46% of South Florida homeowners are `underwater'

Nearly half of all owners of single-family homes in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale metropolitan area were underwater at the end of the third quarter, meaning their homes were valued at less than the mortgages owed against them.

Real estate listings from Michael Y. Cannon

DEERFIELD BEACH

OFFICE BUILDING

ACQUIRED FOR $1.2M

Location: 1300 E. Hillsboro Blvd.

Seller: Denise A. Ashleman.

REAL ESTATE

In current real estate market, even God's House is for sale

In South Florida's bleak real-estate market, houses for sale aren't the only glut. Churches and other religious properties, some of them bank foreclosures, are plentiful, and stuck in a commercial purgatory.

CHINESE DRYWALL

Expert: Problem of defective Chinese drywall is no surprise

During a summit on defective Chinese drywall, a toxicologist said that kind of problem was expected.

REAL ESTATE

Suit takes aim at Soffer empire

Title companies facing $600 million in contractor claims on the bankrupt Fontainebleau Las Vegas casino want the parent of Fontainebleau Miami Beach to step into the Vegas fight.

HOUSING

Holiday complicates home-buyer credit rush

As if it weren't difficult enough for first-time home buyers to qualify by Nov. 30 for a tax credit, Thanksgiving will cut down on the number of work days available.

Foreign investors dominate in South Florida real estate purchases

In order to help his clients close on units at the luxury St. Tropez condominium in Sunny Isles Beach, developer Joe Milton recently put up $100 million of his company's cash to set up a mortgage company to fund loans.

Real estate listings from Michael Y. Cannon

PLANTATION

OFFICE BUILDING

ACQUIRED FOR $2M

Location: 1368 N. University Dr.

Seller: Plantation Key Office Park, by Plantation KOP, general partner, represented by Paul Douglas, managing member.

EDITOR'S NOTE

Editor's note: Foreign investors may help South Florida recover

``The word is out across the entire globe that Miami is on sale, so we have had a lot of good activity this entire year.''

Those enthusiastic words from Ron Shuffield, president of Esslinger-Wooten-Maxwell Realtors, succinctly sum up this week's cover story on Page 16. As reporter Monica Hatcher notes, foreign buyers have become a key factor in the recent surge in home sales in South Florida. And they often come with cash in hand, which is good news for our local economy.

REAL ESTATE

Turnberry told to pay $6M to Fairmont

Turnberry was ordered to pay $6 million in back fees to Fairmont for running its Aventura resort, but the developer says it won't pay.

REAL ESTATE

Bank of America faces complaints over mortgages and stalled loan modifications

Bank of America faces complaints over mortgages and stalled loan modifications.

BANKS

Newcomers to give Florida banks a run for the money

New bank names are popping up around South Florida. As the strong replace the weak and the economy stabilizes, the changes should help ease the credit crunch.

CHINESE IMPORTS

Chinese drywall report delayed

Homeowners hoping to find out whether imported drywall is the source of their misery must wait for additional test results from the federal government.

AGRICULTURE

Redland food makes a name for itself on store shelves

Shoppers at Publix will soon know which produce comes from Miami-Dade County's farmers.

Senators agree to extend home buyer tax credit

Senators agreed Wednesday to extend a popular tax credit for first-time home buyers and to offer a reduced credit to some repeat buyers.

The tax credit provides up to $8,000 to first-time home buyers but is set to expire at the end of November. The Commerce Department said Wednesday that new home sales fell 3.6 percent in September, and some industry representatives blamed uncertainty about the tax credit.

Calculate the recovery period for your underwater home mortgage

Is your home loan currently more than the market value of your house? Plug in your numbers here and see approximately how many years of mortgage payments it could take you to break even.

THE ECONOMY

Indexes give mixed signals

Housing prices continued to rise, but consumer confidence waned, giving a mixed portrait of the economy.

Home prices rise in most U.S. cities, including Miami

U.S. home prices rose for the third straight month in August, data released Tuesday showed, a key sign for a broad and sustained housing recovery.

The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller home price index of 20 major cities climbed 1.2 percent from July to a seasonally adjusted reading of 144.5. While prices are down 11.4 percent from August a year ago, the annual declines have slowed since February.

Home builder shares slide as analyst cuts estimates

Shares of home builders, including Miami-based Lennar, slid Monday after an analyst cut his estimates on several companies and said most in the industry won't turn a small profit until late 2011.