ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Homeownership dipped slightly in Florida statewide last year, but there were gains in southwest Florida.
New Census figures released Tuesday by the U.S. Census Bureau showed that the home ownership rate in Florida dropped from 64.8 percent in 2015 to 64.3 percent last year.
However, the Cape Coral-Fort Myers area had the nation's third biggest gain in the homeownership rate of major metro areas, going from 62.9 percent to 66.5 percent.
At the same time, the Sarasota-Bradenton area had the nation's second-biggest drop in the homeownership vacancy rate.
It went from 3.3 percent to 1.2 percent.
Miami had Florida's lowest homeownership rate at 58 percent. Sarasota had the highest at 73 percent.
Florida has been shaking off the housing crisis of a decade ago, when foreclosures hit the state hard.
(Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)