St. Lucie housing boom shifting to lower gear??

Excerpt from: Eve Samples
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Friday, April 14, 2006
PORT ST. LUCIE — During last year's frenzied days of deal-making and low interest rates, almost $6 billion worth of property changed hands in fast-growing St. Lucie County — but investors shouldn't expect the craze to continue at the same pace this year, real estate experts said Thursday.

"Obviously there's a housing bubble in Florida. Come on, of course there is," he said.
But owners shouldn't fret too much: Much of the state's housing glut is in South Florida condominiums, and the excess local homes shouldn't stay on the market too long, Fishkind said.
The Treasure Coast's housing surplus is more pronounced in St. Lucie than Martin County, but Fishkind predicted healthy population growth should be enough to eat up the excess within nine months or a year.

Port St. Lucie's growth rate — which the U.S. Census last year deemed the nation's highest among cities larger than 100,000 residents — is holding strong. By the end of this year, Port St. Lucie is on track to hit 150,000 people, City Manager Don Cooper said.

"That makes us the largest city between Fort Lauderdale and Jacksonville," he said.
If and when the entire city is built out, the population is expected to reach 400,000 to 450,000.

Why is St. Lucie growing so much more swiftly than Martin or Indian River counties? More stringent growth restrictions in the neighboring counties are driving builders into St. Lucie, Fishkind said.