Posted on November - 02 - 2011
The NAHB housing market index remained unchanged at 15 in August. Sales expectations declined by two points, but had risen by six points in July. In addition, the remaining two subindices posted marginal gains. We therefore expect the NAHB housing market index to have edged higher to 16 in September. However, this is still very low, as levels below 50 indicate that more builders see conditions as bad rather than good.
Housing starts corrected downwards from 613k to 604k in July after having jumped by more than 10% in June. In August, housing starts could have fallen again, not least due to unfavourable weather conditions; hurricane “Irene” hit the East coast, for example. We forecast that housing starts will have declined to about 585k, but building permits, which fell from 617k to 601k in July, could have remained more or less stable in August.
In July, existing home sales had been expected to rise, given the noticeable jump in pending home sales. Ins
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Posted on October - 31 - 2011
When and how you apply for a credit card can make all the difference in your credit limit, terms and even whether you are approved. Some factors you can’t really change, such as a history of bankruptcy or missed payments. Some require a change in behavior. But some can be altered just before you apply, and a little planning can help you qualify for the credit card you want.
1. Get your finances in shape
There’s nothing you can do about a history of missed payments or a bankruptcy. Thankfully, your credit score considers your most recent behavior more important than what happened 3 or 5 years ago. If you show that you’ve cleaned up your previously spotty payment history, credit card companies are more likely to consider your application.
This means keeping current on all your debts, not just credit card debt: personal, auto and other loans all count towards your score. Plus,
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Posted on October - 29 - 2011
WASHINGTON –In a letter today, the top Republicans on the Senate Finance and Judiciary Committees, U.S. Senators Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), asked Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius why the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is not utilizing some of the tools provided within the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) to safeguard the Medicare program from waste, fraud and abuse.
Under PPACA, CMS can impose a temporary enrollment moratorium on new Medicare providers and suppliers when the agency determines that there is a significant potential for waste, fraud, or abuse by the applicant type or geographic area. While the final rule for this regulation was published more than eight months ago, CMS has failed to impose a single temporary moratorium. T
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Posted on October - 26 - 2011
Tune in to this weeks installment of The Credit Line, hosted by Credit.coms chairman and co-founder Adam Levin on Los Angeles KFWB 980 AM this Saturday, October 29, at 9 a.m. PST/Noon EST.
The show is co-hosted by L.A. radio personality Jeff Levy.
Operation Hackerazzi and Identity Theft Through Email
By now, youve heard all about the hacker who gained access to celebrities email accounts and the personal files contained within (Scarlett Johansson, Christina Aguilera, Mila Kunis are among the 50+ victims). On todays show, we talk to Lisa Feldman, an Assistant United States Attorney familiar with the case, about the man whom the FBI has charged with a range of cyber-related crimes, including aggravated identity theft.
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Posted on October - 24 - 2011
35 states have an additional sales tax on soda, a rate added to the general food tax rates on food and beverage products. A soda tax can be compared to a sin tax, however how high are soda tax rates and do they have the same effect sin taxes do on preventing unhealthy behavior? Will adding a soda tax potentially help raise enough revenue to put a significant dent in our nations deficit? These are some of the questions we want to answer, so let’s dive in.
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