The real estate market around the country is in the doldrums. The number of homes for sale increased in May, which is unusual, since most people prefer to move in the summer. If no other homes went on market, it would take 9 months to sell all the homes currently out there! Plus, the cost of a mortgage is more expensive than it was, with interest rates rising. In reality, it's not that homes aren't selling - 6 million a year change hands - it's just not a good time to be a seller. If you're a buyer, there will be some real deals as people slash prices. Home prices are down about 2% from a year ago. To balance this, builders are reducing the number of homes they're building, and people are choosing not to put their homes on the market right now. If you simply have to sell, one thought is to do what lots of people are doing, and rent the place out while you wait for the market to stabilize. This isn't an option for many condo owners, as some have rental restrictions, and the rent you would get generally doesn't cover the cash outlay per month. So now is the time to buy condos, since the market has fallen out under them. In general, the real deals on single family homes will be coming this fall and into 2008, as we move out of the prime summer selling period. This winter will be especially friendly for buyers...but not for sellers.