If you have a chance to pick up the latest Time Magazine read the article by Dan Kadlec on page 54, titled "Ignore the Headlines!", the author makes the point in this piece that waiting until you think the market has bottomed out may actually cost you money in the long run. He says, "...let's say you are emotionally ready to be a homeowner. You have good credit, plan to stay put for five years and have been waiting for the perfect entry point. It's time to get serious--before an inevitable rise in interst rates (italics mine)wipes out your advantage" 
Did you notice the "inevitable rise in interest rates" part of that statement? The Fed has to raise interest rates. They are artificially low and they will go up. Kadlec goes on to point that even if the house you were interested in buying goes down in price a simple 1/2 point rise in interest rates will wipe out any gain in a lower price. John D. Rockefeller said, "The way to make money is to buy when blood is running in the streets"
Some parts of the country are feeling this "blood running" but in the upper mid-west we are not seeing the downturn to this degree. Personally I think we hit bottom last fall and are now starting to move out of that position. We have seen a retreat of sellers to just give in to buyer demands and buyers are now realizing that a "wholesale" purchase price is no longer available. The worst thing a buyer can do now is to wait. The inventory levels are receeding and I think we will see rates begin to creep up. That creep up may not be next month, but it is on its way.
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