[junglejim]

Let's face it; we are in Florida one of the epicenters of the real estate bubble burst. I heard yesterday that Florida now leads the nation in foreclosures. That being said looks like so far the values here in the Villages have only dropped around 10%. Every recent home purchaser in the state paid more than their home was worth. Look at Orlando. Their shining place to be - Baldwin Park quote from David Welch (in the Orlando Sentinel) "We contracted [to build] at $650,000, before the real blow-up in prices, and I think it peaked at about $1.1million. It did get crazy," Welch said. As a sign of the times, Welch is negotiating the "short sale" of his home in Baldwin Park that's expected to go for about $270,000. We went to Orlando and stayed at another of their hot spots on Lake Eola Park. This park is a cesspool of winos, drug addicts and all sorts of homeless bums. You won't see that in the Villages. Wonder if the Orlando taxpayers are happy with that use of their tax dollars? I do hope the Family stays with us. They do have the vision. How many of you have seen community groups or even civic groups able to reach an agreement without a lot of finger pointing and ill feelings. I am not sure we should be in charge of what goes on in our districts. I think most of us would rather not be involved in the politics and who wants that responsibility at this stage in life?