We just sold our house this week. The market crapped out at the beginning of August and it's been a buyer's market ever since. Homes are still selling, but prices have dropped significantly. Our house was appraised at $245K last spring, we just sold it for $225K. It's what would be considered a starter house in one of the better neighborhoods of Brooklyn Park, 1700 finished square feet. We built a brand new house a few miles away still in Brooklyn Park, and at least 50 houses have gone up or are going up in our development since ours was started in June. The house two doors down from ours is currently on the market for $699K.
Personally, if you've got the credit, buying even at a slightly higher interest rate is far better than renting. Even if the appreciation settles back to a historic 6% per year, you're still way ahead in gains over renting. Plus the tax benefits saves you a couple hundred per month, so you can actually afford a higher house payment than a rent payment. Buying 8 years ago was the best investment I ever made by leaps and bounds.