So is now the best time to buy a home?

It depends on personal situations. Home buyers certainly have a lot of factors working in their favor right now- low interest rates, plenty of marked-down homes for sale and an extended and expanded federal tax credit that will expire in the spring.

On the flip side, there’ s growing sentiment among analysts that housing prices, which are showing ever-so minor improvements, may fall further. The reason? Lenders are expected to get better at determining which borrowers will qualify for loan modifications. That means lenders also will get faster at moving homes through the foreclosure process.