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Published: February 7, 2009
(New York Times article)
Lehigh Acres is a working class community in Southwest Florida, a few miles east of Ft. Myers and thus only a short drive to the Gulf of Mexico. Contents of the article suggest the collateral damage that is occurring as the FIRE economy continues to decline. A few paragraphs from this depressing article are below.
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In Lehigh Acres, homes are selling at 80 percent off their peak prices. Only two years after there were more jobs than people to work them, fast-food restaurants are laying people off or closing. Crime is up, school enrollment is down, and one in four residents received food stamps in December, nearly a fourfold increase since 2006.
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Real estate agents said the homes that are selling here typically go for only about $45,000, a third of what they cost to build. They predict that foreclosures will continue to keep prices low for two more years.
Full article is here.