I forgot the biggest silver lining of all. But there is a dark cloud inside that silver lining. (Do I over analyze or what?)

Ignorance and apathy on the part of the house buyer.

I can't tell how many conversations I've had since the first of the year with potential home buyers. They are people who are thinking about moving here, are planning to move here, have just moved here, have been here for awhile and are thinking and planning about buying.

When I ask them if they knew that housing prices were starting to drop, they always act surprised. When I go to the Bend Economy Bulletin Board and show them the daily price changes, their eyes go wide.

This is one of the biggest financial decisions they'll ever make, and they apparently pay no attention to the news, nor have they done any research beyond talking to real estate agents!

By definition, they are the people who have managed to escape from California, or wherever, with equity capital.

The dark cloud is: the housing sales drop shows, I think, that when it comes time for the buyers to get serious, they do indeed catch on. They are either changing their mind, or holding back and waiting.

But based on my conversations in the store, there are still plenty of potential buyers either already in town, or coming to town. Some of them are going to buy eventually, so we may indeed see a 'soft' landing.

So our only hope is that we have a lot of buyers lined up who just don't know any better.....