The Housing Bubble

Money Magazine reports from California. “Bo and Ana Apostolache loved their three-bedroom home on a cul-de-sac near Irvine, Calif. when they bought it six years ago. Best of all, they could easily cover the $1,400 monthly payments on their $175,000 mortgage. Over the next few years, as interest rates dropped and their home price tripled in value, the couple refinanced several times and tapped $200,000 worth of equity to pay for home improvements, and a Barbados vacation.”

“By 2005, although they had doubled their loan balance, their payments had increased by only $400 a month. A year later, their rate adjusted up, adding another $400 in monthly payments, and Bo lost his job as a mortgage broker. Out of desperation, the Apostolaches took a $200,000 home-equity line of credit, in part to help cover the payments, but then quickly realized they were in over their heads.”

“‘It worked fine at first,’ says Bo. ‘Borrowing that much was the biggest mistake of my life,’ Bo admits. ‘I guess I just got caught up in the real estate frenzy.’”

“The Apostolaches sold their home last year, pocketing $35,000 after expenses. Bo, now working at his father’s electronics company, says he thinks they’ll be able to buy another home within a year or so. And the couple insist they have learned their lesson.”

“Says Bo: ‘The new place won’t be as impressive as the last house, but it will be one that we can afford.’”

From Reuters. “During the housing boom, adjustable-rate mortgages allowed subprime borrowers to buy homes out of their reach with conventional mortgages. As low initial interest rates expired and significantly higher rates kicked in, mortgage payments jumped to levels many borrowers could not afford.”

“Homeowners like Lupe Perez say they went neglected. Perez said she faces an imminent foreclosure on her Sacramento, California, home after falling behind on mortgage payments.”

“‘I feel conned,’ Perez said, noting she agreed to the loan’s adjustable rate only after her loan officer assured her she would be able refinance later. But with her neighborhood’s home prices down, lenders will not refinance, she said.”

“The 28-year-old state worker said she cannot afford her mortgage because its interest rate is at 11 percent, up from a 5 percent rate that expired late last year. She said losing the three-bedroom house will mark a personal defeat as she put $40,000 from the sale of an inherited house as a down payment.”

“‘I’m tapped out,’ Perez said. ‘There’s no hope.’”

The Sacramento Bee. “Judy Thompson sees it when clients realize what their home loan really is. A Stockton-based housing counseling specialist for the nonprofit group By Design Financial Solutions, Thompson calls it the ‘Oh-my-God look. My loan officer didn’t tell me that.’”

“There are many stories now. An Antelope man loses a $50,000 government contract one month after buying his house and immediately can’t afford it. An Arden Arcade woman refinances the entire value of the house she’s owned nine years and can’t make the payments. A Sacramento-area dad takes a 1.5 percent ‘teaser rate’ loan and sinks when the family’s house payment doubles in the first year.”

“Antelope resident Elizabeth Tufts faced two choices when, following a divorce, she found herself with a home worth less than what she and her former husband paid for it in 2004. ‘In my case, it was either a short sale or have the house go into foreclosure,’ Tufts said.”

“Eventually…Derek Kirk, an Elk Grove-based real estate agent who specializes in short sales, persuaded the bank to accept less than it was owed due to Tuft’s hardship.”

“But Kirk said too many people have a misconception they’ll be approved automatically for a short sale. ‘It’s got to be something that involuntarily happened to the person to put them into a worse financial position,’ he said.”

The Modesto Bee. “As she held an open house Sunday in Riverbank, Realtor Linda Kemppainen said that prices are down from a few years ago and a savvy buyer can find an affordable home.”

“‘The whole 100 percent financing thing is mostly out, and that’s a good thing,’ Kemppainen said, speaking of lending practices in recent years that helped many people buy homes they couldn’t afford.”

“With a rise in interest rates, that has led to foreclosures and a glut of homes for sale that many analysts say helps account for the decline in prices. ‘Now is the time to buy for fair market value, not speculation,’ said Kemppainen, who’s spent 20 years in real estate. ‘It’s become more realistic.’”

“As she looked at the house Kemppainen showed, Attilia McNutt of Modesto said she likes shopping for homes and not feeling that she has to act quickly. ‘It seems a lot more attainable now,’ said McNutt. ‘And there’s a lot more to pick from.’”

“Kemppainen said much of the hand-wringing among sellers and people in the real estate industry doesn’t take history into account. When home prices soared earlier this decade, they were fueled by speculative buying and a raft of subprime loans, Kemppainen said.”

“‘You had a lot of unrealistic sellers trying to make a killing in the market,’ she said.”

The Orange County Register. “The United States likely will see 1.1 million foreclosures during the next six to seven years on adjustable-rate mortgages issued when home prices were at or near the peak of the market, a study released today by First American Corp. of Santa Ana says.”

“Orange County likely will have 21,000 to 22,000 adjustable-rate loans go into foreclosure during the next five to six years, said study author Christopher Cagen estimates, resulting in about $4.8 billion to $5 billion in losses, not enough to be more than a drag on the economy.”

“The study assumes that home prices remain unchanged over the next six to seven years. A hypothetical 10 percent price drop, for example, would result in 1.9 million foreclosures, vs. 1.1 million, or 22 percent of the adjustable loans issued in the 2004-06 period.”

The Mercury News “‘The housing market needs some energy to move forward,’ said Edward E. Leamer, director of the University of California-Los Angeles Anderson Forecast. ‘A lot of that energy came from new buyers of starter homes financed with subprime and other loans. If you remove that energy from the market, it inevitably will weaken.’”

“As long as home prices kept climbing, lenders had little fear of losing money if they had to foreclose. ‘Homes were only affordable with very creative financing and the expectation that prices would go up. Neither of those is true now,’ said economist Stephen Levy., director of the Center for the Continuing Study of the California Economy in Palo Alto.”

The Voice of San Diego. “The subprime storm has not subsided, and analysts say it will not be contained in just one portion of the stock market, or even in the stock market itself. This is not just a Wall Street problem; this is a Main Street problem, they say.”

“‘A lot of people were buying homes they shouldn’t have, driving prices upward, and now that part of the market’s starting to implode,’ economist Chris Thornberg said. ‘The question is, how did we expect this wasn’t going to happen?’”

“Now, as prices slip, their homes take on a slightly more realistic luster, and those thousands of dollars in their ‘home ATM’ don’t look so appealing, or bona fide.”

“‘The big issue is, what’s going to happen to these people?’ Thornberg said. ‘The market has finally got it that these aren’t good bets. With that kind of pulling back action, that’s going to contribute to a period of slowing, whether it’s a recession or a mild slowdown. With either one, income and jobs are going to take a hit.’”

“An economic hit can already be seen locally, according to one index released last week. January marked the 10th consecutive month of declines in the economic index compiled by University of San Diego economist Alan Gin. Weakness in help-wanted advertising and building permits and an uptick in the number of people applying for unemployment insurance led the index’s decline.”

“Gin found there were significant losses in construction and real estate-related jobs. Retail employment took a 2,500-job hit, ‘as spending is reduced by job and income losses,’ he said in the report. Gin said he expects weakness in the local economy at least until June.”

“‘It’s not a totally unsolvable problem,’ said Dave McDonald, president-elect of the San Diego chapter of the California Association of Mortgage Brokers. ‘But I don’t think we’ve seen the worst yet.’”

“But new underwriting guidelines in response to market pressures will tighten the pool of both first-time homebuyers and those hoping to refinance to avoid higher payments on their mortgages down the road. People in that circumstance may just walk away, Thornberg said.”

“‘If you can’t hang onto your home and you know it, you’re not going to give up your TV and all of that,’ Thornberg said. ‘You’re just going to say … I’m moving into an apartment.’”

Some housing bubble news from Wall Street and Washington. “Builder confidence in the market for new single-family homes receded in March, largely on concerns about deepening problems in the subprime mortgage arena, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index, released today. After rising fairly steadily since its recent low last September, the HMI declined three points from a downwardly revised 39 reading in February to 36 in March.”

“‘Builders are uncertain about the consequences of tightening mortgage lending standards for their home sales down the line, and some are already seeing effects of the subprime shakeout on current sales activity,’ said NAHB Chief Economist David Seiders.”

From Bloomberg. “‘We’re seeing a second wave of negativity hitting the builders as the subprime mess starts to constrict credit to potential homebuyers,” said economist Christopher Low. ‘We’re not getting a bounce in sales that would lead to a recovery in housing starts.’”

The Associated Press. “Technical Olympic USA Inc., a homebuilder, said Monday it swung to a fourth-quarter loss, hurt primarily by charges related to a joint venture, but also by a declining housing market.”

From CNN Money. “About 1.1 million additional home foreclosures are expected over the next six years as adjustable-rate mortgages - which made home buying more affordable to U.S. buyers in recent years - reset to higher payments, according to a study by research firm First American CoreLogic.”

“The expected $112 billion in losses won’t break the mortgage industry but will inflict pain on lenders and borrowers affected by the defaults, said the study, released Monday.”

“The percentage of loans resetting with negative equity is expected to leap from 12.9 percent in 2007 to 24.4 percent in 2008. That’s when some of the most frequently used 2/28 mortgages and 3/27 mortgages are scheduled to reset.”

“Subprime mortgages have been generating a lot of attention, and worry, among investors, economists and regulators, but those loans may be only part of the threat posed to the housing market by risky lending. Some experts in the field are now concerned about the so-called Alt.”

“Standard & Poor’s estimates that the Alt. A market has gone from less than $20 billion in loans in the fourth quarter of 2003 to more than $100 billion in each of the last three quarters. Overall, new Alt. A loans totaled $386 billion in 2006, according S&P’s estimates - up 28 percent from 2005.”

“By comparison, subprime loans reached $640 billion in 2006, according to trade publication Inside Mortgage Finance.”

“Mitch Ohlbaum, president of mortgage broker Legend Mortgage whose business was about 55 percent Alt. A, said he’s seen a dramatic change in the business the last few years, and its now swinging back away from the loans.”

“‘All that nutty stuff is going to disappear,’ said Ohlbaum. ‘Everyone today is shying away from the 100 percent of value loan. But anytime there’s a big change in the market like there is now, everyone will overcompensate for a while. I think this will last for 12 to 14 months before things are back to normal, and I think you’ll see more foreclosures, more people in trouble in the meantime.’”

From Reuters. “U.S. financial markets are likely to experience some fall-out from the subprime mortgage lending woes but they are likely to be limited, the chief investment officer at the biggest U.S. pension told Reuters on Monday.”

“The subprime sector ‘is an important weakness in the economy and it is likely that there will be a measured impact in other sectors. And there is likely to be some contagion,’ said Russell Read of Calpers, which invests about $232 billion for California state workers.”

From Fortune. “Amid the chaos of the escalating subprime mortgage crisis, the three major credit-rating agencies, Fitch, Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s, have been voices of calm. But what if they’re wrong? It’s not just their reputations, already tarnished by their failure to give investors timely warning of the Enron or WorldCom implosions, that are at stake, but possibly the housing market itself.”

“Critics have their doubts. A paper co-authored by Rosner and Joseph Mason, a visiting scholar at the FDIC, argues that if home prices depreciate, even investment-grade CDOs will suffer ’significant losses.’”

“Janet Tavakoli, who runs Tavakoli Structured Finance, points out that AA-rated tranches of CDOs backed by subprime mortgage paper now yield far more than AA-rated debt backed by other assets - a sign that the market doesn’t trust the ratings.”

“‘No one believes the ratings have any value,’ she says. Opined Grant’s Interest Rate Observer: ‘We are willing to bet that the agencies assigned too little weight to greed, ignorance, and soft criminality.”

The LA Times. “Relatively few of the CDOs sold in recent years have been downgraded. ‘No one can say we’re not aware of the risks,’ said Kevin Kendra, an analyst at rating firm Derivative Fitch. ‘It just hasn’t materialized yet’ in the structure of CDOs, he said.”

“Yet many analysts say the market prices of the diciest mortgage bonds, those backed by so-called sub-prime loans, indicate that still-rosy CDO ratings aren’t reflecting reality.”

“Some mortgage bonds rated BBB, the lowest investment-grade rating, ‘are going to see real losses of principal soon,’ predicted Janet Tavakoli.”

“Risk premiums on investment-grade corporate bonds are at their highest level in more than three months on concern rising delinquencies by subprime borrowers will slow the U.S. economy.”

“‘This period of volatility is likely to continue as long as there is divided opinion about the magnitude and resulting financial impact of the subprime problem,’ said Edward Marrinan, head of North American credit strategy at JPMorgan Chase & Co. in New York. ‘Subprime risks and accompanying fears of a spillover into the broader consumer sector are the catalysts for the heightened volatility currently exhibited by all risky asset classes,’ he said.”

“Fremont General Corp., the California thrift trying to sell its home-lending business, told the unit’s staff they may be dismissed in two months.”

“Shares of subprime lender Accredited Home Lenders Holding Co. fell on Monday after the company said it still had not landed a financing deal to boost its liquidity.”

“New Century Financial Corp. said Monday it has received cease-and-desist orders from more states, restraining the company from taking new applications for mortgage loans.”

National Mortgage News. “What exactly are criminal investigators looking at in regard to New Century Financial? One source familiar with these matters said investigators are focusing on some of its loan trades.”

“‘Typically, they would do a trade before the quarter’s end,’ he said. The key to such trades, the source noted, is ‘counter-party’ risk. Counter-party risk means there’s a company on the other side of the trade, typically, an investment banking firm.”

“Another item being looked at is how much cash New Century said it had on its balance sheet. What New Century said it had, and what it really had, is a whole different matter.”

“In case you missed it: What’s the going price for delinquent second liens in the secondary market? Answer: 15 cents to 25 cents on the dollar.”

The Boston Herald from Massachusetts. “The subprime-mortgage sector’s sudden implosion is putting some frost into forecasts for the Bay State housing market’s crucial spring season. ‘I was looking for a recovery, or at least stabilization, in Massachusetts home prices this spring, but now I think we might see a little more deterioration,’ said economist John Bitner of Boston-based Eastern Bank.”

“The Center for Responsible Lending estimates 17 percent of Massachusetts home buyers who got subprime loans in the past two years will ultimately lose their properties. Economist Jim Campen of the University of Massachusetts-Boston said that translates into thousands of extra properties for sale - and he thinks the CRL figures ‘may turn out to be conservative.’”

“Experts add that bad publicity surrounding the subprime market might prompt some house hunters to stay on the sidelines this spring. ‘The knee-jerk reaction will be: ‘There’s going to be a lot of foreclosed properties coming onto the market. Maybe we shouldn’t be so hasty about buying,’ Eastern Bank’s Bitner said.”

The Boston Channel. “The turmoil in the mortgage market for homebuyers with poor credit history could put tens of thousands of Massachusetts residents at risk of losing their homes in a state where foreclosures already are spiking.”

“‘For most people in foreclosure, even if they can get good credit counselors, more often than not they can’t be helped,’ economist Jim Campen said.”

“Lenders and homeowners are now paying for lax lending guidelines that allowed people with poor credit to move into homes amid a booming housing market where financing was readily available, said Kevin Cuff, executive director of the Massachusetts Mortgage Bankers Association.”

“‘Those lending guidelines were much more attractive then to Wall Street than they currently are,’ Cuff said. ‘In the last 60 days, we have seen a tremendous resetting of those guidelines. What goes up, must come down.’”

The Worchester Business Journal.’Worcester investor Harold Avery says the stratospheric home prices of the past couple years have made it harder and harder to make a fast buck in real estate. Apparently, he’s not alone. According to the Massachusetts Association of Realtors, multi-family sales volume in Central Massachusetts fell by 22.6 percent in 2006, while prices dropped by just 1.4 percent.’

‘Everything’s come down now, price-wise, but even the crack houses in Main South are $350,000,’ he said.’

From Fosters Online in New Hampshire. “Foreclosures nearly doubled last year in New Hampshire and are on track to double again this year, at least in part because of defaults on subprime loans, experts say. Charley Farley, president of Compass Mortgage in Bedford, said climbing default rates on subprime loans will affect the real estate market.”‘He said investors in the bond market, where mortgage-backed securities are sold, are coming to realize default rates will affect the value of bonds they buy. ‘Investors are not going to bid on mortgage-backed security pools that have a high risk of default, unless they are going to get a higher rate of return,’ he said.’

‘Subprime loans are already possibly the riskiest type of mortgage-backed security in the stock market, he said. The lending industry is re-evaluating underwriting guidelines and tightening loan requirements, he said. ‘The industry will make adjustments themselves,’ he said. ‘The subprime lending industry is realizing the error in its ways.’

‘He said loose guidelines that gave loans to people with poor credit scores, coupled with the leveling off or decline in property values, has contributed to more foreclosures. But, he added, the real estate market typically is cyclical. ‘This is normal,’ he said. ‘Property values can’t go up all the time.’

The New York Times. “Lawyer David Volman has handled enough divorces to know that many marriages collapse under financial strain. So when his practice, in Shelton, began receiving an unusually large number of divorce cases last summer, Mr. Volman took it as an omen. ‘Divorces go hand in hand with foreclosures and bankruptcies,’ he said.”

“Sure enough, in the first two months of this year, Mr. Volman took on some 50 bankruptcy cases, an ‘enormous amount,’ he said, given that in all of 2006 he handled 19.”

“Many of the cases involve working-class couples in the Lower Naugatuck Valley who can no longer afford their mortgages. ‘People are walking into my office and saying: ‘Here are the keys. Do whatever you have to do. I just want to get out of this so I can sleep at night,’ he said.”

“Preliminary figures for February gathered by RealtyTrac Inc., a national online marketplace for foreclosure properties, show a total of 1,451 foreclosure filings in Connecticut, a 61 percent increase over the corresponding period last year.”

“That surge followed a steep rise in January as well. The 1,287 foreclosure filings in Connecticut that month represented a 67 percent increase over January 2006, according to the company’s figures.”

“‘Connecticut uses the same underwriting guidelines as everyplace else, so what’s happening here is the same as what’s happening in New York, Rhode Island, Massachusetts,’ said Thomas Egan, president of the Connecticut Mortgage Bankers Association. ‘Lending was just a little too loose, along with a real estate market that isn’t growing.’”

The Sun Sentinel reports from Florida. “Many builders are experiencing sales slowdowns and contract cancellations because of the real estate market slump, and they’re hungry for your business. Last week, Bradenton-based Taylor Woodrow Inc. announced a new program to attract home buyers. Under its ‘Forfeited Deposit Transfer Program,’ qualified buyers can use contract deposits forfeited by other buyers and apply those funds toward the purchase of a new Taylor Woodrow home.”

“‘We wanted to find a positive application for these forfeited deposits,’ said Sheila Johnson, director of sales and marketing for Taylor Woodrow in Palm Beach Gardens. ‘Making these monies available to potential buyers is a meaningful incentive that significantly increases their buying power.’”

“While Johnson wouldn’t disclose the percentage of the firm’s contracts that have been canceled by home buyers, she said the rate is higher than usual. ‘But we’re certainly not in panic mode,’ she said.”

“To avoid a buildup of excess inventory after cancellations, builders are offering sales incentives, some of which can be substantial. Taylor Woodrow also launched a new Web site to advertise available inventory, closeouts and grand opening specials at discounts from $30,000 to $500,000.”

“Sunrise-based G.L. Homes is also applying forfeited deposits to the purchase of other homes, according to Marcie DePlaza, division president.”

“David Levin, a Delray Beach-based housing analyst, said builders are anxious to avoid contract cancellations and to hold onto existing home buyers. He has advice for anyone under contract to buy a home who is thinking twice.”

“‘If you’re in danger of losing your deposit, go back and talk to your home builder,’ he said. ‘They may be more receptive to working out a deal with you than you would imagine.’

The Herald Tribune. “During the past year, Scott Corbridge, who runs Sarasota Management & Leasing, has seen a 100 percent increase in the number of rental properties that his firm manages.”

“Q: Why has your business grown so quickly? A: With the sales market as slow as it is, there are a lot of people who can’t sell and have placed their properties on the rental market. This has caused a glut of rentals available, making it more difficult to get properties rented.”

“Q: When did the majority of your clients purchase their properties? A: About half of our owners purchased in the past year.”

“Q: Are they now trying to sell those properties? A: Many of our most recent investors would like to sell their homes or have tried to sell prior to placing on the rental market. But they have been unable to sell in this market and have turned to rentals to gain some income until the sales market turns around.”

“Q: Have owners been perplexed or frustrated by rising real estate taxes and insurance rates? Q: Has the oversupply forced owners to drop rental rates to attract tenants? A: Absolutely. Either drop ‘em or lose ‘em.”

“Q: Is there an oversupply of homes and condos for rent? A: There is currently a six-month supply of unfurnished houses on the market for rent and a 10-month supply of unfurnished condos.”

“Q: Do you think the prices owners are asking and the prices renters are willing to pay are out of equilibrium? A: Yes. Many owners are unrealistic in what they feel they can rent their properties for. Renters are enjoying a good selection of properties on sale. It really is a renters’ market right now.”

“Q: Have owners had trouble coming to terms with maximum rents they can charge? A: Not really. They don’t like it, of course, but we educate our owners with hard facts and statistics that are difficult to argue with. It’s the uneducated owners who believe that they can rent for the same price they could two years ago that are suffering the most because they continue to sit empty. Then they decide to try to sell it and of course that is even more difficult right now. Those people are hurting.”

The Star Banner. “As delinquency and foreclosure rates nationally hit record highs, Marion County’s number of foreclosure filings jumped. In January, there were 141 filings, up from 99 in the same month last year, for a 42 percent increase.”

“When the housing market was at its zenith, speculators bought homes in droves and then looked to sell them quickly. Now those speculators are stuck with homes they can’t afford or unload. As a result home prices have dipped.”

“In Ocala, the average median sales price for an existing home dropped 4 percent in January, from $166,200 to $159,600, according to the Florida Association of Realtors. ‘When home price appreciation slows, the foreclosures tend to rise,’ said Darren Blomquist, for RealtyTrac.”

“Heath Fleming, owner of Fleming Mortgage Services in Ocala, said with the glut of inventory on the market and home prices continuing to fall, the number of foreclosures will likely continue to increase.”

“‘We’re still in the very, very early stages of this,’ said Fleming, who believes it will be ‘two to three years’ before the local housing market correction is over.”

The St Petersburg Times. “SkyPoint, the $80-million 32-story tower with 381 condos, is the biggest residential high-rise in downtown’s history. Its future residents will pioneer a way of life in a downtown known for its office towers, parking lots and deserted after-hours streets.”

“‘Downtown is very transitional,’ Bobby Neale said. ‘Sometimes it’s pretty vacant. But with all the things that are projected to come, I just see it getting better and better.’”

“With its floor-to-ceiling glass windows wrapped in Smurf-blue protective tape, SkyPoint hardly looks ready for occupation. Inside, it looks even more uninhabitable. On the 32nd floor, construction debris covers the floors of the penthouse suites. Dust swirls in the air. Wires dangle from the ceiling.”

“So who exactly are the people moving into these condos, which fetch from the $170,000s (for the 650-square-foot units) to more than $500,000? Downtown will soon find out.”

The Orlando Sentinel. “Are you thinking about buying an upscale, urban condo? Don’t settle for some chump dump in downtown Orlando. Not when you can move down the road to Tampa and live like The Donald.”

“Here it is, straight from Donald’s mouth: ‘The architectural design is truly distinctive, establishing a bold new landmark on the city skyline. Every residence will afford sweeping views of the water, and every detail, from the splendid finishes to the unrivaled amenities, will reflect the exceptionally high standards that every Trump building must satisfy.’”

“Donald arrived at the sales launch in 2005 with his usual panache. He proclaimed the project a major success with reservations on 98 percent of the units. He bemoaned not owning any more of the project than his already ’substantial stake.’ The groundbreaking was in March 2006, with completion in 2008.”

“And now I fast forward to the present, standing at a spot where I should be buried under a good 30 stories or so of rising concrete and steel. Weeds are the only visible life form. One crane stands idle. The snout of a second one rests limply on the ground, like it is taking a siesta. Even the Trump name can’t trump the great Florida condo implosion.”

“It turns out Trump’s ’substantial stake’ was a licensing fee for use of his name. The project is so muddled that attorney Tom Long, who is suing to get a deposit back for two buyers in the building, says, ‘Frankly, I don’t know who owns it.’”

“Buyers who put down 20 percent, many of them investors, are in a sticky situation. If they all demand their money back now, that could increase the odds of a bankruptcy. As with many high-flying Florida condos, once you shake out speculators and flippers, it’s hard to find locals who can afford to live in them.”

“At the lonely sales office, real estate agent Toni Everett still has her red laser pen ready to point out amenities on a model of the building. Desperate for good press, she offers me first crack at any big news about the project for a positive article.”

“Toni says people will be moving into Trump Tower Tampa in 2009. If she’s right, I’ll take a swan dive into the neighboring Hillsborough River from the 52nd floor.”

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