South Florida expert panel from left: Ron Kriss of Akerman Senterfitt;
Bill Yahn from the Corcoran Group; Cynthia Shelton, president of
Florida Realtors; Jack McCabe, CEO of McCabe Research and Consulting;
Jay Massirman of Rivergate Companies

Most of South Florida’s real estate industry won’t be sorry to say goodbye to 2009 tonight. Once-ambitious developers saw their empty condos sold in bulk at deep discounts and unloaded incomplete projects in foreclosure auctions or deeds in lieu of foreclosure. Caving under the weight of their troubled commercial real estate portfolios, regional banks failed by the dozens. The indefatigable flood of residential foreclosures bestowed the courts with an unmanageable case load, clogging the system. For homeowners who managed to stay current on their mortgage payments, toxic Chinese drywall rendered many of their properties both dangerous and worthless.

But as the handful of hours left in this tumultuous year for real estate wind down, many are wondering whether 2010 will be any better. The Real Deal turned to a panel of South Florida real estate experts to find out what they’re predicting for 2010. [more]

Cynthia Shelton, president of the Florida Association of Realtors, said
legislative issues, including Amendment 4, formerly known as Florida
Hometown Democracy, and Amendment 3, which effectively seeks to lower
the cap on property tax increases to 5 percent from 10 percent, require
a unified response from state realtors. Although numbers have shrunk
statewide over the past three years, to 120,000 from 172,000, the group
retains clout on government issues, she said. [more]

The once pricey Palm Beach County market now can pull in first-time
buyers at bargain rates. Homes that once sold for close to $350,000
are selling for about $200,000 today, and 40 percent discounts from
peak prices are now the norm. “Prices have dropped up to 50 percent over the last two years with many
distressed homes selling for prices reaching back as far as 1999
levels,” said Shannon Brink, a broker with Re/Max Prestige Realty in
West Palm Beach. “Waterfront homes and large estate homes are still
priced above the average wage but there is now plenty of affordable
housing in Palm Beach, Martin and Port St. Lucie counties.” If the fire sales weren’t enough to get some fence-sitters moving, new legislation might be. [more]