Housing prices

Whaddya know, the price of housing comes down and more people decide to buy:

Julio Cesar Memeses, 45, a construction worker who is about to close on a three-bedroom home in West Phoenix for $50,000, said he and his family were thrilled to own “a piece of the American dream.” He said they were not worried about making their mortgage payments because the price was so low.

Ms. Goldman, too, said she felt pleased. “It’s like, wow, I accomplished something,” she said.

She said she had visited 200 properties before finding her current home late one night and deciding she had to have it. Sliding open the glass door to the pool on a sunny afternoon, she said: “I love the light. That’s what captured me.” Her daughter, Tiffany Munro, 14, stood beside her. “I’m, like, this is my house,” Tiffany said, looking skyward, and smiling. “I get to live here.”

The decline of housing costs is something that should be welcomed, not a cause for worry. They enable more people to purchase their own residence. Government programs meant to prevent housing prices from declining only keep home ownership out of the reach of potential buyers.