Three-dozen South Florida homebuilders and real estate agents mingled last week at Buster's Bar & Grill in downtown Delray Beach. Now it's falling, leaving industry observers to count the casualties.
With demand softening in South Florida and across the nation, builders and real estate firms are laying off workers, shuttering offices and selling to moneyed buyers. Construction, mortgages, title insurance. Miami-based real estate consultant Lewis Goodkin predicts the region's housing landscape will be even weaker in the second half of 2006, with sluggish sales carrying over into 2007.
WCI Communities Inc. of Bonita Springs, a big player in South Florida, also has sliced jobs but declined to provide a number. Montecito declined an interview with the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
The trend follows what's happening in Las Vegas, Phoenix and other formerly hot markets as builders trim fat to stay competitive. Steve Zenger, a WCI spokesman said that in a slower business market, it made sense to cut back.
The layoffs extend to Deerfield Beach-based Expert Realty, a discount real estate brokerage. With mortgage applications declining this year, Washington Mutual and Countrywide Home Loans closed offices in Lake Worth and Sunrise, respectively. Washington Mutual, the nation's largest savings and loan, laid off 1,400 people in Florida and Washington.
Real estate industries nationwide once were adding 35,000 to 40,000 jobs a month, but growth in those sectors has flattened, Economy.com's Zandi said. The slowdown is causing some small independent real estate agencies to latch on to larger competitors.
Last week, for example, Boca Raton-based Lang Realty announced the acquisition of DCI International Realty Inc. of Boca Raton. In March, Lang bought Carriage Trade Properties, also of Boca.
Although most agents work as independent contractors, small firms still face hefty expenses such as advertising and rent, Lang President Scott Agran said. The thriving market from 2000 to 2005 was an open invitation for wannabe agents to get into the business. Despite the current conditions, experts say they're still bullish on Florida's long-term housing prospects.
Anthony Trella, a Deerfield Beach-based consultant to homebuilders nationwide, said the state will continue to attract Baby Boomers and other new residents.
By Mabelle Sese
http://www.miamirealestateinc.com