The News Press reports from Florida. "Florida's stagnant real estate market sunk Bonita Springs-based WCI Communities Inc. to a first-quarter loss of nearly $16 million, the company said Tuesday. 'The first quarter was a tough quarter with no broad signs of improvement, particularly in Florida,' CEO Jerry Starkey said."

"Revenues for the first quarter were $340.6 million, compared with $570.7 million for the first quarter of 2006, a 40.3 percent decrease. Starkey blamed stalled sales, declining profit margins and contract cancellations for the shortfall."

"WCI's new orders for the quarter fell 41 percent and the total value of new homes and condominium units dropped 53.4 percent over the same period a year ago. In all, gross margins on new homes were 16.6 percent, down from 22.8 percent a year ago. For condominium tower units, contract cancellations put an even greater squeeze on margins to reduce them to about 1 percent, down from 24.8 percent a year ago."

"'Obviously, it was not a very good quarter for the tower business,' Starkey said."

"More than 250 Lee County home builders each could save about $6,000 as they cope with contractors who have abandoned them. County commissioners voted Tuesday for an ordinance that will allow home builders with expired permits to renew them for $100 instead of paying thousands more."

"'It's a real problem out there,' said Commissioner Frank Mann. 'We have these homes being vandalized, creating eyesores, and they would remain that way for the foreseeable future unless we did something.'"

The Herald Tribune. "Incorporated in 2003, Golden Rule Construction Group. was soon besieged with orders to build and repair houses, apartments and offices across Southwest Florida. But like so many ventures during the recent real estate boom, Golden Rule's success proved fleeting."

"In a way, (co-owner) Keith Chandler Powell's story is a familiar one in Southwest Florida: His construction business took off in 2004. Thinking the boom would last forever, he spent too freely and ended up in bankruptcy."

"Larry Ekstrom contracted with Powell to build an $850,000 house in Port Charlotte. 'We gave him $40,000 upfront and he moved dirt around a little. Then we gave him $80,000 more and he couldn't get anything else done.'"

"Ekstrom ended up having to settle with Powell's unpaid subcontractors before hiring another builder to finish his house."

The Miami Herald. "It's about to get a little easier for South Florida renters. The sharp jumps in rental rates of recent years are finally starting to flatten out. There are now more vacancies. And thanks to a weak housing market, some condo and house owners who can't sell have decided to become temporary landlords instead, giving renters more choices."

"Heidi Williams just started renting her 1,030-square-foot Brickell Key condo from an individual owner for $2,100 a month. That's after her agent negotiated $200 off her rent each month."

"'I was actually surprised because I've never gotten that break,' said Williams. 'In my mind, they were just saying, 'Let's get it rented.'"

"Another sign of better times for renters is the return of incentives from landlords desperate for leases. Of 408 large market-rate apartment complexes in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach countries surveyed by Jack McCabe's firm, about 10 percent offered concessions such as one month's rent and other incentives. That's up from virtually none in 2005 and 2006."

"'They don't normally do this unless they see their occupancies drop,' McCabe said."

"These landlords are now facing competition from a new source of rentals, condo owners. Some of these owners never planned on renting their condos out, but figure they might as well pay their mortgages through renting while waiting for the housing market to brighten."

The Times Union. "In the boom years, some home buyers bought their American dream, and with clever loans that kept early payments low, it was a bigger dream than ever. Now, those adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) that took off at the turn of the century are set to adjust, and if owners aren't careful, their dream will end with the housing boom's demise."

"Hank Oltmanns, president of the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors, says so far, most of his past customers have been able to find ways out of ARMs that stretched budgets thin, but he expects that won't be the case for long."

"'It's going to happen. This market is going to get some people who are going to be at that point [of adjustment] and not be able to refinance because the equity isn't there or another reason,' he says."

"Patrice Yamato, president of the Florida Association of Mortgage Brokers, says that the next few months will most likely bring a dose of reality to many owners. The subprime market in particular, in which buyers with poor credit took loans with high rates, will be rocked by adjustments, she says."

The Orlando Sentinel. "It's take a real estate agent out to lunch week. This is from a post that I decided to share with the entire class. 'This market has just about put me out of business. Listing that don't sell, sellers won't lower their prices, huge marketing overhead, gas, dinners, it's just too much I'm going into bankruptcy soon! Buyers have all but dried up! I'm going to have to sell something else just to feed myself.'"

"Gosh, how far we've come from sticking a sign in the yard then waiting for a dozen speculators to bid up the price another 20 percent."

"This brings up an interesting issue. A good chunk of Central Florida's job growth since 2004 has been in, you guessed it, real estate!"

"When the business of houses takes a hit, a lot more than the cost per square foot takes a hit. A sizable chunk of the economy takes a hit, which, impacts the cost of housing. It is quite the nasty circle."

"Not only do house prices have to get back to a sustainable level, but the percent of the workforce in real estate has to return to its proper share of the economic mix."