Florida appraiser set to halve value of homes with Chinese drywall.

The Fort Myers News-Press (9/9, Wozniak) reports that Lee County, Florida, Property Appraiser Ken Wilkinson has announced that he will “slash” the market value of some 500 homes manufactured with defective drywall from China. Wilkinson “said Tuesday he can’t say dollar for dollar what the average drop in taxes will be. Exemptions, he said, play a part and the final tax rate hasn’t been set yet. ‘Certainly it’s a huge reduction,’ he said. Wilkinson’s new policy is based on the fallen market value of homes sold containing the material. The drywall smells like rotten eggs and corrodes air conditioning coils, wiring inside electrical switches and other metal items.”