The Sun Sentinel reports from Florida. "After a December dose of optimism, Broward County's housing market backpedaled to start 2007. The county had 458 sales of existing homes in January, down 17 percent from 552 in January 2006, the Florida Association of Realtors reported. The median price was $364,500, off 2 percent, or $6,000, from $370,500 a year ago."

"The median condo price in January dropped 6 percent, or $12,300, to $199,200 from $211,500 a year ago. Condo sales fell 26 percent, to 556 from 753. 'It's not surprising, and I don't think it's the end,' David Levin, a Delray Beach-based housing consultant, said."

"Broward has nearly 36,000 homes and condominiums for sale, up 24 percent from last year, according to the Keyes Co. of Miami. At the current sales pace, it would take several years to sell that inventory."

The Palm Beach Post. "For months, a ceaseless routine has gripped the St. Lucie clerk of court's civil office: New mortgage foreclosure lawsuits arrive in unprecedented numbers - huge stacks, some a foot or 2 tall. But as soon as one stack is processed and emptied from the in-box, another dozen or more foreclosures show up the next day."

"On really busy mornings, process servers drop off banks' boxes filled with these documents, which set into motion a process that often means homeowners who haven't paid their mortgages will lose their homes."

"As 2006 unfolded, the number of new St. Lucie mortgage foreclosure filings surged upward, culminating in a yearly total of 1,329 cases. That's a more than a 170 percent increase from 2005's total of 485 cases, according to the clerk's office."

"Take this snapshot: On Wednesday, the last day of February, the St. Lucie clerk's office received 30 new foreclosure cases. That single day accounted for more cases than the office received in the entire month of October in 2004, according to the office's records."

"'In all the years I've done this, I've never seen this many foreclosures,' said Nancy Bennett, supervisor of St. Lucie's circuit civil clerks division, who has worked in the office for more than 20 years. 'It has never been like this.'"

"'Most are just frustrated because they thought their home was worth something more,' St. Lucie Circuit Judge Ben said."

The Orlando Sentinel. "Three years after Central Florida's housing market turned red hot, prompting families and investors to buy, buy, buy, thousands of people are in danger of losing their homes because they can't make their monthly payments. In January, lenders filed 1,787 foreclosure suits in Central Florida, more than twice the number compared with a year earlier, according to research by the Orlando Sentinel."

"And early results for February are even worse: In the first two weeks of the month, the number of suits climbed 63 percent compared with all of February 2006."

"'You feel so trapped,' said Jennifer McCall, who bought a $220,000 house near Winter Park in May, then quickly fell behind on her payments and was sued by her mortgage company in January. 'It's frightening,' she said. 'You have a family you're trying to take care of and a mortgage that's eating you alive.'"

"She and her husband, Jason, had never owned a home before and didn't have much in savings, but they found a mortgage company willing to use creative financing, McCall said. 'That's a huge mistake,' she said."

"They wound up with a first and second mortgage and monthly house payments of $1,986, she said."

"Sales of existing single-family homes have plunged to half the May level. Rob Mitchem, sales manager in metro Orlando for HomeBanc Mortgage, said his business was off 25 percent in January compared with a year earlier. 'Properties aren't selling,' he said."

"Although foreclosures are on the rise in Central Florida, they are not at unprecedented levels, and the local real-estate market is not about to collapse, said Sean Snaith, a UCF economist. Home prices remain far higher than before the run-up, he pointed out."

From Florida Today. "Early last year, The Preserve at Longleaf in Melbourne was a new apartment complex all set to become a top-of-the-line condominium property, with units selling for more than $200,000. Today, with Brevard County's condominium market perceived as soft, Longleaf is staying as apartments, with leases starting at $900 a month for a one-bedroom, one-bathroom unit."

"Jerry Kelleher of Viera said the response for a Satellite Beach condominium he has for sale, across the street from the ocean, so far has been slow. The two-bedroom unit is on the market for $170,000. 'I'm up from Miami, and, to me, something across the street from the ocean for under $300,000 is amazing,' Kelleher said."

"Cypress Cove at Suntree, which converted to condominiums early last year, now is leasing some of the units at the 326-unit complex. Coral Gables-based The Berman Group, owner of Coral Gardens condominiums in Melbourne, which converted from a rental unit last year, also is leasing some of the unsold units."

"'They are leasing some of them to make up for cash flow,' said Lee Slovik, who is a broker for Coral Gardens. 'Unfortunately, the conversion was made when the market started to change,' Slovik said."

"According to a compilation of monthly reports from the Florida Association of Realtors, condominium resales by Realtors fell 73 percent last year, from 2,537 units sold in 2005 to 679 units sold in 2006. A separate year-end report showed different numbers of units sold than the individual monthly reports, but still a similar percentage decrease in total sales, 69 percent."

"Median price fell 14 percent to $156,000 in December, down from $181,100 in December 2005. The trend continued in January, the last month in which statistics are available, with sales down 49 percent from the previous January and the median price down 21 percent."

"Jane McCrea said she and her roommate decided on The Preserve at Longleaf because it was a new, top-grade rental property. Buying a house -- along with the insurance and association fees, wasn't in her budget."

"'Buying property right now is really out of reach for a lot of people,' McCrea said. 'I don't know if you get the bang for your buck.'"

The Herald Tribune. "Racked by the headlong downturn of one of the nation's most robust housing markets, Florida's home-building giants are shedding workers in an effort to remain competitive. Most recently, Lennar Corp. laid off 35 employees, which represented nearly 15 percent of its work force in Sarasota and Manatee counties."

"The layoffs last week 'were a result of reviewing the changing market and how Lennar could best retool its approach so it can continue to compete and be the best choice for its customers,' said Carol Cassara, a Lennar spokeswoman."

"In December, Bonita Springs-based WCI Communities Inc. announced plans to cut its work force by an estimated 15 percent. Steven Zenker, a WCI vice president, said Friday the company is now in the process of shedding 1,000 workers, or one-quarter of its total staff."

"'This kind of thing affects every industry that is cyclical, eventually,' said John Challenger, a partner in a Chicago employment research firm. 'And home building is certainly that.'"

The Star News from North Carolina. "The white sand beaches and still rural feel of Brunswick and Pender counties have been siren songs to scores of retirees and people from less-balmy climates seeking a second home on the coast."

"But that resort-like quality also could explain why, unlike in New Hanover, the median price for existing homes in those two counties have dipped as sales across the region slowed, said Bernard Helm, president of Market Opportunity Research Enterprises.."

"'Resort markets retreat very quickly,' Helm said, noting that the slowdowns first seen along the Carolina coast in August 2005 didn't hit traditional markets like Charlotte and Raleigh until a few months ago."

"'When it softens, it's just devastating for people who haven't been through it before,' Helm said. 'They are generally a purchase of desire and dreams, not of necessity.'"

"The sales volume of new and existing homes in Pender declined by 6 percent from 2005 to 2006, a softening that tamped down most prices. The median sales price of existing homes, which make up a larger part of the market, plunged from $232,000 in 2005 to $175,000 in 2006, dropping even more to $160,000 in the fourth quarter of last year."