Ever since home sales began to slow last November, home price increases have become smaller and smaller. This trend, combined with the lowest mortgage rates yet this year, is expected to result in an unusually hot fall housing market, according to a new survey of real-estate agents. The reason behind the growing optimism is a combination of increasing buyer demand and decreasing price growth. In short, the market is normalizing and, as it becomes more balanced, buyers will be able to find better deals than they could earlier this year when sellers were pricing homes high and expecting a spring sales surge. But, because of a slow winter, the selling season got off to a slow start. Now buyer demand is returning just as sellers are beginning to adjust their asking price. In fact, the number of homes that sold above list price in July was down 7 percent from the year before. That represents the largest decline this year. This combination of factors is expected to heat up the housing market and lead to a sales spike stronger than any other in the past five years. More here.