The St Petersburg Times reports from Florida. "When the flood of fresh home listings stopped rising last fall, the Tampa Bay housing market appeared poised for a recovery. Welcome to the recovery that wasn't. So many for-sale homes continue to bloat the area real estate market, nearly 41,000, that sales as a share of total home listings are at their lowest point in recent memory. In February, about one home of every 20 on the market found buyers."

"Realtors, usually a confident lot, are making few attempts to sugarcoat the recent numbers. 'It's pretty huge, pretty staggering,' said Ann Guiberson, president of the Pinellas Realtor Organization."

"Carlos Fuentes, who presides this year over the Greater Tampa Association of Realtors, said buyers haven't turned out as expected this year. He blames the standoff mostly on sellers fixated on reaping top dollar for houses that have depreciated."

"'The buyers are on the sidelines waiting for the blood to continue to rise,' Fuentes said."

"About a quarter of homes bought in the boom were 'non-owner-occupied,' the National Association of Realtors said in a Tampa area market study last year. Adding to a sense of alarm is the hidden home inventory that swells the market further. It includes by-owner sales, most new construction and condo conversions, and bank foreclosures."

"Other danger signs abound: About 36 percent of Tampa area home buyers used adjustable-rate mortgages in early 2006 and 11 percent with weaker credit took out subprime loans carrying interest at least 3 percentage points higher than market rates."

The News Press. "Local real estate experts shared a positive outlook about Southwest Florida's real estate market at the Bonita/ Estero Market Pulse '07 Thursday night. How quickly it will turn around, they said, depends on sellers' willingness to reduce prices."

"After the boom of 2004-05, said broker Jim Scartz, sales prices in 2006 reflected closings on newly constructed homes that were bought six to 18 months earlier. The prices were not reflective of the true market in 2006, and as many as 60 percent of the listings had unrealistic prices. Even now, Scartz said, about 35 percent of the inventory falls into that overpriced category."

"'Prices always take off with a roar at some point after the plateau, achieving far higher levels than in the past,' Scartz said."

The Bradenton Herald. "The real estate markets in Manatee and Sarasota counties have hit rock bottom, will stay there for the next 12 to 18 months and then begin a 3 percent to 4 percent annual growth climb. That's the opinion of noted Florida economist and financial oracle Henry H. Fishkind."

"Lunch attendees Jack Hubbard and his wife, Karen, were happy with the news, since they have had a home on the market in Greenbrook for 15 months. 'I'm thrilled,' said Jack Hubbard."

"The Hubbards priced the home at $414,900 just before the market collapsed. Now, they have it listed at $319,900."

The Herald Tribune. "Lennar Homes, the region's largest home builder, cut another 56 positions in Sarasota-Manatee on Thursday as it and builders around Southwest Florida continue to grapple with one of the nation's slowest housing markets."

"The layoffs on Thursday coupled with the 35 positions eliminated in late February mean that the big Miami-based home builder has trimmed 40 percent of its local staff. 'Everyone is downsizing and reducing their costs,' said Pat Neal, president of Lakewood Ranch-based Neal Communities."

"Other builders have taken a similar tack. In December, Bonita Springs-based WCI Communities Inc. said it would cut its work force by an estimated 15 percent. The company is now shedding 1,000 workers, or one-quarter of the total."

The News Journal. "The slump in condo sales has been well-documented, but its impact is still being felt. Throughout the Volusia-Flagler market, stalled condo projects have left partially completed buildings, vacant buildings and empty lots."

"By the numbers, there were 965 condos sold by Realtors in 2006, down 55 percent from 2,162 in 2005, according to the Florida Association of Realtors."

"Local government officials feel helpless to do much about the condo sites, other than to make sure the developer keeps them clean. Mark Rakowski, New Smyrna Beach director of Development Services, said he's not sure what the city can do if developers don't ultimately build what they planned and let the site go vacant."

"Vacant buildings seem to always serve as malfeasance magnets. That's obvious at the former Waterside Plaza in South Daytona where graffiti now decorates the exterior. Vagrancy, theft and vandalism have been problems at the property, said Realtor Herb Lubansky, who is marketing the condos planned for the site."

"'We've tried to keep the property as clean as we could,' he said, 'but you always have those types of issues with vacant buildings.'"

The Keys News. "Investors who had hoped to flip their condominiums before they even closed on their properties are suing the Santa Maria to return their $1 million in deposits. A second suit by another attorney is pending."

"Santa Maria attorney Ed Scales brushed off the suit, saying the investors are just trying to find a way out of a declining real estate market, in which their condos are not selling."

"'The plaintiffs were assured by the defendants that once the building was under construction, prices would increase dramatically as they were contracting at a bargain price, therefore there would be no issue with the plaintiffs being able to resell their investment contracts to somebody else at a profit,' the lawsuit says."

"In the suit, the investors admit they relied on the Realtors' claims without reading the entire contract."

"'This has to do with people speculating in the real estate market. It was a nationwide trend in 2004 and early 2005. They got pinched...The market is bad. Even by their own words, they never intended to close on the units. Obviously, they were speculating and this is what happens when you speculate. Sometimes it pays off and sometimes it doesn't,' Scales said."