The News Journal reports from Florida. "The local housing market shuddered again in March as sales of previously occupied, single-family houses plunged 27 percent from a year earlier and the median price took a double-digit tumble, too. Worse, the declines in both sales volume and prices were from year-earlier levels that were already sharply down from historic highs. Together, the two years of decline made for eye-popping paper losses for local homeowners."

"Nancy Dance, president of the Daytona Beach Area Association of Realtors, said buyers were still waiting, thinking that home prices will go even lower. 'We are seeing an increase in the number of buyers out there,' Dance said. 'But the prices just haven't hit home with them yet.'"

"She said that in years past one could expect sales to pick up after a presidential election. 'But, this is not a typical year,' she added."

The Orlando Sentinel. "Last week, Orlando Regional Realtor Association President Steven Moreira spun the latest existing-home sales report as 'moving in the right direction.' But tell that to countless accidental landlords who have tried to sell their properties only to become so mired in this frustrating market that they eventually take down the 'for sale' sign and try to recover some of their monthly expenses by renting."

"Pete Frias's been through it. Twice. Frias, a Realtor in Washington, D.C., was one of many flip-happy buyers at the height of the housing frenzy who snatched up homes in hopes of turning quick and easy profits."

"'I'm a capitalist, and I understood that I took a risk,' Frias told me. 'Obviously, it backfired.'"

"One of his targets was an apartment-to-condo conversion unit in a Casselberry complex called Cabana Key. 'That's my worst one,' he said, of his collection of properties that span to Austin, Texas, and St. George, Utah."

"Frias closed on the unit for $136,400 in September 2005. He almost immediately put it back on the market priced in the $160,000s. No takers. After four or five months, he decided to find a renter and hired a property-management company."

"For a little more than a year he took a loss on the property each month. When his tenant moved out he tried to sell again, this time priced in the $130,000s. 'Not a single person walked through the door for six months,' he said."

"Now he's back to leasing the unit, taking a loss of more than $500 each month. 'I would sell it right now for less than I owe on it,' he said. 'I probably would be willing to bring money to the table.'"

"He's just waiting for the right time, part of that invisible but lurking inventory that could pop up any time and prolong the buyer's market in the Orlando area."

"About two dozen people who have had their homes foreclosed upon protested at the Orange County Courthouse on Tuesday, saying a foreclosure task force appointed by Gov. Charlie Crist hasn't gone far enough to help them or end predatory lending practices."

"Chenet Dorcelus said he can no longer afford the increasing monthly payments on the Edgewood home he and his wife bought last year but, unbeknownst to him, the loan had a $25,000 penalty for paying it off early. 'I can't sell it,' he said."

"At Tuesday's press event, William Moore talked about his parents refinancing their longtime Orlando home with an adjustable-rate loan in 2005. The payments have now doubled, and the couple can no longer keep up."

"'There loans are designed to fail,' Moore said. 'It's like selling you a chair that you wouldn't be able to sit in.'"

From TC Palm. "The Realtors association said Martin and St. Lucie existing single-family home prices continued to spiral down. They dropped 29 percent to a median $169,700 from $239,700 in March 2007. That's the lowest figure since March 2004."

"'Remember when things ran up the market and things went nuts? Now we're seeing an overreaction in the other direction with prices,' said Scott Wingfield, president of the Realtors Association of St. Lucie. 'No question, it's a bad time for people that want to sell a home, have to sell a home or need to sell a home. But for those that buy today, I'll bet the farm that in four, five or six years from now, they will have hit home runs.'"

"'I believe we have reached a point where buyers can't afford to sit on the sidelines any longer watching these fantastic deals pass them by,' said Dave Derrenbacker, president of the Realtor Association of Martin County. 'Prices have come down so far that it is not uncommon to see sale prices that mirror 2002 levels ... buyers get a do-over and I think the smart ones are realizing that.'"

The Palm Beach Post. "Home prices fell again in Palm Beach County and the Treasure Coast in March, thwarting homeowners' hopes that prices had hit bottom. Mike Dooley, former president of the Florida Association of Realtors... pointed to a home in Sewall's Point that recently sold for $310,000 after trading for $595,000 during the boom. And a home in southern Martin County sold for $330,000 after last selling for $550,000."

"Pessimists point to signs of more pain for the housing market. Thousands of foreclosures are poised to flood the market, pushing down prices, and a weakening economy has cast a cloud over sales."

"'Everybody out there is a fence-sitter,' said John Burford, an economist at The International Bank of Miami. 'And even if you want to buy, you'll have a hard time getting credit. Historically, when you have a real big debt expansion that lasted as long as this one did, it usually takes a long time for it to adjust.'"

The Miami Herald. "South Florida's real estate market is still in the double-digit doldrums compared to a year ago. In Miami-Dade, existing single-family homes sales in March were down 56 percent vs. a year ago."

"Miami property owner Rafael Fortuny has spent the last year trying to unload six town homes. After slashing prices by $30,000, he has managed to sell four of them -- the last one in October."

"Fortuny says he hands out about 5,000 fliers a month hoping to stumble on a buyer willing to put down $270,000 for a three-bedroom, two-bathroom house. 'This last weekend we had maybe 10 families look at the property,' he said. 'Usually we have, oh, zero. So things seem to be picking up.'"

"But even eager clients are finding it hard to get loans, he said."

"South Florida's figures mirrored statewide data. Florida's Realtors sold 9,142 single-family homes in March -- a 26 percent decrease from last year. The median home price was down 15 percent to $205,600."

"Condo sales slid 24 percent vs. March 2007 to 3,145 units, and their median price dropped 20 percent to $176,600."

"At the end of March there were 4.06 million homes for sale in the United States. At the current rate of sales, it would take about 10 months to churn through the existing inventory, the National Association of Realtors said. Fortuny hopes he doesn't have to wait that long to shed his two properties. 'This has been a nightmare,' he said. 'I am just dying to get out.'"

"At the Fountains of Tamarac, the condo association has no insurance, a couple of unit owners are cutting the community's grass themselves, and 90 percent of the unit owners aren't paying their maintenance fees. Even two banks, both of whom acquired their condos out of foreclosure, haven't paid their dues."

"Condo President Cesar Gonzalez views the start of hurricane season with dread. 'We're hurting really bad,' he said. 'I don't know if I can handle the stress.'"

"At the Club at Brickell Bay, residents say they have seen everything from nonworking elevators to broken equipment in the gym to cutbacks in cable service."

"Kelly Ladwig, treasurer of the Townhouses of Plantation, said her board recently doubled maintenance fees after taking over the association from the developer, who converted it from rentals to condominiums. 'A lot of people bought here as investors, and they were not able to sell. We now have a high foreclosure rate/nonpayment rate,' said Ladwig."

"Even if unit owners can find a buyer, Ladwig said, some banks are looking at the association's books and refusing to make the loans. This could also block condo owners who try to refinance their loans."

"What's worse is the problem can snowball: The higher maintenance fees can push even more unit owners into financial trouble, leading to even more foreclosures."

"'This is like an avalanche,' said Jan Bergemann, president of a statewide group of condo owners. 'More and more people don't pay their dues, forcing other people to pay the cost. I don't know the solution.'"

"Lewis Freeman, a Miami lawyer who works with financially distressed properties, said this problem is going to get worse."

"'I think it's like hurricane warnings,' Freeman said. 'They tell you to get ready a couple months before. Get batteries and water. This is going to absolutely be a catastrophe. Nobody ever saw this coming. You look at what's going to happen with these things: utter chaos.'"

The News Press. "Some 220 houses - almost all of them in Lehigh Acres - stand abandoned in Lee County as stark reminders of a derailed real estate market. A record 10,700 foreclosures last year are stark evidence of the market's condition."

"'Juveniles are squatting in them. Criminals are squatting in them,' said Lee County sheriff's Capt. Ed Tamayo, who oversees Lehigh Acres."

"In Lehigh, the houses are in various stages of construction. Some are eyesores with weeds and piles of dirt overtaking yards. Others are unsafe because of exposed construction materials. One property on North Richmond Avenue in Lehigh is a slab with pipes rising over the concrete. Erosion is undercutting the slab at one corner and at a second point along the front of the slab."

"Other houses have tar paper on the roof but no shingles. No stucco has been applied to the concrete block walls. A house at 5204 Lee St. has gaps in the tar paper on the roof and an exposed septic tank and drain field."

"Children broke into the home and left graffiti, said neighbor Andy Morris. Two doors of the boarded-up house were ajar recently. Houses in such condition can further erode property values in an already-depressed market, but Morris expects to live with the situation for awhile."

"'There are too many houses for sale out here,' he said."

The Herald Tribune. "Luxury home builder John Cannon Homes has taken to the other end of the spectrum by creating a small division to complete and sell homes that are unfinished because the buyers or builders walked away from the work site."

"'We've had some situations where customers have more or less said, 'Here, bank, this didn't work out for me,' and they are turning their keys into the lender before construction is finished,' founder John Cannon said."

"'It's not only an interesting way to stay alive, it's also a community service,' said Mary Dougherty-Slapp, executive officer of the Home Builders Association of Manatee County. 'I have one of these homes in my neighborhood, and it's sad, because it's a reminder of how bad things have gotten.'"

The Bradenton Herald. "The median sales price of existing homes in the Bradenton-Sarasota market fell more than $52,000 in March to $239,300, compared to the same month a year earlier."

"Local agents all agree that there are plenty of well-priced homes on the market and those who are willing to hold onto their homes for five to seven years will see a return on their investment."

"'Traffic is good...but they are not buying,' said Robert Drane of Re/Max Alliance Group.'Part of the problem here is what we defined as normal has changed. Real estate is a long-term purchase. It's a five-year minimal investment if you want to ensure you'll make money.'"

"'The market will eventually come back to where it was,' said Denny Delarco, manager of Wagner Realty's El Conquistador office."

The St Petersburg Times. "The latest home sales figures showed an interesting anomaly: While prices continue to plummet, the home sales decline in the Tampa Bay area was less than half the state average. What seems to be swaying the market is a rash of short sales."

"Jim Knetsch of RE/MAX Realty Associates in Carrollwood said, 'Some of the best bargains right now are short sales. In many of the communities in central Pasco, I'm guessing half the properties or more are truly in short sale territory.'"

"Knetsch is banking on further activity this spring, as lenders sign off on short sales rather than press their claims all the way to foreclosure court."

"'What people have to realize is that January and February were two of the slowest individual months since at least January 2003,' Knetsch said. 'Hopefully we've survived the worst of the market.'"