The Florida realtors have the May numbers out. "With mortgage rates still ticking upwards, Florida's housing sector in May continued to adjust to changing market conditions, including a greater inventory of homes available for sale in many areas. A total of 18,680 existing single-family homes sold statewide last month, a decrease of 24 percent from the 24,523 homes sold during the previous May, according to FAR."

"Sales of existing condos also decreased in May, with a total of 5,725 condos sold statewide compared to 8,337 in May 2005 for a 31 percent decline."

"The number of Lee County homes sold plunged 24 percent in May from a year ago. In Collier County, the number of homes sold dropped 40 percent to 313. Charlotte County’s home sales dropped 15 percent to 398."

The Herald Tribune. "In the Charlotte County-North Port market, prices dropped about 2 percent, from $216,200 to $211,500. In the Sarasota-Bradenton market, home sales dropped 32 percent."

The Naples News. "'Overall "everything is still status quo, still pretty slow (in Naples),' Mike Timmerman of Hanley Wood Market Intelligence said. Some of the larger developers have seen declines in sales lately. 'The decline..is worrisome for different reasons,' Kitty Green of the Bonita Bay Group told the Daily News. 'Traffic is prospective buyers and is essential for builders.'"

"Because of the glut of housing, some of the larger housing developers, such as WCI and The Ronto Group, are delaying housing projects so as to not flood the market and significantly lower home prices."

The Sun Sentinel. "'There's no question home sales are slowing,' Doug Duncan, chief economist of the Mortgage Bankers Association, said. 'We've got a big buildup in inventory out there.'"

"Home builders have responded by increasing incentives. WCI Communities Inc., the Bonita Springs builder with many projects in South Florida, is handing out lifetime country club memberships and two-year luxury-car leases."

The Palm Beach Post. "Florida foreclosure filings jumped by 6 percent from April to May. ' The numbers for St. Lucie County were even more grim. And in Palm Beach County last month, one of every 561 households faced a new foreclosure action."

"'Unfortunately, this is not a blip,' said Jack McCabe, president of McCabe Research and Consulting in Delray Beach, which months ago warned of coming foreclosure problems. 'It is going to be a trend for quite a period of time.'"

"The uptick in foreclosure activity is linked in part to the popularity of 'exotic' mortgages. As the flexible interest rates of such loans reset, though, payments and overall debt can balloon."

"'You just can't have a median income of $58,000 to $60,000 and live in a $400,000 house,' said David Levin, a Delray Beach real estate consultant. 'It just doesn't work. You don't need a Ph.D. to understand that $2 will not allow you to afford $3.' But, he added, 'people wanted to believe.'"