TRI CITIES -- So much for a bi-partisan sense of urgency. Monday, the house shot down the bill that the president and lawmakers pitched.

Support from both sides couldn't push the bill through the house.

President George Bush said he's disappointed and he'll meet with his top economic advisors to decide what to do next.

Republicans and Democrats said they got hundreds of calls from constituents who don't like the idea of a bailout, which could make reps unpopular in an election year.

"I have concerns about what this means for the American people, what it means for our economy, and what it means for people's jobs," Representative John Boehner (R), House Minority Leader.

Pacific Northwest lawmakers are split down the middle. Eight legislators from Washington, Oregon and Idaho voted in favor of the bailout, eight voted against.

Republican Congressman Doc Hastings voted against the bill. Cathy McMorris-Rodgers, also a Republican, voted no.

Wall Street may be a mess, but what does it mean for Main Street?

There are dozens of homes for sale in the Tri-Cities and people are asking themselves: what should I do if I want to buy?

Mortgage lenders told Action News: don't wait for Wall Street, the time to buy is now.

"I'm sort of glad they rejected it," Kennewick homeowner Paul Spiel said. "I think they can get a better program together that won't bankrupt the United States."

Paul Spiel doesn't have to worry about buying a home. He's lived in the same home in Kennewick for nearly 20 years. But he worries about his son, and other buyers, looking for a home.

"The economy and the market's been changing for two years now and every month it feels like next month you're going to come outside and the skies are going to be black but it doesn't actually occur that way," mortgage consultant Bill Walther said, with Ameri-Choice Home Loans.

Home buyers should rest easy, Walther's said, since Tri-Cities real-estate trends do not reflect the nation-wide crisis.

"We are like our own island, or our own bubble," Walther said.

Last August, 67 homes were listed as foreclosed in the Tri-Cities. This August, only 57 homes were listed.

Across the nation, the median home price dropped 10 percent. On the West coast it dropped nearly a quarter. But in the Tri-Cities, prices remain steady. From last August to this August the median price of a home was nearly the same.

"The time to act is now," Walter said. "You don't need to wait until the government figures out what's going on with the rest of the economy because we are specialized in the Tri-Cities."

What about the folks who are planning for retirement?

"I'm there right now, I've been there, I'm very concerned about that," Spiel said.

Investments are not guaranteed when the Dow dropped to the lowest points in history.

"It hurts, because I have to go see what my accounts look like now," Spiel said.

"That's horrible," Walther said.

"But we'll survive," Spiel said.

Democratic and Republican leaders alike pledged to try a bill again, though the democrats said G.O.P. lawmakers need to provide more votes.

The house was to reconvene Thursday instead of adjourning for the year as planned.