Location, location, location” is a mantra once common in real estate—though I’ve yet to hear it muttered by realtors this year. Instead, I’ve been listening to the voices of a lot of concerned professionals whose industry has felt repeated shockwaves from a troubled economy.

Fortunately that’s starting to change. Depending on their location, those professionals working in real estate and housing surveyed for this look at the marketplace offer varying assessments of where we are and where we’re headed.

Location has a lot to do with that perspective, with unique trends evolving depending at different elevations above sea level. “We saw a dramatic downturn in activity starting last October,” says Greg Buhler president of Atlantic Custom Homes, the Lindal Cedar Home dealer based in Cold Spring. “The economic situation derailed our customers’ plans to build.” But since the start of summer Buhler’s company has seen an encouraging increase in activity.

“We are hearing from customers who had put their plans on hold and … from customers who first contacted us three to five years ago,” he says. “They are now ready to move forward to build and enjoy a home that captures their creative spirit and provides a beautiful and comfortable haven.”

“Our customers have long dreamed of building a custom home as a weekend retreat, summer or retirement home. They realize that the joy and satisfaction of building and living in a beautiful, energy smart home are constant and long lasting. They also realize the many benefits of building now,” says Buhler, who offers a number of home building and green building seminars and has become a “Certified Green Professional.”

Joe Bushey at G&I Homes seems similarly optimistic. “I’m thinking the worst is behind us,” he says. “We’re seeing traffic starting to pick up at all of our … five locations.”

“The trend started probably about 18 months ago, where there were fewer people starting to come in. It was really noticeable last fall. But since the spring we’re starting to see that the numbers are starting to come back—and quite a bit for summer deliveries,” says Bushey.

“A big advantage with our product is we can build it quicker. Normally, the end of summer around Labor Day, folks are coming in. They’re interested in building next year and we’ll talk about the advantage of building this year. If you buy in the fall you’re buying at this year’s prices.”

He says increases are common over winter months, but this year G&I’s manufacturer has maintained last year’s pricing and even come up with new products. “Our clients are able to get more square footage for less money than 12 months ago,” says Bushey. “It’s a buyer’s market for people who are able to take advantage of it.”

G&I Homes is also welcoming a lot of first-time homebuyers through its doors, thanks in part to a federal economic stimulus package component that rewards those who have not owned a primary residence within three years with 10 percent of their purchase price, up to $8,000, according to Bushey.

“We were stressing that to … everyone who came through the door, asking ‘are you a first-time home buyer?’ Most had no idea that incentive is there. We’ve also advertised it with a lot of builders and realtors,” says Bushey. “They have to purchase their home by December 1 of this year.” He says a manufactured modular home can still be sold and built to meet the December 1 deadline for qualification, but the window is probably closing if you want a builder to complete your home from scratch in time.

G&I Homes has five offices serving Utica, Oneonta, Syracuse, Whitney Point, Vernon and their surrounding areas.

At Helsmoortel Realty in Saugerties Thomasine Helsmoortel sees several upsides to the present real estate marketplace in Ulster County, where much of her activity is centered.

“People who are buying a lot of homes are fixing them up, making them look nice—even if they flip them (buy with the intention of reselling quickly at a profit), they’re flipping houses that look better,” says Helsmoortel, adding “We do have foreclosures and people are getting them at such a good price, they’re putting work into them . … The landscape is getting a paint job.”

“We’re also seeing a lot of first-time home buyers, people who just don’t want to put their money into anything else. They don’t want to put it in the market,” she says. “There’s the $8,000 credit and we’ve definitely sold to the June brides and grooms. They want to close by the time they’re married. How many kids so young have a home to come home to after the wedding that’s not a rental? Rents are high, so they might as well make their move and buy.”

In Windham, Ashland and Jewett, mountaintop towns in Greene County, Sharon Middleton of Middleton Mountain Properties sees current lower house prices as “a correction from the boom time.”

“We’re approaching a normal market,” she says, adding, “It’s a good time to buy real estate. Prices are lower.”

Middleton, like several area real estate professionals, is also active out of state, and she’s also a broker-owner in Florida, where, she says, “there’s a lot of foreclosures and short sales … and we’re just not experiencing that on the mountaintop.”

In Florida, Middleton is converting renters to owners, with some first-time buyers applying for that economic stimulus credit. Here, some second-home buyers simply pay cash, she says. “We’re a different market,” says Middletown, adding, “we draw from the city and we’re largely second homes. We’re also a seasonal market, driven by the ski resorts. … In all my years up here, I’ve only sold one year-round residence.”

In Windham, there are quite a few listings in the $400,000 to $500,000 range on five acres or more for those who want the privacy, she says. “There’s a market, there’s movement in the market, but it’s not the level that we would like,” says David Birch of Barns and Farms Realty. “Things are selling. … It’s a very good market for buyers. There’s a lot out there. Sellers are often willing to negotiate,” says Birch, adding “people have also pulled things off the market and some leave them there at a high price because they really don’t care that much.”

“If you want to sell you can sell, but you have to price aggressively. If you want to buy, you’re in a good position to talk to people. There are a lot of sellers out there that really need to sell,” he says.

Birch says prime properties of all sorts are selling the best, but in general prices have dropped about 25 percent from recent highs. “There are more people looking to sell than there are to buy. Buyers can strike a good deal,” he says.

Birch sells houses, land and investment property on both sides of the Hudson River, and Barns and Farms is a member of six multiple listing services. He’s also selling through auctions. “Typically we have four or five properties in each county,” he says, adding “Sometimes we accept bids on our Web site, or over the telephone or by e-mail. We started just two years ago. We sell about 40 percent. The bids are subject to seller approval.”

“You’ve got to be innovative in this market,” says Birch. “That’s one mechanism that’s working. Buyers like that sort of thing and the sellers like it because it helps them move their property. We also do a lot with bank-owned properties. Nationally, half or more of the homes for sale are bank-owned. That’s perhaps lower here.”

If a manufactured home or new construction is what you’ve got in mind, Atlantic’s Greg Buhler points out that it’s a great time to make your move. “Building now makes good sense,” he says. “Contractors are aggressively looking for projects and willing to negotiate. Good deals on land can be found. Interest rates are still unbelievably low and Atlantic Custom Homes and Lindal Cedar Homes offer a program of discounts on the home materials package.” The same can likely be said of contractors when it comes to rehabilitating existing housing inventory purchased through area realtors.

In the final analysis, now is really a great time to purchase your own home. Whether you’re buying or building, there are lots of options to choose from and even more incentives than ever to make it affordable.