The Herald Tribune reports from Florida. "Not many developments here can boast the views of the massive SevenShores condominium project planned for land straddled by Anna Maria Sound and Perico Bayou. Thirteen condo towers will eventually rise above the mangroves lining the encircling shoreline. The plan is to sell the luxury homes for as much as $1 million. If only they could find buyers more quickly."

"Now well into a housing downturn, the developer has sold only nine condos since opening its sales office in May. Low-end prices were set at just under $700,000 when SevenShores' sales office opened in May. Those units now start at $534,000."

"Economist Hank Fishkind said he expects new condo sales in the area to suffer for at least the next two years. The problem is a 'dramatic over-supply,' probably the worst in 25 years, he said. 'Anything currently in pre-sales will be long-delayed,' Fishkind said. 'You're not going to see construction anytime soon.'"

"Also within the city limits of Bradenton, Tidewater Preserve will offer 993 units on both sides of Interstate 75 on the south shore of the Manatee River. A sales office has been open for nearly a year, but the project developer, WCI Communities, won't say how many homes have been reserved or sold."

"Spokesman Steve Zenker would only say, 'The market environment has certainly been more difficult than it was a year, year and a half ago.'"

"Development giant Lennar Corp has found a way to sell condos in a saturated market: offer maintenance-free living on the cheap. Stoneywood Cove's town houses, most of which are priced in the $190,000s, defy the dimensions of typical affordable housing. One model is a three-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bath town house with more than 1,200 square feet. Another is a 1,436-square-foot, two-bedroom model."

"Lennar is able to offer the units at low cost because of the development's lack of perks. The basic living conditions keep Stoneywood's homeowner dues below $200 per month. 'We are basically offering a price point that is unheard of in this market right now,' said Levent Yamuk, a Lennar new home consultant."

"Market forces may have encouraged Lennar to set Stoneywood's prices low. (A) Web site listed a staggering 865 condos on the Venice market in early December. But only 27 of those were 1,200-square-feet or bigger with a price tag between $170,000 and $210,000. All 27 were resales, and most were more than 15 years old."

"Many of Stoneybrook's rows of identical single-family houses sit dormant while construction at Stoneywood is brisk. The pace of sales at Stoneywood is also a stark contrast to Stoneybrook, where 'for sale' signs seem to outnumber Christmas decorations."

"Stoneybrook at Venice, a 998-home master-planned community, was expected to be a haven for professionals and families when its $300,000 to $400,000 homes went on sale in 2004."

"But it was investors, not families, who sensed the new hot address. Many of those investors are now saddled with a property that won't flip in a neighborhood that is still going up. Some have turned to renting just to help pay the mortgage."

"Lennar division president, Rob Allegra, didn't think he was building a rental community in 2004 when buyers had to win a special lottery just to purchase a home in Stoneybrook. But Allegra conceded the renters are helping keep the lights around Stoneycreek Boulevard turned on."

"'The last thing you want in a community is a bunch of vacant homes,' he said, 'or homes that nobody buys.'"

"While investors are slashing prices elsewhere in Stoneybrook, Lennar representatives said they expect Stoneywood's prices to climb in the coming months. Stoneywood's affordability reflects Lennar's philosophy in a chilled housing market, said Gordon Greenfield, Lennar markering director."

"Some Realtors believe lowering prices is a sign of lack of confidence in a product, but Greenfield said he believes the reverse is true."

"'We're doing very, very well, but prices are reduced,' Greenfield said. 'Prices were going up 40 percent last year, and that's not sustainable. And now we're seeing prices correcting to a reasonable market rate.'"