The Orlando Sentinel reports from Florida. “She misses her grandchildren, who live in Winter Park, but Ann Ortstadt had to move away. She couldn’t afford Central Florida. The grandmother of two now lives in Atlanta, which ranked second in population growth last year, according to today’s U.S. census report. ‘Although prices in Central Florida have come down a lot, it is still very expensive compared to the rest of the country, especially when you add in taxes and the cost of insurance,’ said Dan O’Hara, a Maitland real-estate agent and mortgage broker with 24 years of experience.”(To read the complete article, click on the link)
From NBC 6.net. “The South Florida area leads the nation in the drop of home sale prices. A home with professional appliances and a slate floor that was designed by the owner, who is in restaurant management, barely attracts one buyer visit on a weekly basis. There are 350 other homes for sale in the Grove.”
“‘Maybe two years ago it would’ve been around $660,000, $620,000, $650,000,’ Realtor Michael Mahar said. ‘Now I’ve dropped the price to $499,000.’”
“‘It’s an excellent deal and in Coconut Grove for under $500,000,’ Mahar said. ‘This is as good as it gets.’”
“Mahar said it’s been a tough two years. ‘Just watching it drop and drop,’ he said. ‘And now I have to sell it.’”
From Local 10.com. “The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Schiller index for January 2008 showed sharp drops with prices down 11.4 percent nationwide. Miami and Las Vegas tied as the worst performing cities in the nation with prices falling 19.3 percent.”
“In Miami, homeowner Zoe Lemus recently dropped his asking price by $100,000 in the hopes of attracting a buyer. ‘People like it, they want to buy it, they just don’t have the money,’ said Lemus.”
“‘We’ve got another 20 to 25 percent to go,’ Deerfield Beach Jack McCabe real estate analyst told Local 10’s Mark Joyella. McCabe said South Florida’s home prices rose so dramatically at the height of the housing bubble that it will take longer for prices to stabilize.”
“‘You’ve got a situation where prices have to come down so people can afford homes, and that’s where we’re at. We’re going through this correction cycle. It’s a very healthy thing,’ said McCabe.”
From Bloomberg. “Miami-area homeowner Richard Welch is spending $70 less on groceries a week after his house lost $145,000 in value. Rita Roland cut off 11 inches of hair to save on salon trips, and Victor Parris stopped drinking his favorite brands of dark ale.” (To read the complete article, click on the link)
The St Petersburg Times. “Felix Amon dreamed of building taller than Trump, but now finds himself hammered by the slump. Poor sales and tighter credit have forced Amon, based in Daytona Beach, to seek Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for his Tampa Tower 2 project.” (To read the complete article, click on the link)
The Tallahassee Democrat. “When Florida’s Realtors hosted lunch in the Capitol courtyard Wednesday, they were hoping for good news to go with their Chinese chicken salad. Elected officials gave them a feast.”
“Gov. Charlie Crist reported Floridians experienced a 16-percent reduction in home insurance ‘in the last year.’ He also cited a ‘fantastic’ lowering of property taxes, anticipating ‘a $25 billion reduction over the next five years.’” “‘It’s not enough, but it’s a heck of a start,’ he said.”
“‘We’ve reached the turning point (in home sales),’ said Florida Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink.”
“U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez gave a national perspective. ‘We have a real crisis on our hands,’ he told the Realtors about the residential real estate market. ‘We need to do something to draw down the inventory of unsold homes.’”
“Realtors travel to Tallahassee each March for the FAR’s Legislative Days. About 800 members attended committee meetings and conferred with their legislators during the two-day gathering.”
“Realtors noted other signs that real estate sales’ downward trend is reversing. Summer Greene from Broward County said her area has seen a 16 percent increase in pending transactions.”
“‘It’s like everybody woke up Feb. 1 and said, ‘Enough of this,’ she said.”
