The News Press reports from Florida. "The price of a home in Lee County has almost doubled during the past five years, despite a softening of the market throughout 2006. Liz Paul, a real estate agent in Fort Myers, said it's important to put the turbulence of the past five years in context."

"'Prices didn't go anywhere for the longest time,' she said. 'Some people bought in 1988 or '89, and they were sometimes taking a loss if they sold in 1996 or 1997.'"

"For some local homeowners, it's already too late. Teresa Tarr lost her job with a title company last year when the housing market slowed and hasn't been able to get work since. She and her husband would like to move out of Florida but know it won't be easy to sell their northwest Cape Coral house, which they bought in 2003 for $129,000."

"In late 2005, it was worth about $300,000 based on sales of comparable houses nearby, Tarr said, but now 'it's a buyer's market' and she's not sure what it will bring. 'People are being disillusioned about so-called paradise,' she said."

"Ed Bonkowski, a Fort Myers-based real estate broker, said it's not clear how many speculators will default on their loans for houses and condominiums. He noted that many banks failed in the early 1990s when they lent money to developers who went under after prices fell in the late 1980s. Condominiums were the hardest hit."

"'I guess the question is whether that's going to happen again. We'll see where the banks will be if there's a rapid foreclosure run. How many foreclosures are we going to have? That's still unknown,' Bonkowski said.'

"Chuck Novy retired and bought a condominium off Beach Parkway in Cape Coral 19 years ago for $60,000. Novy, who spends four months a year in the Cape, doesn't intend to sell but said he sees signs of stress on some of his neighbors. He worries that rising property taxes spurred by higher values will drive some off."

"'I think Florida's going to find the goose that lays the golden egg is gone,' he said."

"'It's been my experience watching people buy and sell that you can always tell the ones who are looking to flip a house — they're bitching about what prices were six months ago. I'm not going to complain about something I never had in my hand,' (said) Frank Alexander."

"Nowhere were prices more volatile than in Lehigh Acres. John McWilliams, broker in south Fort Myers, said a typical quarter-acre lot went for $2,000 five years ago, spiked up to $50,000 in mid-2005 and now would go for $11,000 to $13,000."

"The main difference between Lee and Collier is that Collier buyers are more likely to pay cash, said (realtor) Keith Hopkins in Naples. As a result, he said, owners in Collier are less likely to sell at bargain basement prices now that the market has gone south."

"'The people who have cash to put down have more wiggle room. They usually have more income — they can get some breathing room,' Hopkins said."

"Hopkins said one house in Stoneybrook in Estero sold for $250,000 early in 2005 and was appraised at $380,000 at the end of that year. The same house now would sell for about $310,000."

The Herald Tribune. "The allure of a handy profit with no money down was too much for some of those now caught between Bradenton's Coast Bank and St. Petersburg's Construction Compliance Inc."

"Mike Wood, a Zephyrhills resident, is one of those investors who might just walk from his unfinished homes. Wood contracted with CCI to build two houses in North Port neighborhoods in 2005. He was told about the investment possibility from a friend who worked for American Mortgage Link in Tampa. Wood then told 20 friends and relatives, who also leapt at the chance of making $30,000 to $40,000 with no money down."

"'All I had to do to complete the deals was to show that I had 10 percent of the value of the home liquid,' said Wood. 'I was never asked for the money. I never paid one red penny out of my pocket.'"

"American Mortgage Link processed all the paperwork and handled the closing, and the loan was financed by Coast. Wood said the deal was a no-brainer because he would be getting a house for 10 percent less than its appraised value and would have no out-of-pocket expenses."

"'With the market going up, there was a built-in profit of 10 percent and the potential to make 15 to 25 percent more based on appreciation rates at that time. I could make as much $40,000 on the flip, and in the worst case I would have to hold the property for a while,' he said."

"Equally important, nothing would show up on Wood's credit until the house was completed and transferred to his name. 'At this point, people have no idea that I have $400,000 in liabilities from a non-income-producing property in North Port,' Wood said."

"The company sent out e-mail progress reports. But when Wood visited the properties, he found the company's statements were inaccurate. 'They have never touched a blade of grass in the second home,' Wood said. 'Two years out and $80,000 drawn against my credit, and all I've got is a lot that is worth $20,000 to $25,000.'"

"He said he might be better off walking away from his obligation. 'I'm not going to convert $80,000 in credit into a lot worth $20,000,' Wood said. 'If I walk away, it won't help my credit. If I was foreclosed on, it would be a bump, but it wouldn't slow me down. I know a lot of other people in the same position. They are also willing to walk.'"

"Closing costs and interest were paid from the loan itself, Wood said. The initial draw of around $50,000 from Coast was used to pay all the commissions to mortgage brokers, title agents and others associated with the closing."

"Additional money from subsequent draws went to pay subcontractors. But in the case of Wood's second home in North Port, CCI withdrew $80,000 from Coast and has not spent a penny on construction. 'The lot hasn't even been cleared yet,' he said."

"Michael Pacheco got involved in a large, Long Island, N.Y., real estate investment club in 2005. Members of his investment group began talking about the incredible deals being offered by Seashore Real Estate, a Bluffton, S.C.-based real estate investment firm."

"For an initial investment of $10,000, Pacheco could get a team of real estate, mortgage and home building experts to build a house and sell it at a $40,000 profit before construction was finished. Pacheco put in orders for two houses in early 2006."

"'I never saw the properties,' Pacheco said. Pacheco said he never expected the real estate market to tank or to be sitting on overpriced property."

"Pacheco said he is not waiting to see whether things pick up again. 'I've hired counsel to see what the repercussion of walking away from that one,' Pacheco said of the Advantage property. 'A lot of other people in the investment club are also seeking counsel to get out of their houses.'"

The Naples News. "When Collier County commissioners decided a few days ago to kill a proposal to charge linkage fees on new development, Commissioners Donna Fiala and Fred Coyle both made statements that suggest they don’t believe there is an affordable housing crisis in Collier County."

"Coyle said there are homes on the market that aren’t being sold that qualify as affordable housing."

"Fiala said her problem with the affordable housing situation is that she doesn’t know how big a problem it really is. Everywhere she goes she sees homes for sale, and 'for rent' signs, Fiala said. 'There’s a glut of homes on the market,' Fiala said. 'Golden Gate, Immokalee and East Naples have hundreds, maybe thousands of people living in affordable housing that we don’t count.'"

"The views of Fiala and Coyle appear to have ticked off fellow Commissioner Jim Coletta, who does believe there is an affordable housing crisis in Collier. 'There wasn’t any staff to correct what was being said,' Coletta said."

"While home prices have dropped, it’s unrealistic to think prices will continue to drop long-term, Coletta said. 'I know it was a crisis up to six months ago,' Coletta said. 'I can’t say what it is now. But it’s still a problem that a lot of smart people are working on.'"