He previously was senior vice president and state agency manager for Florida. In his new position, Furlong will oversee the company's entire sales network and continue to manage business development activity from his suburban Maitland, FL office.

Just back from a swing around the state, Furlong tells GlobeSt.com Miami and Fort Lauderdale appear to be the most active markets in new commercial construction and investments. "One [Miami] attorney told me that virtually every large office building in Downtown Miami changed hands in the last year or so," says the former Seminole County commissioner.

Tampa and Orlando, however, "are not experiencing much in the way of new office space construction their Downtown area," Furlong says. Instead, "what Downtown Orlando is getting is new high-rise, multifamily residential." The insurance executive says this trend also is occurring in Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach "and soon will be happening in Tampa, as well."

He says Downtown Tampa, 80 miles west of Downtown Orlando, "has not developed the entertainment component yet, mainly because the Ybor City sector is still somewhat distant from the office core." Traffic congestion in Tampa, as in Orlando, "also is having an impact on commercial development and the growth of suburban office parks," Furlong says. "People don't want to drive; they want to live closer to work."

From a commercial/residential title insurance perspective, Furlong says 2002 was "the best year in real estate [for Fidelity National Title], when you include residential activity in Orlando and much of the U.S."

He says, "So far, 2003 has started off very strong with many commercial projects that were on the shelf or moving slowly, [now] picking up speed. Barring any major international developments, we could be in for another record year."