With each passing month, it gets tougher to sell homes in the Tampa Bay area, as median sales prices keep slipping and buyers remain skittish. The pressure of making a buck in the industry appears to be leading some local real estate agents to drop out of the business. ...more

January 17, 2008

It's become a familiar drumbeat among some Highlands County residents every time there is a mention of the downturn in the local real-estate market. Blame impact fees. Sure, impact fees add to the cost of a new home but what about hundreds of existing homes for sale. There is no impact fee weighing those houses down. The real-estate market in Highlands County is suffering for the same reasons that plague it nationwide. Buyers are waiting for prices to fall down further, the state's insurance premiums and property taxes are keeping homes out of the reach of average homeowners, and lenders have become extra wary of who they want to lend to. ...more

January 15, 2008

Drive through any subdivision and the sea of "for sale" signs swims across your vision like a row of landlocked vessels. ...more

December 24, 2007

SEBRING – A merger, a company buying a competitor's office, consolidating offices and Realtors moving to other companies are all part of the local real estate business that is dealing with a difficult housing market. Coldwell Banker Highlands Properties LLC, a Sebring and Lake Placid Coldwell Banker real estate affiliate, has merged with Realty World Act Real Estate that became effective Nov. 1. "Basically this merger has allowed us to double our size because both of our offices were, generally speaking, the same size with the same amount of listings," said Jim Carroll, the former owner of Realty World Act Real Estate, and now the sales manager for Coldwell Banker Highlands Properties. "So now we have potentially brought ourselves into a much stronger market share in this area by doing this merger." "I believe the increased signage and doubling of listings, and its potential sales volume, ...more

November 11, 2007

Could this be the start of something big? Yes, says Sue Thomas, interim Tarpon Springs Chamber of Commerce president, who is predicting the arrival or imminent opening of six businesses, with promises of more to come, signals the start of a downtown renaissance. ...more

November 10, 2007

Many homeowners are waiting for the slump in the housing market to hit bottom and want some kind of positive sign before buying their next home. ...more

September 9, 2007