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The city of Fort Lauderdale, located in Broward County, Florida, is considered to be a famous destination that once catered to vacationing spring break college students.

The city now is a thriving business, real estate, and tourism hub for the county and South Florida, as well. This place has currently a total population of 152,397, and is the county seat as well. Fort Lauderdale's downtown area, particularly within and around Las Olas Boulevard, has seen robust growth in the last 10 years, and has a large array of new hotels, high-rise condominium developments and shopping centers.

Among the city's other new improvements include a large selection of of new boutiques, galleries, and restaurants as well as upgrades to Lockhart Stadium, which hosts some regional sporting events. For those who plan to relocate to this lovely and booming metropolis, you will be able to find out that now is a good time to buy a home here, as home prices are down, mortgage rates are favorable and tax relief appears to be right around the corner, to help those in distress because of the current housing crunch.

Home Prices Have Dropped Here As A result Of the Housing Crunch

Because of the damaging effects brought about by the mortgage crunch, home prices and sales of existing homes slipped recently as South Florida's housing downturn went into its third consecutive year.

For Broward County, the median price fell 14 percent in January 2008, to $314,200 from around $364,500 for the same period last year, according to data from the Florida Association of Realtors. Home sales also dropped as a result, by 33 percent, to 307 from 458, and analysts have noted that this was the fewest homes ever recorded to change hands in any month countywide in the recent years. .

There's Still Good News Despite The Current Crunch

Despite the quite gloomy scenario created by the recent US housing slump, there's still good news for prospective buyers in this area, as the market is beginning to see a drop in single family home and condominium prices, which signals that the city's real estate market is beginning to turned full circle, and slowly revive. Most are saying that we are going to be seeing soon a buyer's market.

At present, there is a wide choice of available properties listed for sale partly because of sluggish sales, a rise in foreclosures and many investors in need of bailout. There are currently three times as many properties on the market for sale, and only a third of the number of home buyers searching looking for properties. According to local property observers, a lot of sellers are now offering incentives to purchase such as making contributions to the buyer's closing costs and allowances for upgrades, and repairs that were previously not seen or heard of before.

According to recent figures collected from the Realtor Association of Greater Fort Lauderdale, the median price of a single family home in Broward County is pegged at $353,500 and the median price of a 2-bedroom condominium unit is $179,000.

Those wishing to buy pre-construction luxury condo units are cautioned, as rising fuel costs, inflation, rising inventories, could make the high-end condominium sector vulnerable to many negative factors, and could either lead to a spike in prices, or lower resale values in the long run.

The city of Miami is a diverse, and thriving metropolitan area in the heart of Miami-Dade County. The city is a major tourism, business and recreational destination.

Although the city, and the state of Florida's real estate markets as a whole, is experiencing major slowdown as a result of the country's mortgage and credit market slump, many still have high hopes that the area’s property markets will rebound this year, despite the soaring amounts of foreclosures and large housing inventories.

Buyers And Sellers Are Still Faced With Uncertainties

According to a Miami-Dade housing and economics analyst, both home buyers and sellers are facing a lot ofreservations in determining the appropriate market price for a multifamily homes, and the biggest concern among both sellers and buyers is that no one wants to pay or sell at a bad price, as many are still searching for the right market.

The problem, according to housing market observers, is that conversions and the flood of new homes could turn the rental market upside down this year. Rising competition from unsold and vacant condominiums and single-family homes as well, may have the potential to perpetuate a "shadow market" of inventories, and this may increase vacancy rates in the short term and lead to a flattening of lease rates.

Where Most Of The Troubled Properties Are Located

According to a report by Condo Vultures, a local housing industry analyst, Miami's downtown district is home to around 30 percent of the distressed, or troubled properties in South Florida,.

The report refers to distressed properties as those that are in the process of foreclosure, and allowed by the bank to be sold for a lower price than that of the amount owed by the borrower/owner, or owned by banks after failing to sell to investors at court-ordered foreclosure auctions. The city’s coastal districts of Brickell Avenue, downtown, the Biscayne Boulevard corridor and the surrounding areas are home to 293 troubled properties, and these include townhomes, condos and single-family homes.

Why Demand For Rental Units Is Still High

According to economists and local property analysts, the demand for rental units in this area is still high, because of job and population growth. South Florida is expected to add 106,000 residents this year, with Palm Beach getting the largest influx at nearly 40,000. The tri-county area is also expected to generate an estimated 35,000 new jobs, with Miami-Dade and Broward counties vying for the most number of new jobs created.

For this year, only 2,000 new apartment units will be added to the South Florida housing market, as compared with the 60,000 that were taken out of the rental pool through conversions last year. The total number of rental units in the shadow and traditional rental markets are still considerably less than South Florida's rentals four years ago.

Despite these gloomy and sorry housing market figures, realtors are still standing firm and are hopeful. Property values have risen, foreclosures are up, and many homeowners are in distress. Home prices may cool off for some time most say, but are likely to either rise or go back to the norm in the long term.

The good thing is that many property buyers will come from Latin America, investing in second homes and not speculating, as well as wealthy European buyers who are looking for respite from their harsh climates back home. The incoming wave of newly-retiring baby boomers should also help in lifting up the market, and in restoring confidence in a battered, but still standing housing sector.

The city of Ocala in Marion County has the second lowest median home prices in the whole of Florida. The city is located in the central portion of the state, and is around an hour north of Orlando and has the same distance from either coast.

The city is far from the coastline, which makes it less vulnerable to hurricanes, which explains why it doesn't suffer much from high property insurance rates that are the norm in southern Florida. Prestigious Money Magazine once named Ocala as one of the Best Places To Live, for its relaxing quality of living and small-town feel.

A Correction Is Now Seen In The Local Property Markets

For those who haven't had any updates yet on conditions in Ocala's property markets, In most aspects the once red-hot real estate market has returned to normal. For a couple of years, the city as well as Marion County, was one of the hottest real estate markets in the state, and in the US as well, and is now seeing a much needed correction. So why the correction?

According to housing analysts, there were two main factors for the previous real estate frenzy. First, Ocala before and now, still is considered the lowest-priced city in the state to buy homes. In addition, the city had, and still has plenty of empty spaces, with thousands of vacant home lots and large tracts of prime yet undeveloped land. These factors help to attract major home developers and medium-level investors as well.

Does Ocala Have The Means To Support A Booming Property Market?

According to housing observers, many developers and housing project investors were not that quick to realize that the city of Ocala doesn't have that much of a really booming economy to support the skyrocketing real estate market.

Although the city and the county has a relatively low unemployment rate, however wages here are quite lower than most parts of the country, which means that most of the home developments here were considered to be out of reach for average buyers. A lot of the existing homes here also had home values which appreciated way beyond what most locals could afford. In light of the current housing and credit crunch, it's a fact that Florida as a whole has seen the property markets slide from bad to worse, and we’re not denying that.

However, when looking at Marion County's overall performance, it never really bombed out like most of the state, and it probably won't be like that. Many view that despite the not-so-large markets here, the opportunities for getting affordable-priced and excellent real estate are still there.

As mentioned above, the housing market here is far from collapsing, and many surprisingly are saying that now would be a great time to buy homes here. The city's rental market seems to be thriving, and this could be a magnet for potential buyers in the long run. And though we can't deny that Ocala is truly livable destination, it isn't a prime retirement destination. While other large metropolitan areas in the state have much larger retirement communities, many retiring baby boomers come here because it's more affordable, conditions are less congested and crime is much lower than other parts of the state.

The city of Sarasota, like most of the metropolitan areas in the state of Florida, has seen one of the worst housing market slowdowns in its history.

Although Sarasota and its nearby areas are not as downtrodden as what others may like you to see it, the fact is that the property markets here are feeling the pinch of mounting foreclosures and heaps of unpaid mortgages too, but are showing signs of slowly moving up to recover from this malaise.

January Pending Home Sales Levels Are Up

According to figures taken from the Sarasota MLS system, pending home sales in January 2008 were at its highest levels since June of last year, although January also saw a drop in overall property sales in the local market.

One of the major reasons for the dip was the pending vote on the state’s property tax reform package , which probably did contribute to some home buyers sitting on the sidelines for the moment. However according to market observers, with the passage of the reforms by voters, a rebound in property sales in the Sarasota area, and across the state as well, is predicted in the coming months.

How Are Single-Family Units And Condos Faring In This Market?

According to January figures, there were 329 overall property sales, of which 221 were for single family homes and 108 for condos. This represents a 19 percent drop from total sales in the same period last year, which was at 407.

The reduction was more than 20 percent below the total of 426 closed transactions recorded in the city’s MLS in December 2007. For the state of Florida, single-family home sales were down 28 as compared to January levels last year, while condominium sales were down 30 percent. According to housing experts, the figures continue to indicate that in a down market, the Sarasota area is faring much better than other state housing markets.

According to the Sarasota Association of Realtors, there was obviously some hesitation from buyers during the month of January, with the pending property tax reform vote coming up. However the SAR notes that with that property amendment issue settled already, and one that is favorable to home buyers, the market should see prospective buyers taking advantage of historically low interest rates, great property selections, and other factors that entice home buyers to purchase homes in Sarasota and nearby counties.

Some housing analysts have suggested that the actual arrival of baby boomers from other areas over the next few years will surely be a good factor in helping the region rebound from its current troubles. Housing analysts surmise that the projected supply of retirees for this area will grow explosively, although only around 20 percent of Americans aged 60 and older end up moving across state lines. Despite this, many see that the Sarasota-Bradenton area will get more than its share of retiring baby boomer home buyers, and along with those retirees will also come another group of migrants, who will mow their lawns and pour their drinks as well.