I have a friend who works at a commercial real estate firm for years. She is predicting the housing and property market to drop even further later this year. As for signs of recovery, she said frankly, don’t kid ourselves. If reports predict we’ll be rising from the slump in a year or two, take it with a grain of salt. Sellers are outnumbering buyers by a significant margin. She has peers who are in the same field being laid off because of downsizing. Some popular real estate and property development firms are closing down for good. I listened to her woes over lunch last week. Doses of reality such as these made my day even gloomier I tell you.