The Star Advocate reports from Florida. "Brevard County homeowners with a mortgage had a median housing cost of $1,297 a month in 2006, according to a U.S. Census Bureau report released today. That's up 15 percent from the $1,128 figure in 2005. Titusville resident Mary Franz said she is looking forward to moving to South Carolina. That is, if her Windover Farms home sells."

"She and her husband have had to drop their asking price from $337,000 to $299,900. Housing costs are part of the reason behind the move, Franz said. She can buy a home that costs 'six figures' here for about $50,000 in South Carolina."

The Orlando Sentinel. "Homeownership is taking a bigger bite out of the income of Central Floridians, especially in Seminole, Brevard, Polk and Volusia counties, according to new data released today by the Census Bureau."

"Mortgage-holders spending 35 percent or more of their monthly net income on housing jumped by 26 percent in Seminole County from July 2005 to July 2006, while the increases in Brevard, Polk and Volusia counties were 19 percent, 19 percent and 16 percent, respectively, for the same period."

"'Jon Shehan, an Orlando Realtor who also owns a mortgage company, said he expected the situation was even worse now, because mortgage-interest rates have increased since July 2006. 'A year ago was just the beginning of the problem.'"

"University of Central Florida economist Sean Snaith was not surprised by the increases in residents' income going toward housing, given the huge increase in housing prices that peaked about a year ago."

"Households have been paying a larger share of their income toward housing nationwide, and Florida has been no exception, he said. The same mortgage instruments 'that are now being maligned had a positive side in allowing more people access to housing,' said UCF's Snaith, adding that record-low mortgage rates also spurred more ownership."

"Much has changed since July 2006, Snaith said. 'We're in for a little dip here' in the housing market, he said."

The Palm Beach Post. "The housing meltdown is turning even economists...into comedians. University of Central Florida economist Sean Snaith writes, 'The housing market needs the subprime meltdown like the NFL needs another dog-fighting scandal.'"

"While most everyone now agrees that 2005 was a bubble, Snaith still sticks to his 'housing soufflé' analogy."

"'The credit crunch in mortgage markets is a new twist and an unexpected ingredient in the housing soufflé,' he writes. 'It will weight the soufflé down and likely cause more of a decline in prices than otherwise would have been the case.'"

The St Petersburg Times. "In May, Donald Trump sued his Tampa business partners, accusing them of flubbing construction of Trump Tower Tampa, the luxury condominium high-rise that was supposed to make them all millions of dollars."

"On Wednesday, two of those former partners returned fire and sued Trump, accusing the New York tycoon of failing to uphold his end of the bargain."

"The project, to consist of 190 condos costing between $700,000 and $6-million, was supposed to be the deal that transformed downtown Tampa into a center of luxury living. But SimDag has struggled to find financing in the sluggish housing market."

"Less combative than the corporate tyrant he likes to play on TV, Trump added some parting words: 'It's too bad how things turned out.'"

From TC Palm. "Stalled school enrollment seems one more sign of a Treasure Coast housing market failing to recover from its boom and bust."

"But optimistic analysts say the Treasure Coast should rebound more quickly than South Florida from the havoc wreaked by speculators who drove up prices and flooded the area with new homes now sitting empty."

"'It doesn't mean there's any change in growth prospects for the Treasure Coast,' said Brad Hunter, director of Metrostudy in West Palm Beach. 'It just means we got a little ahead of ourselves.'"

"In Palm Beach County, the school district was one of the first agencies to notice growth going awry. The district began losing students two years ago, signaling a period of stagnant population increases caused by rising housing costs and speculators — not families — building and buying homes."

"'No one really knew what was going on,' said Nat Harrington, spokesman for Palm Beach County schools, which has been forced to cancel building projects because of the unexpected enrollment decreases."

"Some builders have worried this year's slowdown in Treasure Coast school enrollment might be the start of a similar trend. Indian River County Schools had about five fewer new students than expected. Martin County Schools actually lost about 100 students, and even St. Lucie County Schools, which added about 1,200 children, saw its growth cut in half from the previous year."

"'Next year, it would not surprise me to see the schools have even less growth,' said Don Santos, spokesman for the Treasure Coast Builders Association."

The News Press. "Hiring prospects appear bleak across Lee and Collier counties for the rest of the year, according to a labor market survey to be released today."

"One-third of employers surveyed by Manpower Inc. expect to trim employees by the end of the year and just 17 percent expect to add workers."

"Those prospects made the local market one of the weakest in the nation, according to Manpower data. Only Cleveland, Bakersfield, Calif., and Gaston, near Charlotte, N.C., had a greater disparity between employers who expected to trim jobs and those who expected to add."

"A year ago, 32 percent of the employers surveyed in Lee and Collier counties expected to add employees."

"'It's definitely slowing for us everywhere from Charlotte (County) to Naples,' said Darla Betzer, regional manager for Manpower Inc. in Southwest Florida. 'Few people are looking to hire and they are treading very lightly.'"

"Betzer said the caution appears to be radiating from the stalled housing construction sector. The sector that includes construction accounted for about 36,900 jobs in Lee for July, down about 300 from a year ago, according to state data."

"However, that includes only direct construction jobs and not various industries closely tied to construction. The job sector that includes finance, insurance and real estate is among those where reductions are most expected, Betzer said."

"Lee County thinks more than 2,000 residents have filed petitions arguing their property isn’t worth what the county estimates."

"They have an ally in Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp. Kottkamp filed a petition indicating his home in North Fort Myers is overvalued by 38 percent. The appraiser’s office estimated the home value at $1,382,920."

"The notices tell the value of a person’s taxable property and what they can expect to pay in property taxes. The market rate is based on comparable home sales in 2006. Many property owners have seen heavy market declines since then, but in order to have the value changed a person must present evidence the appraiser’s value is inaccurate based on comparable 2006 sales."

"The burden is on property owners to prove the appraiser incorrect. Some residents presented independent appraisals or did their own research."

"Rebecca Werner is retired and living with her husband in a condominium near the gulf in Fort Myers Beach. She filed a petition showing her condo, appraised at $574,000, to be overvalued by $175,000."

"'If you look at the equivalent comparisons in that building, there is very little rhyme or reason to it,' Werner said."

"Bruce Johnson bought his Cape Coral home two years ago. 'They got my property going up $60,000,' Johnson said. 'I got it going down $100,000.'"

"Cleve Frederick of Lehigh Acres submitted a petition arguing his home, valued at $293,800, should be valued about $53,000 less. His market value spiked $44,000 from last year."

"'I said, 'What the hell — this house isn’t worth that kind of money,' Frederick said."