SunTrust Banks Inc (fka STI)

[MWM]

SunTrust Banks Inc., which has dropped 17 percent after the explosion, and Regions, based in Birmingham, Alabama, were among lenders whose first-quarter reports cited improving prices for distressed condos and other real estate, reflecting increased buyer confidence. Almost 30 percent of Atlanta-based SunTrust’s residential construction and mortgage business and 38 percent of its home-equity loans are in Florida. Home prices stabilized this year after declining in some resort towns by more than 60 percent from 2005 peak levels, Baars said.