I have a feeling that now onwards, it may be difficult for most IE homes to cross the $300K barrier. This is due to the combination of excess inventory, difficulty of getting mortgages and not enough income support to justify a $300K+ home using traditional guidelines (like, 3X annual income). Anyone who can afford to buy now and is brave enough to buy now will probably buy a coastal area home for a good price. The demand for IE from those priced out from coastal areas was temporary and has no reason to exist, post burst. That basically sends demand to zero and prices will slowly glide towards $200K or below with some exceptional properties touching $300K.