With about 5,000 new units set to debut, some say apartment complexes may be slowing home sales

" With home prices declining throughout the metropolitan area, sellers have no shortage of things to blame for their unsold properties: too many homes, not enough people, and lending requirements that have gotten tougher at exactly the wrong time. Eliot Kamenitz/The Times-Picayune R.J. Buras moved into a Marquis apartment in September when he returned to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. 'I'm not sure if I want to buy,' Buras said. 'I'm still looking.' But some are beginning to wonder whether there's another culprit in the mix: apartments."