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The US News and World report looks at Arizona. “Roger Maehler has good reason to feel smug about the panoramic mountain views from his new backyard. ‘I think I got a good deal,’ the Scottsdale, Ariz., resident says of the acre-plus adobe ranchette he snagged last week for $655,000-a 23 percent discount from the original $850,000 asking price.”

“Complete with swimming pool, spa, and a big-screen TV in the great room, the sprawling five-bedroom property was high on his list when he began shopping for a new home in May. But like many buyers these days, Maehler decided to hold off and see how the weakening market shook out over the summer. ‘I guess it was worth the wait,’ he says.”

“(In) the Phoenix area, the number of homes on the market has more than doubled to 45,000 since last October. ‘I literally could have spent eight hours a day, five days a week looking at houses,’ says Maehler, who toured more than 30 properties before making a bid.”

“Economist Mark Zandi says it could take a ‘Roto-Rooter’ to finally flush stubborn sellers-and their market-clogging inventory-from real-estate listings.”

“In the short run, he expects the market could stabilize somewhat. ‘But it could very well be a dead-cat bounce,’ the economist says of the chance that a strong economy and persistent inflation will push up mortgage interest rates-just as sellers move to relist their houses in the spring. If that happens, ‘it’ll come right out of housing prices again.’”

The Gazette Journal from Nevada. “New condominium projects for downtown Reno are sprouting up like Starbucks in downtown Seattle. But for all the proposed condo projects, including eight major condo towers planned to be built through 2009, there is a critical question; is there a large enough market for condos in downtown Reno?”

“According to the assessor’s data, 72 condos, or 58 percent, have been sold to

Tags: Mortgages, Real Estate, Homes, Market Conditions