Recently I’ve noticed what seems to be a new strategy on the part of some banks. On several properties in areas that I follow in Murrieta they have listed for an artificially low price and started a biding war that ended up with the property selling at or above the price that current market would dictate. For example in one area I follow all of the recent sales (primarily REOs) have been in the neighborhood of 450,000 to 500,000. Of course these same homes were selling for 600,000 to 700,000 at the peak. The bank takes back one of these houses and lists it at 331,000. Three days and 28 offers later it goes into escrow at the highest offer which I’m told was 450,000. Pretty decent marketing ploy, but I don’t see that it means there has been any sort of change in market sentiment. Reminds me of the REDC auctions.