The Consumer Product Safety Commission's unsettling advice to people who live in homes made with Chinese drywall: "Spend as much time outdoors in fresh air as possible."

The CPSC said it has received about 2,091 reports from consumers in 32 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, all with concerns about contaminated drywall in their homes. Occupants have complained of rotten-egg smells; irritated eyes, skin and respiratory systems; asthma attacks and headaches. They also have complained of metals installed in their new homes, including copper pipes and electrical wiring, turning black from corrosion.

On Monday, the CPSC reported there is a "strong association" between homes built with Chinese drywall and levels of hydrogen sulfide in the air and corroding metals around the home. They also found elevated levels of formaldehyde in the air, which CPSC said can be expected in well-insulated new construction. But they speculated that formaldehyde and hydrogen sulfide could be combining to produce higher levels of irritation than either would alone.

Earlier studies have shown large amounts of sulfur in drywall imported from China. "In ways still to be determined, hydrogen sulfide gas is being created in homes built with Chinese drywall," the CPSC's statement said.

Most complaints are about homes built in 2006 and 2007, and the large majority--68 percent--are in Florida. Louisiana accounts for 18 percent of complaints. But there have been complaints from the District and Maryland as well. And Virginia, with 82 complaints, or 4 percent of the total, accounts for the third-largest share, according to CPSC. (The other states with significant shares of complaints are Alabama, with 2 percent, and Mississippi, with 4 percent.)

CPSC said it doesn't think any new Chinese drywall has entered the United States this year, although there are several stockpiles of uninstalled drywall already in the country. "The owners of these stockpiles have been notified of this ongoing investigation and advised to notify the CPSC if they sell or dispose of any drywall from their inventory," the CPSC report said.

The government's Interagency Drywall Task Force is now supposed to develop methods to identify homes with a corrosive envirnment and study the effectiveness of remediation methods. Meanwhile, they advise occupants to keep indoor air as cool and dry as possible, open windows -- and, as noted above, spend as much time outdoors as possible.

The agency's Web site has good photographs showing the telltale signs of metal corrosion.

Guy Wolcott, co-founder of Sawbuck.com, the online brokerage based in D.C., shared some local inventory numbers with me recently. Looking at the inventory of homes listed for sale on the local multiple listing service, Metropolitan Regional Information Services, the cupboard is pretty bare in spots.

At the current sales pace, Manassas Park City has just 1.3 months' worth of listings. Manassas City, just 1.4 months. Falls Church City, 2.1 months; and Fairfax County just 2.7 months. Arlington County has 3.9 months

The rule of thumb says 6 months' inventory marks a balanced market--favoring neither sellers nor buyers. According to the MLS data, the Washington metro area as a whole has only 4.5 months supply available--making it a bit of a seller's market. The District, proper, has 5.1 months' supply.

Montgomery County has only 3.8 months' supply, but with that exception, Maryland still has enough inventory that favors buyers. Prince George's County has 8.1 months' supply, and the Maryland suburban counties, combined, have 8.4 months' supply.

Weekend Reading: In Saturday's Real Estate section we have a fun story about local artists who specialize in rendering homes as art--following a tradition that dates back to old Pompeii.

Before you rent that basement: Michele Lerner at UrbanTurf.com has a good post on the hoops D.C. homeowners need to jump through before renting out an apartment. It brings to mind the tenants who died a few years ago from a fire in a Georgetown basement bedroom. Preventing such tragedies is the motivation behind the city's safety requirements.

Chat day: Don't miss today's Real Estate Live chat at 1 p.m! With the extension of the home purchase tax credit and revelation of FHA's low reserves, we ought to have plenty to talk about. If you can't make it at 1, send in your comments and questions early.

The Weekend Poll

Mortgage interest rates dropped again this week, hitting 4.91 percent with 0.7 points (prepaid interest) for a 30-year fixed-rate loan. That is so low it almost demands a rush to the refinancing table. (Then again, bank deposits are paying less than 2 percent, so maybe rates aren't that low, after all.)

Rates locked in for three decades now cost only 0.45 percentage points more than for a one-year adjustable-rate mortgage. One-year ARMS averaged 4.46 percent this week, according to Freddie. The the vast majority of borrowers would be foolish to take an ARM when fixed-rates are so close in price.

But should you rush to refinance? If you've lost a job or your home equity, of course, the question is moot. You won't qualify, and today's low rates only serve to taunt you with the better prospects available to others. But if you have the equity, the income and the credit rating, it's certainly worth exploring.

For example, refinancing a $300,000 mortgage, from 6 percent to 4.91 percent would save $205 each month. If you paid the 0.7 points that Freddie said was the average amount charged, you'd have to pay $2,100 in upfront interest, usually out of your equity. It would take a little over 10 months to recoup that expense, but the boost to your monthly cash flow could give anyone's household budget a nice bit of relief.

Other things to consider: All these numbers are averages, and Freddie Mac collected them earlier in the week. They were history even before they were published. And the actual rates you are quoted will depend on your credit scores and overall risk profile. You can expect to pay $250-$300 for an appraisal, plus other closing costs. And credit standards are particularly picky (and rates are higher) for anyone who needs a loan bigger than $729,750--the threshold for "jumbo" loans in expensive markets such as the Washington metro area.

Still, a little time spent with the mortgage calculators on this Web site could be worth your while.

The median home price for homes sold in the Washington, D.C., area, a vast Census territory that stretches from the Chesapeake Bay to West Virginia, fell 2.5 percent during the July-September quarter compared to a year ago, the National Association of Realtors reported Tuesday. Nationally, the price decline was 11.2 percent. Also, the Realtors reported that 30 percent of all sales nationally were of distressed properties, including foreclosures and short-sales.

The Washington-area's median price was $324,700 in the third quarter. That was up 1.72 percent over the April-June quarter, which tends to be one of the strongest sales periods of the year. The statistics are not seasonally adjusted to smooth out the differences between strong sales periods and traditionally weaker ones.

The price decline was greater for Washington-area condos. At a median of $244,300, prices were down 7.1 percent in the third quarter compared to a year ago, or 0.2 percent compared to the second quarter of this year.