Kiplinger's Personal Finance Adviser reports in the April 2009 edition: "If your job prospects are good and you don't plan to sell for at least five years, now's a good time to snap up a bargain on a home.  For a listing of foreclosed homes the Department of Housing and Urban Development is selling, visit HomeSales.gov. Or consider buying a "real estate owned" property-a house the bank buys back if bidders don't meet the minimum on a foreclosure - to avoid some of the hassles of a foreclosure.  Go to your local multiple-listing service's Web site to search for REOs. If you're not facing a deadline and aren't easily discouraged, you could try to buy in a short sale, in which a home is sold for less than the outstanding mortgage balance with the approval of the lender.  And if you want a new home, builders are offering a host of incentives, including price cuts, low mortgage interest rates and upgrades of cabinetry, flooring and other finishes."