Is the glass half full or half empty?

The front page of Wednesday's P-I (10/31/07) reads, "Mixed news on home prices:
Seattle increase leads U.S.; not all is positive." http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/337376_housing31.html The article notes that, "the area's annual increase (5.7%) was the lowest in four years and August was the 18th consecutive month of declining annual appreciation. Also, prices decreased nearly one-tenth of a percent from July." What they are describing is a very strong and vibrant market, but they have somehow managed to make it sound threatened. Prices decreased less than one-tenth of one percent??!! At that rate of decline it will take a dozen years to get back to a NORMAL market, let alone a slow market! And the 5.7% figure quoted (again, a very strong showing) conflicts with their own previously published estimated of over 8% for last year.


The bottom line? The sky is still not falling.