Market constantly force closes and cannot update phone

I bought my phone in October and have downloaded only one thing from the market when I first got it and didn't have any problems. Other than that, I haven't used the phone to do anything other than make calls and go on the internet. So my phone is not rooted.

At the beginning of January, I started experiencing problems with the market crashing. If I try to download something, I get the message: The application Market (process.com.android.vending) has stopped unexpectedly. Please try again. and the Force close button is present. Then this morning when I looked at my phone, it said there was an update available. When I tried to install it, I got the market message again.
I don't know what prompted this problem because I haven't done anything to the phone other than take the updates that are pushed to me.

And I have tried clearing the cache, etc, but it doesn't do anything - still won't let me download anything.

Any help is greatly appreciated!

"I figured out what the problem is and how to fix it. The Android Market downloads the apk files to the downloads directory on the SD card. Delete this folder and all the apk files in it in Astro File Manager. Now when you go to the Market it does not grab the incomplete apk files from the SD card but downloads them fresh."
DROID: Market App crashes on Downloads screen - Android Market Help

Thanks, but that didn't work. After doing that, and clearing the cache, etc, I am still getting the same error.

Have you tried: From the Home Screen/Menu/Settings/Applications/Manage Applications/All/Market/Clear Data ?

If that doesn't straighten things out I would recommend trying a factory hard reset:

• Turn the power off. If your HTC DROID Incredible is frozen, pull the battery out and reinsert it
• Hold the Volume Down button
• Press and release the Power button
• You are now presented with a menu that allows for Fastbook, Recovery, Clear Storage, and Simlock
• Select Clear Storage by pressing the Volume Down button
• Press and release the Power button
• Now simply confirm your decision: Volume Up for YES and Volume Down for NO

If you selected YES, all data including third-party applications will be deleted from the HTC DROID Incredible. Once the wipe is complete, the phone will reboot to its factory fresh state.

^^^^ what BFF said. I had this happen on my daughters Incredible. We had to reset the market app by going into settings>applications>all>market>clear data. Then I backed out of the settings rebooted her phone and then had to sign into the Market using her google sign-in and all was fixed.

Let us know if this works for you or not.