Delegates at last weekend's annual conference of The Institute of Professional Auctioneers and Valuers at the Landmark Hotel in Carrick-on-Shannon, Co Leitrim - where Athlone auctioneer Ray Finlay became the new president - pondered whether the property bubble is about to burst. Economist Moore McDowell was on hand to assure the agents that a "soft landing" remained the most likely outcome to the current spiral in house prices. He said that as long as the economy is properly managed, there is no reason to regard a crash as a serious possibility.