If the downturn continues, you will be able to. Provided the Fed does not increase money supply one more time, in the name of QE, to keep real estate prices sky high.
A continued downturn poses risks for a region where workers will put up with sky-high real-estate costs if they can land high-paying jobs.
That means people working very hard in life, earning PhDs, to land high-paying jobs are forking a huge chunk of that pay to the rent seeking real-estate owners. High real-estate prices are a barrier to growth. If a large chunk of the cost to setup a business, directly and indirectly, goes towards real estate, businesses and people will try to move to a cheaper place.