Homes were much cheaper, say, as recently as the 1970s.
比如在七十年代，住房价格要便宜得多。
Furthermore: the bigger the bubble, the bigger the bust. Considering how sharply home prices climbed from 2002 to 2006, one might expect real estate to end up really, really cheap before bottoming out. And you wouldn't expect a quick rebound either. Japan still hasn't recovered from 1989.
此外，泡沫越大，破裂时的破坏也越大。 看看2002-2006年房价的攀升速度吧，人们会预计房地产最终触底前会非常、非常便宣。而且你也不要指望能够迅速出现回升。日本到现在也没从 1989年的泡沫破裂中恢复过来。

But if you are thinking of buying a home, here's the more positive news: While overall market averages may not be as cheap as you might have expected,
但是，如果你在考虑购买住房，这里有一个较激励人的消息：虽然总体市场平均水平或许并不像期望的那么便宜，
you can probably ignore them.
但你可以忽略它。
There are plenty of deals taking place far below the official average levels. The indices are masking a huge disparity in prices.
有大量交易是以远低于官方平均水平的价格成交的。房价指数掩盖了具体价格上的巨大差异。
Even the National Association of Realtors concedes distressed sales including foreclosures and short sales are closing about 20% below "normal" market rates.
就连全美房地产协会(National Association of Realtors)也承认，廉价销售一一包括止赎房和债务减免房销售一一的销售价格比“正常”市价低约20%。
Aggressive buyers are finding some simply terrific deals. And they're paying with cheap debt, too.
大胆的买家发现了一些好得不得了的交易。而且，他们是以低成本的借款支付房款。违约率在上升。许多卖家都是被迫的。
Default rates are rising. Lots of sellers are forced.
违约率在上升。许多卖家是被迫的。