'Affordability' our biggest concern

By JAMES THORNER
Published July 17, 2006

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Home 'affordability' our biggest concern

About 70 percent of Tampa Bay area residents cite "affordability" as the biggest obstacle to homeownership, up from 18 percent in a similar survey last year.

The numbers come from a recent statewide poll by Orlando's Attorney's Title Insurance Fund. The median home sales price reached $231,000 in May, outstripping the region's relatively stodgy incomes.

But most survey respondents don't think the tide has ebbed: 61 percent assume home values will continue to rise in the next year and 13 percent mentioned a housing bubble as their biggest concern.

- JAMES THORNER, Times staff writer