Yes, there are some deals out there

Yes, you can get price breaks for remodeling your home and especially if you want to buy a new house. But this being the Midwest, everything is more moderate than in other regions.

Owners can find quality contractors quoting prices 5 percent to 10 percent below 2007 costs, said Jeff Stewart, president of the Greater Chicago chapter of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry.

And that could really be a 15 percent break because contractors' costs are still rising.

Homeowners who select contractors only because they offer exceptionally low could end up with substandard work, he warned.

Another break is that consumers will find contractors who are eager for business and able to start the work more quickly.

Low interest rates also will save money for anyone borrowing to complete a project or buy a home, said builders and remodelers.

The bad news from Dave Kunzweiler, vice president of Cabinets Plus in Palatine, is that prices on cabinets have gone up about 3 percent, but that's lower than a typical annual increase. A fuel surcharge also has been added to deliveries.

He has not increased charges for labor on projects, however.

Two years ago, Kunzweiler's company would start jobs just in time to meet the 16-week deadline in his contracts; now they usually begin in 10 weeks.

While drywall and framing lumber may have decreased in price, anything dependent on petroleum has not, said Angie Hicks, founder of Angie's List, where members recommend contractors.

It's always a good idea to contact contractors and start negotiating, she said. Customers might learn that flexibility in timing can get a better price.

For example, she once tried to hire a painter for interior work in the summer, and he informed her his prices would be much better in October.

If you are looking for top-of-the line products don't count on price breaks, said Tom Koutny, remodeling sales manager for Orren Pickell Designers & Builders, based in Lincolnshire.

However, quality craftsmen are available in a slower market like this, he said.

Unless they got a bid on a remodeling project a year ago, many homeowners might not think they are getting a price break because they have an unrealistic idea of what the job should cost, Stewart said.

Areas other than kitchens or baths in a home have probably decreased the most because they don't have the expensive appliances, said Stewart, who works for GCI Contract Flooring in Elmhurst.

Hicks said a poll of Angie's List members showed they were planning to spend an average of $11,000 on home improvements, up 13 percent from last year.

Homeowners are remodeling to make their current homes fit their needs and wants, since they don't feel they can sell the houses for the prices they would want, Kunzweiler said.

Because consumers' fears about the slow home market seems to be the biggest impediment to purchasing new homes, Town & Country Homes has partnered with Coldwell Banker to help buyers.

When a buyer prices his or her current house and spruces it up according to the agent's recommendations, the earnest money for the new house will be refunded if the existing home does not sell in time, said Brian Murphy, vice president of operations for Town & Country Homes.

Murphy said costs of labor and materials have decreased some or at least are holding steady.

"We haven't raised prices in some considerable time," Murphy said. "In the past we raised them quarterly, but we haven't done that in over a year."

While homes that first-time buyers might favor such as townhouses would not offer price breaks, larger move-up homes might be cut as much as $50,000 to $150,000, Murphy said.

Traditionally with new homes, the best bargains are for those already built.

At Pulte's Chicago area communities not many of those remain, said Chris Naatz, vice president of sales and marketing.

Homes started selling in January almost as if someone threw a switch, he said.

"There's something to be said for the clean slate of a new year," he said. "It's an optimistic time, an election year."

Pulte's recent strategy has been to lower prices rather than offer other incentives such as free features because that is more visible, he said.

Nataz estimates prices have decreased between 3 percent and 5 percent for some of the builder's new communities, but not all.