I would never buy anywhere ever again. We sold our business properties and homes/rental properties in the UK and Canada, invested the cash and went to live in Central Europe for a few years before moving to Spain.
We have rented splendid homes that we could not easily have afforded to or really wanted to buy. No worries about maintenance, taxes etc. We have had decent landlords and had no problems whatsoever. No worries about falling property prices.
True, we have paid rents higher than most monthly mortgage payments but so what? The benefits far outweigh any losses we might have found (but we didn't!) We currently live in a large, beautiful house with pool etc etc and when we get tired of this area we'll move on. True, we've spent a fortune having our furniture and all possessions carted around Europe but again, so what? It would be expensive to replace new to the same standard/quality and besides, we like having our familiar things around us.
So why not consider renting as your first option, at least until the bottom has been reached in this still falling market?