Recently I was showing a foreclosed property and found the only thing left in the stripped property was this chalkboard mounted in the basement. The message "It was fun" struck a chord with me.

How many times have you asked yourself, "I wonder where the past owner went". Wonder what happened to the people who used to call this house a home? Where are the children who used to swing on the swing set out back? Where did the children end up? Where are their friends and loved ones? Are they managing better now than when they lost the house to foreclosure? Where they "tricked" into a mortgage they didn't understand? Did the interest rate on their creative mortgage spike up? Did they simply over buy, or was it a job loss?

Why did the past owner steal the kitchen cabinets knobs? Where are the kitchen cabinets & countertops? Why where the only remaining items in the kitchen the built in dishwasher and stand alone range? Where are the interior door knobs? Why did they remove the light fixtures and toilets? Why was the electric panel cut out? Why did they leave the property in disarray? Did the basement always flood, or is this a new phenomenon?

Who was the painter who painted this interior so poorly? And what about the bright purple painted bedroom? Whose idea was that anyways? Was it little Ashley's? Where are the closet doors? What happened to the furnace? What happened to the hot water heater and copper pipes? What's that smell? Why did the family pet urinate on that wall plug?

According to our recent MLS statistics, nearly 50% of our sales last quarter were foreclosures. The foreclosure market has prompted me to ponder many new questions, most without an answer. Will we ever have an answer?

When will the market "Get back to normal"? What do you tell your buyer when asked? I have been selling real estate in southeast Michigan for nearly 18 years. Now more than ever I find myself asking these series of questions.

I have heard that all real estate is local. Is it just me, or is your real estate market the same?