San Diego real estate market… I have the idea that many think our economic downturn will last forever, near capitulation point, so all the doom and gloom today, is to be expected.

Even though I'm more optimistic than some, a mid-2009 recovery seems a bit early to me; late '09 or sometime in '10 seems more likely.

In Orange County Calif., housing economist Mark Schniepp said:Home sales sharply higher (to their highest levels since October of 2005). Prices appear to be stabilizing in some areas; overall, prices during February were not off as sharply as they had been. For the state, off only 2.2 percent from January. We appear to be at bottom in prices or nearly at the bottom; it is a regional issue now.

It is not surprising that 1st time buyers are jumping in. For years they were crowded out by speculators armed with easy money. There is certainly a segment of pent-up demand. All the same, the stock market appears to be bottoming out. It's getting pulled down by uncertainty more than anything; once that uncertainty is removed, it will start to recover.                                                        San Diego real estate market blog