Florida

Nearly a decade of growth in home prices in the Sarasota-Manatee, Fla., region could be coming to an end.

Home sales in May fell sharply in Flagler and Volusia counties in Florida as the coronavirus pandemic continued to put a damper on the local real estate market.

Single-family home sales in Tampa Bay plummeted in May at rates much higher than even April's year-over-year declines as the pandemic continued to stunt the market, according to new figures released by Florida Realtors.

The number of homes sold in Central Florida sunk dramatically in May, an indication of the anxieties swirling around Orlando's previously booming market and the wide-reaching effects of the economic fallout caused by the coronavirus outbreak.

A former Hillsborough County, Fla., mortgage broker has been sentenced to 15 months in federal prison for his role in a scam to which banks lost more than $5 million.

Anyone who has been watching real estate in Palm Beach, Fla., over the past several weeks has seen the number of new contracts — and closed sales — attest to the remarkable vibrancy of the market in chaotic times.

Home sales in South Florida plummeted in April. Realtors blame the health and economic fears wrought by the pandemic caused.

Home sales in Volusia and Flagler counties in Florida declined in April, but prices continued to rise, area Realtors' associations reported.

After a March that still showed some signs of normalcy, April was less kind to Tampa Bay's real estate market as the coronavirus pandemic continued to plummet consumer confidence and disrupt the economy in new and dramatic ways.

The Palm Beach, Fla., real estate market entered the season last fall with a strong wind at its back.

Florida's first-ever — and short-lived — climate change czar set a clear priority for the state: Protect the real estate market.

The advertisements are meant to entice: A month of free rent in a high-end apartment in downtown St. Petersburg. A free pool at a new housing development in Tampa. A $20 Amazon gift card for taking a virtual tour.

Both the number of sales and median prices grew in Miami-Dade and Broward in March, just as coronavirus began to grip South Florida.

COVID-19 has led to an unprecedented number of homes for sale being withdrawn, canceled or temporarily taken off the market in Sarasota County, Fla., but the prices on the homes that are being sold have held steady, according to a Sarasota real estate firm.

With the onset of the pandemic, real estate agents say deals that were in the works are encountering all types of problems, creating havoc in the market as buyers try to back out of contracts.

Attom ranked 483 counties across the country based on 4Q foreclosure notices, local wages and other factors.

One day after the rent was due, all evictions and foreclosures in Florida were suspended for 45 days under a statewide order issued Thursday.

The percentage of mortgages underwater — when a mortgage exceeds value — has decreased dramatically in South Florida since the Great Recession, meaning the region may be better prepared to weather COVID-19 than the downturn a decade ago.

The Bradenton-Sarasota, Fla., area has been a red-hot housing market with the median price at or above $300,000 for the past year, providing job opportunities for 7,000 real estate agents.

From credit unions to banks, loan officers in South Florida are on the phones with homeowners, many of whom have one question: When can I refinance my mortgage?