Baker Hostetler Orlando partner Elizabeth A. Green was quoted in the article, “Sunshine State No More,” which appeared in The Deal Pipeline on February 23, 2011.
A large part of the Floridian economy is driven by tourism and real estate and it has taken a drastic hit over the past few years. Green has a front-row view of the troubles, as most of her cases are filed in one of the busiest bankruptcy courts in the nation: the Middle District of Florida.
The collapse of the real estate market has severely affected Florida, as defaults on home mortgages have filtered into problems on the corporate side. Green stated, “The increase in homes on the market and foreclosures have created an oversupply of homes. Thus there is no market for new homebuilders. This has created filings in the building industry, including homebuilders, engineers and architects.” Finally, she says, the housing crisis and worldwide recession have decreased tourism.
Florida and Orlando are known as a family vacation destinations because of the resorts and theme parks. With the economic downturn, Green says, “Filings have increased in the hospitality market and support markets, i.e., restaurants and service companies.” Green's two new cases in the fourth quarter, Tempus Resorts International Ltd. and Island One Inc., both come from the real estate sector.
“Despite tourism numbers increasing slightly, the long–term effect in Florida will take a long time to cycle around,” Green says. “There is a slight upturn in terms of tourist numbers, but tourism is not as high as in 2006 or 2007.” As a result, Green expects commercial filings in the Middle District to increase but filings to decrease nationwide.