower Chicago, investing in hotel condominiums is a growing trend that’s an alternative form of ownership in the uncertain current real estate market. 'Owning a hotel room is like an investment. It’s also a way for hotels to gain revenues with the market the way it is.'"

"Trump Tower brings several possibilities to Chicago. 'It will do nothing but drive the nearby property values up,' said Renee Guider-Selmon, who owns a condo in the area."

"Asked whether Chicago’s depressed housing market was affecting business, Trump said fine timing afforded him much favor in the current market conditions."

"'Hopefully [it’s affected us] positively, because I don’t think that anybody else is going to be building a building in Chicago for a while,' Trump joked. 'I don’t see anyone being able to get financing.'"

The Chicago Tribune from Illinois. "Nearly 6,000 condos, by far a record number, are expected to come on the market in downtown Chicago this year at a time when mortgages are tougher to get and sales have slowed dramatically, according to a report."

"'It's tremendously serious,' said Steven Hovany, president of Strategy Planning Associates Inc., a planning and real estate consulting firm. 'What you are going to see are buildings going into foreclosure.'"

"Downtown living, almost inconceivable 15 years ago, has contributed an extraordinary amount to Chicago's economy and its reputation as a livable city. That momentum has drawn more and more projects, but now developers and real estate analysts say more downtown condos are coming on the market than demand warrants."

"'There certainly is some oversupply,' said Alan Lev, president of the Chicago home-building firm Belgravia Group. 'If you are in the South Loop or the West Loop, you have some inventory to burn off.'"

The South Town Star from Illinois. "Manhattan officials hope to give away $1 million, no lottery ticket necessary. The first 200 people to buy a newly built home in the next 14 months will get a $5,000 rebate from the village. Buy a new townhouse or duplex, get $3,500."

"Trustee Tom Biscan said he hopes the program works, but he has seen no evidence that this will actually jumpstart housing sales. The $5,000 rebate 'is probably not going to move the market,' he said. 'I suggest developers cut their prices by $5,000 and leave our fees alone.'"

"'This is a national problem. We're swimming upstream. We think we can promote ourselves out of this. What if $5,000 doesn't work? Do we give them another $5,000? What do we do next to placate developers? Do we lower our housing standards?' Biscan said."

"'This will grab people's attention. It is saying, 'Hey, come check out Manhattan,' said Mayor Bill Borgo. 'We don't know if it's going to work, but we have to do something.'"

The Daily Herald from Illinois. "Biscan suggested developers cut their prices across the board by $5,000."

"'Lowering the housing prices would lower the equalized assessed value on surrounding homes,' Borgo responded."

The Kane County Chronicle from Illinois. "The Illinois Association of Realtors reported that home sales in Kane County declined by 34 percent in the first three months this year. Overall, 796 homes sold in the county from January to March this year. During the same period in 2007, 1,211 homes in Kane County were sold."

"In the first quarter of 2006, 1,420 homes were sold in the county."

"'It will not go down in history as a prize-winning quarter, that’s for sure,' Peter Swaufield, executive director of the Fox Valley Association of Realtors, said. 'But, unfortunately, it’s pretty typical of what’s going on in many parts of the country.'"

"'This is as good a time as we’ve ever had in history to buy,' Swaufield said. 'We just need to get more first-time buyers into this market to ease up the logjam.'"

The Dayton Daily News from Ohio. "The city of Dayton plans to aggressively snatch up properties for land banking, with a goal of acquiring up to 1,000 properties this year. The city currently has more than 10,000 vacant housing units in more than 3,800 structures."

"Targeted properties have been abandoned by owners, who do not pay their property taxes. 'We're already maintaining these properties,' said Dayton City Commissioner Nan Whaley. 'We might as well control them. We can't sit around and do nothing.'"

The Toledo Blade from Ohio. "The sales price of Toledo-area homes dropped at twice the rate of the national average at the beginning of this year. But on a positive note, Ohio homes are selling much faster than in other states, a new report shows."

"The National Association of Realtors said yesterday that the median sales value of homes in metro Toledo fell 13.8 percent to $89,700 in the January through March period compared to the same period a year ago."

"'Foreclosures have definitely had a huge impact on our market in Toledo,' said Larry Cain, a Re/Max agent in downtown Toledo. Lenders are quick to sell them, and buyers have begun to flood the foreclosure market."

"In the Toledo metro area in the first quarter, 1,877 foreclosure-related filings were made, according to RealtyTrac Inc.. But the influx of foreclosed homes began much earlier, said local experts, and their cheap prices are just now affecting sales values."

The Gazette Extra from Wisconsin. "Playing your music as loud as you want. Painting your room any color that catches your fancy. Knowing you’re not throwing money away on rent."

"Those are the factors that encouraged Melissa Williams and her boyfriend Bryan Robbins to buy a brand-new house in Edgerton. The housing market 'crisis' didn’t even enter their thinking, Williams said."

"'We just looked at our finances and decided we could definitely do it, and that was it,' the 23-year-old said."

"Paula Carrier, owner of Best Realty, points to people such as Williams and Robbins when she says the Edgerton housing market is steady. 'Media in general painted this picture that said, 'Don’t buy, prices are still bottoming out,' Carrier said. 'They’re not here.'"

"'The fact is, that the boom that we had in small towns in Wisconsin is just nothing like the boom that was experienced in many places in the country,' said Morris Davis, a professor of real estate at UW-Madison. 'In small communities, house prices just aren’t going to fall that much.'"

"Paula Carrier isn’t worried about nationwide housing problems affecting sales of condos in Edgerton’s Fulton Square project. Carrier and broker Chris Sweeney are selling the condos for Keller Development of Madison."

"No one has bought a condo yet, but Carrier and Sweeney have heard plenty of interest, especially from 'snowbirds' who spend summers in Wisconsin and winters down South, they said. Prices for the condos range from $112,000 to $165,000, Carrier said. The developer is targeting 'empty-nesters,' professionals and childless couples."

"'It’s going to make our downtown just sparkle,' she said."

"Young adults, such as Williams and Robbins, are taking advantage of low interest rates, Carrier said. 'Why would you wait until the rates are high and the prices are high?' she asked."

The Hudson Star Observer from Wisconsin. "Realty agents Cindy Otten and Laurie Larsen are making the best of a bad situation. With dozens of repossessed homes on the market because of the mortgage meltdown, Otten and Larsen have found a niche in selling them."

"'A home buyer should absolutely be looking right now,' says Otten. 'They should find some very nice deals on the market.'"

"'Things are really heating up, especially in the foreclosure market. That’s what’s really selling,' Otten says. She and Larsen are advertising a 'Repo Bus Tour' that they hope to guide soon."

"Larsen recently sold a house on Riverside Drive in North Hudson that provides scenic views of Lake Mallalieu. It’s in good condition and sold for $100,000 less than it would have three years ago, according to Larsen.The offerings range in price from $70,000 for some homes in outlying communities to $780,000 for a mansion in Hudson."

"'There are some very nice homes out there. And there are some homes that need work,' says Larsen. 'Whatever anybody wants, we’ve got them.'"

"'Agents in western Wisconsin are trying to do their part to get them sold so we can move on – get our market back to where it needs to be,' Otten says. 'The faster the foreclosures get sold, the better it is for everyone. It benefits everyone by stabilizing the whole economy.'"

"Otten and Larsen say they haven’t had enough people sign up for the bus tour yet to schedule a trip. But they’re expecting it to happen now that the weather has warmed. 'We’ve already got the bus hired. We’re ready to go as soon as we get enough (buyers) to fill a bus,' Larsen says."