The Herald Tribune reports from Florida. "Ripping up a contract, abandoning a deposit and running away from a new home is a painful and expensive exercise, but it is one that more people are doing today than ever before. Jerry Starkey, CEO of Bonita Springs-based WCI Communities, told investors this week that 'home cancellations were about twice our historical rate" during the third quarter.'"

"Economist Patrick Newport figures that is about the average nationally, though precise figures are difficult to pin down because 'they are not tracked by anyone.'"

"He did an analysis recently that concluded 'if cancellations were being counted, sales would be lower and inventory higher than currently estimated. How big of a problem are cancellations? No one knows for sure.'"

"Most vulnerable are the 'national builders, who sold homes for as little as 5 to 10 percent down,' said Lee Wetherington. Some builders made offers for $1,000 down or less and now are experiencing cancellations because the buyer has less at stake and sees new home prices falling below his or her own contract price."

"'A lot of people are afraid of the fall off of pricing,' Wetherington said. 'Almost any builder now is pricing at 10 to 15 percent less than during the summer of 2005,' including Wetherington's company."

"'It's those people who signed contracts in the summer of 2005 who are the most likely to walk away,' he said. 'They bought at the peak,' and are faced with closing now at a price that may be underwater for three years."

"In Southwest Florida, Lennar, with about 1,000 housing starts in the region each year, is experiencing a 10 percent cancellation rate in this region so far in 2006, said Rob Allegra, the company's Sarasota division president. He thinks many of the home buyers who walked away from their homes were investors."

"'We've found that a lot of them were flippers who may have had two or three houses under contract,' he said. Walking away from a contract is typically very expensive: from $30,000 to $40,000, Allegra said."

"Even without cancellations, the slowdown in demand for new homes is going to take a big bite out of the bottom line for most Southwest Florida builders, Wetherington said. His sales have dropped 35 to 40 percent, and Wetherington. 'Most people ain't going to make any money next year,' he said."

"New homes must be moved and will be discounted until they do. 'We have to move these homes," Allegra said."

From TC Palm. "The fastest growing portion of the county also recorded the highest number of foreclosures during the recent quarter. Vero Beach was second on the Treasure Coast with 179 during the same three-month period, part of a 259 percent increase in foreclosures in Indian River County from the second to the third quarter."

"Bill Glynn, a Realtor in Vero Beach, attributed the higher foreclosures to investors walking away from contracts on the mainland because of a slump in sales. 'Unfortunately the market is depressed and sellers decided that the idea that you could flip for a nice profit is not a logical possibility anymore,' Glynn said. 'Some people are just walking away from deals completely.'"

"Jennifer Atkisson-Lovett, president of the Realtors Association of Martin County, faulted creative financing and exotic loans offered by some banks during the peak of the market last year. She also theorized that some buyers over stretched their finances with large mortgage payments because home prices were skyrocketing in 2005. When their property tax bills arrived, budgets collapsed."

"'Unfortunately, interest rates are adjusting and it's catching up to some people,' Atkisson-Lovett said."

The Sun Sentinel. "Broward County had the second-highest mortgage foreclosure rate among the nation's top 100 metropolitan areas during the third quarter, according to a report. Broward had 8,431 foreclosures in the July-to-September quarter."

"Miami-Dade County had the fourth-highest foreclosure rate, with 9,380 in the quarter. Palm Beach County was ranked 13th, with 3,643 foreclosures."

"Speculators couldn't find buyers as the housing market slowed and were stuck making the mortgage payments. 'They're the people who don't have an attachment to the home and are the quickest to give up on a property if the profit motive isn't there anymore,' said Mike Larson, an analyst in Jupiter."

"Louis Spagnuolo, a mortgage banker in Boca Raton, said his office has received a spate of calls recently from novice speculators looking to refinance their loans. They can't afford huge increases in their insurance premiums and property-tax bills. 'They were blindsided,' Spagnuolo said. 'We're in for a bumpy road for the next nine months,' Spagnuolo said."

From Tampa Bay Online. "Deutsche Bank Trust Company America, the U.S. arm of one of the world's largest banks, wants its money back from the parent company of a home builder active in the Tampa Bay area."

"The bank is demanding Technical Olympic USA, based in Hollywood, Fla., repay money it borrowed last year to buy Transeastern Homes, the home builder involved in a handful of local developments, including Live Oak Preserve and the Hammocks in Tampa, and Tampa Bay Golf & Country Club in San Antonio. The total purchase price was $857 million."

"The poor real estate market conditions have hit Live Oak especially hard. Karyn Glubis, a real estate agent who lives there, said Transeastern stopped offering lots in its phase two areas this year."

"People don't know what's going on with Transeastern, but they're concerned about how it might affect them, she said. A few weeks ago, TOUSA told investors that Transeastern was performing poorly and the home builder laid off 130 workers in September."