Wachovia report: Florida hit harder by recession - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal:

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Florida went into the recession nine months aheard of the rest of theUnitedc States, and excesses in housing and commercialp real estate are considerably worss than the nation as a whole, the report says. Statewide, the mediab sales price of existing homed is down about 45 percent from the peak of the housingt boom inNovember 2005, but the drop in the Tampq Bay area is even steeped at about 60 percent. Employment conditionz continueto deteriorate, the report says.
The state’zs unemployment rate is expected to top out around11 percent, Wachovia projects, with a loss of 720,0090 jobs, including 430,000 jobs lost this reported 137 layoff events during the firstt quarter, more than double the previous Job losses are heaviest in industries with direct ties to the building boom, including construction and manufacturing, Wachovi said. Wachovia estimates Floridians saw a net lossof $1.2 trillionb in household wealth duringg 2008 with about two-thirds of that drop occurrint in financial assets.