Florida is growing at nearly double the rate of the nation as a whole, and that translates into the kind of employment and income growth that makes the state the premier financial services market in the country. Put simply, Florida saw a net increase of 834 residents each day during the 1990s.

AmSouth has targeted four prime markets both demographically and in terms of opportunity: Naples, Tampa, Orlando, and Jacksonville.

The numbers in Naples say a lot about why AmSouth came to Florida in 1987 and has made growing its Florida markets a priority.

Dave and Kim have seen firsthand what the tremendous growth means: people moving to Florida need mortgages, home equity loans, checking accounts, and retirement planning or investment services. Each new mortgage is an excellent opportunity to sell AmSouth’s entire range of services.

AmSouth’s goal is to grow these markets by expediting our branch and ATM expansion plans, aggressively advertising and marketing our products and services, and hiring bankers like Dave and Kim Homuth who are capable of building market share.

Dave and Kim, mortgage bankers in Naples, are at the forefront of Florida’s booming growth. They’re in a city that ranks in the top 10 for growth nationally, and in a surging industry – residential real estate. In 2000, for example, the median resale price of a home in Naples leapt from $198,000 to $250,000 while the number of homes sold climbed 26 percent.

It’s the kind of approach that has propelled AmSouth to fifth in bank deposit share in the state.

We’re already seeing success in Florida: the growth rate of households with checking accounts is more than double that of any other state in our franchise. That’s the kind of growth we’ll be building on.

One customer is a homebuilder who frequently refers clients to AmSouth. Dave describes the relationships they’ve built as a “pipeline of opportunity.” That’s really true for the entire state, and AmSouth bankers are moving fast to keep up with it.