Some reports on Floridas housing bubble. "The median price of an existing home sold in Palm Beach County in January fell to $393,700, well below the November peak of $421,500 and the first time the typical home has sold for less than $400,000 since July. Meantime, sales volumes plunged as buyers, wary that prices will keep falling and a better deal could be around the corner, waited out the slowdown."

"The number of sales in Palm Beach County plummeted 39 percent compared with a year ago. 'Palm Beach County has a mini-blood bath going,' said David Dweck, a Boca Raton real estate agent and investor. Sales volumes also fell in the Treasure Coast, dropping 44 percent compared with a year ago."

"Shrinking prices have proven painful for some sellers. Bob Graeve, an agent in Palm Beach Gardens, remembers a seller signing a contract to pay $615,000 for a Gardens home last year. The lender agreed to finance that amount, but the deal fell through, and the house now is on the market for $525,000."

"The mushrooming number of homes for sale reflects buyers' newfound caution, said Heidi Cole, managing director of Corcoran Real Estate in Palm Beach. 'There was so much bubble talk that people got scared,' Cole said. 'A lot of buyers are sitting on the sideline waiting to see if prices are going to fall.'"

"South Florida's five-year housing boom is over. The number of home sales fell 36 percent in Broward to 552, the fewest used homes sold in the county in one month since the Orlando-based state Realtors group started tracking home sales and prices in 1994. In Miami-Dade, home sales in January dropped 28 percent from a year ago."

"The real estate slowdown also has spread to the once-frenetic condominium market. The state Realtors association Tuesday reported monthly condo sales for the first time. Existing condo sales for January dropped 21 percent in Broward and 13 percent in Miami-Dade, compared with the same period last year."

"Sales and price appreciation also is declining in Palm Beach County. The number of existing homes changing hands in January fell 39 percent to 586, the fewest houses sold in the county for one month since February 1997. Palm Beach County's median price for January was $393,700, up just 9 percent over January 2005 and down from December."

"Prices and the number of sales for existing single-family homes in Lee County fell sharply in January as the inventory of unsold houses soared. The median sales price was $287,200, down 10.9 percent from December's $322,300. Sales declined 30.7 percent from 1,084 to 751."

"Fort Myers-based real estate broker Denny Grimes said, 'The inventory's still climbing. There are more than 11,000 houses on the market, triple what it was at the low point in the second quarter of last year.'"

"Naples home sales plunged 31 percent in January 2006 compared with January 2005, while condominium sales dropped 41 percent in those same months. Inventory is up more than 400 percent, Brad Inman said. 'Tell them the sky is NOT falling,' said Jo Carter, president of the Naples Area Board of Realtors. Also, Carter said statistics can be easily manipulated. 'I hate statistics. They can be so deceiving,' Carter said. 'We live in paradise,' she said."

"Buyers like Sharon Raymond who just sold her condo in Davie don't have to rush to buy the first home they can afford. The 47-year-old school secretary plans to take her time, something she wouldn't have been able to do last year. 'You had to make an offer at that moment and give them exactly what they were asking for,' she said. 'But now homes aren't selling nearly as quickly as before. A couple of places have lowered their prices since I've been looking. I'm taking that as a good sign."