EpicNewz
I’m gratified to report that late this afternoon, Gov. Schwarzenegger signed Assembly Bill 183, the Homebuyer Tax Credit legislation, into law. His actions today are the result of our efforts in Sacramento over the last several weeks as members and our team in the capital worked for the bill’s passage before it landed on the governor’s desk.
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Remember that stuff about hiding under a table or standing in a doorway??
Well, this guy has a completely reverse opinion. This is very interesting, different from what we have been taught or thought.
Please read this and pass the info along to your family members; it could save their lives someday!
The Federal Reserve today announced it will maintain its target for the federal funds rate in the 0 percent to 0.25 percent range, and expects economic conditions to warrant exceptionally low levels of the federal funds rate for an extended period of time. “Information … suggests that economic activity continues to strengthen and that deterioration in the labor market is abating,” the Fed said in a prepared statement.
“Household spending is expanding at a moderate rate, but remains constrained by a weak labor market, modest income growth, lower housing wealth, and tight credit. Business spending on equipment and software appears to be picking up, but investment in structures is still contracting and employers remain reluctant to add to payrolls. While bank lending continues to contract, financial market conditions remain supportive of economic growth. Although the pace of economic recovery is likely to be moderate for a time, the Committee anticipates a gradual return to higher levels of resource utilization in a context of price stability,” the Fed said.
To provide support to mortgage lending and housing markets and to improve overall conditions in private credit markets, the Federal Reserve also said it will purchase a total of $1.25 trillion of agency mortgage-backed securities and nearly $175 billion of agency debt, and will gradually slow the pace of these purchases in order to promote a smooth transition in markets.
What happens to all the latex paint that is dropped off at hazard waste centers? It’s recycled and is being resold at your local paint distributors, Dunn-Edwards and Kelly-Moore, for instance. Recycled paint sells for less, but the quality and viscosity is augmented by blending it with virgin materials. For more information and a complete list of distributors, visit
http://www.ciwmb.ca.gov/ConDemo/Paint/.
A report by Trulia.com found that as of Jan. 1, 21 percent of homes currently on the market have experienced at least one price reduction. The total amount reduced for all homes nationwide declined to $21.2 billion in January compared with $24.7 billion in December. The average discount for homes with price reductions remained at 11 percent, according to the report. In the west, which includes California, 22 percent of listings experienced price reductions.
During his State of the State address, Governor Schwarzenegger today announced his 2010 proposals for California. Included in the proposals is a recommendation to set aside $200 million for a new round of $10,000 state tax credits for first-time home buyers. The proposal expands upon the initial $10,000 state tax credit by including both new and existing homes. Last year’s tax credit applied only to new homes.
The tax credit could be combined with the recently extended and expanded federal tax credit for home buyers.
Sales of newly built, single-family homes declined 11.3 percent in November to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 355,000 units, according to a report released WHEN? by the U.S. Commerce Dept.
Sales of new single-family homes declined in three out of four regions in November, with only the Midwest posting a gain, of 21.4 percent. Declines of 3.3 percent, 21.1 percent, and 9.2 percent were recorded in the Northeast, South and West, respectively.The number of newly built homes on the market continued to decline in November, falling 2.1 percent to 235,000 units. This marked a 7.9-month supply at the current sales pace, according to the report.
The Consumer Confidence Index rose in December to 52.9 (1985=100) compared with 50.6 in November, the Conference Board reported yesterday. The Present Situation Index declined to 18.8 in December from 21.2 in November, and the Expectations Index increased to 75.6 from 70.3 last month, according to the report.
“Consumer confidence posted yet another moderate gain in December as expectations for the short-term future increased to the highest level in two years,” said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center. “The Present Situation Index, however, continued to lose ground and remains at a 26-year low. A more optimistic outlook for business and labor market conditions was the driving force behind the increase in the Expectations Index.”
Consumers’ assessment of current conditions declined in December, with those claiming business conditions are “bad” increasing to 46.6 percent in December from 44.5 percent in November, while those claiming conditions are “good” decreased to 7 percent in December compared with 8.1 percent in November. Consumers’ appraisal of the job market also was mixed, and their short-term outlook improved slightly, according to the report.
The annual rate of home-price decline improved in October in the 10-City and 20-City Composites tracked as one of the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices released yesterday. The 10-City and 20-City Composites declined 6.4 percent and 7.3 percent, respectively, in October compared with the same month last year. All 20 metro areas and both composites showed an improvement in the annual rates of decline in October compared with September.
“The turn-around in home prices seen in the spring and summer has faded, with only seven of the 20 cities seeing month-to-month gains, although all 20 continue to show improvements on a year-over-year basis,” said David M. Blitzer, chairman of the Index Committee at Standard & Poor’s. “Following a series of solid gains, these data are likely to spark worries that home prices are about to take a second dip. Before jumping to conclusions, recognize that the one time that happened at the beginning of the 1980s, Fed policy saw dramatic reversals, which is very different from the stable and consistent Fed policy we have today.”
Builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes declined to 16 in December, 1 point lower compared with November, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI).
The component gauging home sales expectations for the next six months decreased two points in December to 26, compared with November. The component gauging traffic of prospective buyers remained unchanged for a third consecutive month, at 13, according to the report.
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