A housing report from Florida Today. "If there was any doubt that Brevard County's housing boom has ended, a new construction report should squash it. Housing construction permitting in Brevard dropped in June to its lowest one-month level in nearly four years."

"After two years of sharp increases, local housing prices have leveled off in the past year, and some housing industry officials think it could be 2008 before the dynamics of the market change."

"With price increases drying up, investors and so-called property 'flippers' are canceling their purchases, forgoing their security deposits and backing out of deals, instead of taking on mortgages while waiting for prices to go up again so they can turn a profit, Dave Armstrong, secretary of the Florida Home Builders Association said."

"'You see 'For Rent' signs up in front of $500,000 homes,' Armstrong said."

"For home buyers, the bright side is that builders, now with an excess of inventory, are more willing to negotiate on price and other perks. 'Plain and simple, the sudden slowdown in the housing market has created excess inventory,' said Mark Neubauer, for Mercedes Homes, Brevard's largest homebuilder."

"'In Brevard County, Mercedes Homes has nearly 100 homes that are completed and ready for move-in,' Neubauer said. 'A few months ago, a buyer was lucky to get on a list to buy a home. But, now the tables have turned, and we're experiencing a buyers' market.'"

"A slowdown in housing construction has led to widespread staffing reductions among homebuilders, as well as a marked decrease in work for subcontractors in Brevard County and other areas of Florida."

"'We've experienced more people looking for work in the trades in the last three month than we've seen in the last four years,' said Armstrong. 'We had a great market, and it's amazing that it lasted that long.'"

From The Ledger. "Realtors across Polk County sold 554 existing homes in June, down 16.3 percent from a record 662 in June 2005. Sales in Lakeland fell 10.5 percent to 366, while East Polk sales dropped nearly 27 percent to 177."

"In June, Polk builders pulled 571 permits, a decrease of nearly 49 percent from 1,119 last year. 'Higher mortgage rates are finally starting to cut into the housing market. I think it's not an unexpected slowdown,' said Kevin Brickey, an economist who follows Polk."