The St Petersburg Times reports from Florida. "Evidence is mounting that the downturn in Florida's real estate market may be broader than experts had expected. St. Joe Co., the largest private landowner in Florida, is exiting the homebuilding business in the state. Giant homebuilder Lennar Corp. of Miami is reducing its third-quarter earnings estimates. And the National Association of Realtors predicted home sales will be lower than projected throughout the remainder of the year."

"'Given difficult market conditions, we have limited our land purchases while we have remained focused on..minimizing completed inventory,' said Lennar president and chief executive Stuart Miller, who said his company is limiting land purchases and minimizing inventory because of market conditions."

"But analyst Alex Barron said he remains unconvinced that other builders, who are also feeling the strain of slow sales, will jump on St. Joe's offer of sites. 'All homebuilders find themselves with too much land and are in the process of writing off land options and trying to shrink their land portfolios,' said Barron. 'Joe's decision to exit the homebuilding business is a clear indication that builders are now losing money by building homes in Florida.'"

The Tallahassee Democrat. "St. Joe's departure, and the entry of national home builders into the region, could mean stiffer competition among subcontractors resulting in lower home prices, said David Wamsley, CEO of K2 Urbancorp in Tallahassee. 'When they come in and see some of the pricing they have had to see with subcontractors in this market, I think it's going to shock the system a little bit,' Wamsley said. 'Ultimately it will reduce the price of a house.'"

"The Miami Herald. "Signs the once-hot housing market continues to cool keep coming: Homebuilder Lennar said Friday its third-quarter earnings will be much lower than projected. The Miami-based company blamed a decrease in new orders, increased use of sales incentives, and certain land adjustments."

"While many builders believe the South Florida market's long-term prospects are very bright, the 'duration of this transition is unknown,' said Antonio Mon, CEO of Hollywood-based homebuilder Technical Olympic USA."

"The Miami City Commissioners expressed skepticism about using any community redevelopment funds to assist the developers. The developers have requested $200 million in such funds."

"Developer Mark Siffin wrote to ask for help to pay for a parking garage and street improvements near the arts center. He said the project would provide public benefit and cited the 'current environment of increasing construction costs and high land prices.' Miami Mayor Manny Diaz said the developers approached him earlier this year and asked for $200 million from city coffers. He said it would be a poor use of public funds."

"'The answer was very clearly no,' Diaz said. 'I couldn't see government putting money into that kind of a private project. In a property like this that is right next to the PAC, where every major private developer in the world submits a bid, and they want a subsidy? I flatly rejected them.'"

The Tampa Tribune. "Real estateagents Bethany Ezell and Kesia Thompson didn't set out to manage rental property. But the sluggish housing market has turned them both into quasi-landlords."

"They were among more than 50 students attending The Landlord Academy's recent eight-hour property management class. Ezell and Thompson attended because the glut of houses on the market has turned some would-be sellers into accidental landlords. 'It's kind of fallen into our laps,' says Thompson.'