At the bottom, the market will suddenly reheat, there will be many buyers and (relatively) few sellers. Many areas will overcorrect and rebound. People will sit on sidelines till they are sure that it is the bottom, then everyone will rush in at the same time. On the other hand, nobody except banks will really want to sell at the bottom. It would be harder to get awesome deals. Best deals are scored during late stages of the decline and off the beaten path, when banks are overwhelmed and buyers are rare. It’s better to buy 6 months too early than 6 months too late.
My personal goal is to snatch myself a house I like and pay a 2001-2002 price for it. A year ago, it would have been unimaginable. This summer, I’m starting to see some opportunities. Am I in a hurry to catch a knife? No. Am I going to start looking around, making offers, and eventually move forward if I make an offer at a 2001 price and it is accepted? Absolutely.
