SLUMP? IT'S JUST BEN:

End of housing decline near?: Drops in price and sales moderate, hinting market may be starting to stabilize (Kimberly Blanton, November 29, 2006, Boston Globe)

Price drops and declining sales in the Massachusetts housing market moderated in October, two housing reports showed yesterday, suggesting that the monthslong slump in the real estate market may be nearing its end.

The median price for a single-family home fell 2 percent in October to $341,000 compared to the same month in 2005, according to data compiled by the Massachusetts Association of Realtors.

Sue Hawkes, managing director of Collaborative Cos., a real estate marketing firm, was heartened by October's results.

"In the scheme of things," she said, a 2 percent price drop "is quite low. People think prices have dropped 10 or 15 percent, but the statistics aren't showing that. That's very encouraging news."