These are uncertain times for home buyers and sellers, to say the least, but tough periods sometimes bring exceptional opportunities. That applies to today's buyers.

The economy is teetering ominously on a precipice. Home prices, sales volume and mortgage interest rates are all exhibiting volatile behavior. In recent months, existing home sales showed a healthy gain in July, but declined 2.2 percent in August, according to a report from the National Association of Realtors.

Within the past month, mortgage interest rates dropped well below the benchmark 6 percent level, only to jump over that mark in late September. Home values are bouncing up and down in most regional markets.

While many prospective buyers remain on the fence waiting for the market to return to a more normal status, others are taking advantage of current conditions to make advantageous home purchases. Prices dropped in many areas — outstanding bargains are available with distressed properties.

The national median price off existing (previously owned) homes is down by 9.5 percent from last year, according to NAR.

There is a large inventory of homes to select from, and mortgage rates are still at low levels, even though they are starting to rise and becoming more difficult to obtain. Both builders and individual owner-sellers are more inclined to be receptive to negotiation of price and terms in today's market. Considering all those factors, some buyers conclude that opportunity is at hand.

However, we should emphasize that mortgage rates are generally rising and lenders are becoming fussier about qualifying applicants.

"The difficulty in obtaining a mortgage is increasing, making it more challenging for creditworthy borrowers to find financing," said Richard Gaylord, NAR president. "Our hope is that overly tight lending criteria can be loosened with reasonable standards and credit, so sales activity can catch up with demand. There is serious question as to whether a cash infusion by the Treasury into Wall Street would help consumers by improving mortgage funding."

Many individuals decided to act now in their search for homes because they believe mortgage rates will continue to rise and loans will be harder to obtain in future months. Also, they foresee home bargains disappearing as the market stabilizes.

Q: Is there much demand for VA mortgages these days?

A: Definitely. Mortgage loans guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA loans) are becoming more popular — one of the few no-down-payment mortgages still available. About 162,000 of these loans have been promised so far this year, reflecting an increase of 31 percent over the same period last year.

Streamlined by the VA, veterans apply for a loan before they obtain a VA Certificate of Eligibility. When the borrower has demonstrated he or she is eligible, lenders can quickly access the program's Web portal and use the VA's online Automated Certificate of Eligibility system to receive the certificate within seconds. In most cases, the VA can process the application within 24 hours.

Q: How do housing industry leaders view current efforts to fix our economy?

A: Here's what a few housing and mortgage leaders are saying about the government's plan designed to revive our financial system.

Jerry Howard, CEO of the National Association of Home Builders: "The plan must get to the heart of the problem to successfully stabilize mortgage markets and home prices and restore confidence in global financial markets. Ensuring that creditworthy home buyers, builders and other small businesses have access to credit is absolutely essential to putting this economy back on track."

John Courson, chief operating officer of the Mortgage Bankers Association: "The broad steps outlined by Treasury are aimed at ending the further meltdown in the financial markets and are designed to minimize the resulting impact of the market turmoil on the economy. It's another step in the long-term process of restoring a balance between the supply and demand for housing in a number of markets, and thus addressing the continuing problem of mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures."

Dennis Torres, director of real estate operations at Pepperdine University in Malibu, Calif.: "I do not expect the federal bailout to help the real estate market or homeowners very much. Any positive effect will be mostly to businesses in general and not the real estate market specifically. Don't look for anything significant to happen in real estate other than further decline. We are in for several flat years of pain before it gets better."

Q: Are home prices increasing significantly in any local market?

A: There are always exceptional up and down markets in real estate. One particularly bright spot currently is the Aspen area in the Colorado Rockies. Here, home prices are up 23 percent over the first six months of last year, according to Robert Ritchie, a seasoned Realtor in Aspen, Colo.

Two very high-priced homes sold during the first half of this year, contributing to the high average price. They sold for $36,375,000 and $35,000,000.

"The Aspen market is experiencing strong sales in the best-valued segments of the market," Ritchie said. "Prime properties are hard to come by in this market. Pricing for a new exceptional property is from $2,000 to $3,000 per square foot."

For more detailed information about the Aspen market call Ritchie at 970-379-1500.

To find out more about Jim Woodard and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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