Cabal, this is the most interesting post I have seen for a long time. Thanks for sharing. Very few sellers seem willing to share their experiences.

I’d just like to say that the experience you describe is the inverse of the inflating bubble. Low balling, and over correction is the jungle’s response to bidding wars and over-pricing. However, the source of much frustration to many buyers is that bidding wars never really left us, so your story is a breath of fresh air.

I’m on the other end of the scale, a buyer-in-waiting, and my belief (hope) is that prices will continue to decline in my price range. I am aware that many sellers are waiting for an improvement, but I’m not sure that will happen any time soon. My gut tells me if, or when we have reached bottom, previous high levels of appreciation are unlikely, in the near to mid term. It seems to me that many sellers who bought more than ten years ago, could still sell and do well since historically California prices have always been high. So it seems there is a dilemma. Sellers wait for the ‘hoped-for’ improvement, which may never come, or lock in gains now at prices which are may reflect more realistic value, and therefore still provide a modest but not unreasonable gain.

I hope I’m not going to be (as you so aptly put it),”trolled into no win arguments”, but wouldn’t it be great if more buyers and sellers could share frank views directly, as opposed to shouting through an impenetrable wall of misinformation, middle-men, special interests, and greed?