MarketWatch brings us some news we’ve come to be used to these last few months, the massive slowdown…freefall…that the housing market is now in. As they put it, “The housing market isn’t just bad, it’s ugly.” Well, this comes on the same day that housing starts in the U.S. for September reached their lowest levels in 14 years. Yikes! They fell 10.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.19 million, the lowest level since 1.32 million in March 1993,according to the Commerce Department today.

On another note, oil prices were once again at record levels today, just topping the $89 a barrel level before falling down to a more “moderate” $87 or so. The stock market, on the other hand, continues to slide for yet another day on worries that the housing market is going to continue to worsen and oil prices keep climbing.

So, if you’re wondering where all this leaves you, well it’s hard to say. We talked yesterday about pulling some risk out of market when things get a bit shaky and putting some investments in cash. You might also consider letting someone else worry about the hassle and stick your money into a mutual fund. There’s an interesting article in Forbes about no-load mutual funds that might be of interest.

If you choose to take your money to a financial advisor, there’s a good three part article on avoiding potential advisor or investment counselor frauds and scams.

And, here’s a quick article on spotting counterfeit money. I suppose it’s always a good idea to make sure your money is real, right?