The Florida land boom was the 1920s speculative bubble that collapsed before the U.S. stock-market crash.
During the Florida land boom, investors bought and resold plots with the expectation that prices would keep rising. Promotional campaigns portrayed Florida as a rapidly developing destination, while easy credit and short-term contracts encouraged speculation. Some buyers paid deposits and flipped contracts without intending to build or occupy the land.
The boom weakened in 1925 as transportation bottlenecks, rising prices, and doubts about the value of undeveloped property reduced demand. A major hurricane in 1926 caused further destruction and damaged confidence. The collapse left developers, lenders, and speculators with large losses before the Wall Street Crash of 1929.
The Florida episode is often mentioned alongside the later stock-market crash, but it was a separate regional real-estate bubble. It did not directly cause the 1929 crash, and the two events had different assets, markets, and timing. The episode nevertheless illustrates how leverage, promotional optimism, and expectations of endlessly rising prices can magnify a financial downturn.