Army Housing Gets
Extreme Makeover
In the face of widespread substandard housing for its personnel,
the U.S. Army is launching a massive renovation campaign
that will enlist private contractors to renovate or rebuild
nearly 84,000 of its homes over the next 10 years.
The move is part of a broader Pentagon-backed initiative
to modernize housing throughout the military. Nicer homes
could be the key to the sustained strength of the armed forces,
as the Pentagon reports that bases with high-quality housing
boast a 15 percent higher rate of re-enlistment.
Military housing
has become an issue of growing importance as the number
of uniformed personnel with children swells
to almost 900,000. Much of the housing provided dates to
the 1950s and lacks modern amenities such as family rooms
and air conditioning—a problem so extensive that it
initially was estimated that it would require 30 years and
$16 billion for the Pentagon to fix.
With the passage of the Military Housing Privatization Initiative,
however, the task can be passed to private contractors. One
of the largest projects is in Oahu, where the Army has contracted
with Actus Lend Lease to finance the $2.2 billion makeover
required to modernize the Schofield Barracks and six other
Army bases on the island, increasing the average size of
a house by 50 percent.
Other amenities will include computer centers, two-car garages,
and family rooms.
Source: USA Today (10/11/05); Welch, William M.
Home Heating Costs Predicted to Soar
This winter, home heating bills are expected to climb an
average of 50 percent over last season for homes using natural
gas, and Midwest customers might pay as much as 70 percent
more on average if weather is especially severe, according
to the American Gas Association.
Costs will be higher because utilities have been paying
significantly more for the fuel they reserve. Such fuel costs
represent roughly 70 percent of what residential customers
pay.
Mark Wolfe, executive director of the National Energy Assistance
Directors' Association, has asked Congress to expand the
federal low-income energy assistance program significantly,
stating that at least $5.1 billion will be required just
to satisfy demand at last year's level.
Despite the disruptions
to gas production caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita—which disrupted 20 percent of the
nation's gas production—gas storage levels are expected
to be sufficient by the beginning of November and surpass
the five-year average, says Paul Wilkinson, a vice president
for the American Gas Association.
Source: Associated Press (10/11/05); Herbert, H. Josef
Homebuilding Stocks
Post Steep Rise in Past Year
The
Dow Jones U.S. Homebuilders Index has posted a return of
38.8 percent
during the past year, greatly surpassing
the 5.7 percent return recorded by the Standard & Poor's
500. Moreover, homebuilding
stocks have rocketed 369.8 percent since 2000, versus a
10.8 percent loss in the S&P 500.
Though Credit Suisse First analyst Ivy Zelman is not concerned
about a national housing bubble, she is worried that major
corrections in homebuilders' stock are on the horizon.
"Excessive speculation, fuelled by interest-only loans
and unprecedented leverage, has resulted in artificially
inflated home prices and in turn, homebuilders' margins,
returns and land assets…the embedded risk is alarming," she
says.
Source: Financial Times (10/13/05); Postelnicu, Andrei
Freddie Mac to Invest
$1B in Hurricane Zone
Freddie Mac has announced plans to purchase $1 billion in
bonds from state and local housing finance agencies in order
to provide cut-rate mortgages and home-repair loans to victims
of Hurricane Katrina. The
move underscores the housing finance company's mission "to
provide stability, liquidity, and affordability for housing
markets—both in good times and in crises like this
one," says Richard Syron, Freddie Mac Chairman and CEO.
Syron discredited any assumptions that Freddie Mac is reaching
out to hurricane victims as a means of influencing Congress,
which is debating legislation that would strengthen oversight
of the government-sponsored enterprise.
Wall Street analysts,
such as Kenneth Posner of Morgan Stanley & Co.,
say that Freddie Mac's outreach efforts have earned the support
of investors and lawmakers while simultaneously boosting
its portfolio.
Source: Washington Post (10/13/05); Shin, Annys
Do-Not-Fax Legislation
Sent to the President for his Signature/
FCC Issues Extension of Stay
On Tuesday, June, 28th, the House approved S. 714, the Junk
Fax Prevention Act. Already approved by the Senate on Friday,
June 24th, the bill now goes to the President for his signature.
The Junk Fax Prevention Act is a common sense solution that
enables businesses to continue to send faxes to their established
customers, just as they do now and have for years, while
maintaining the strict prohibition on unwanted junk faxes.
Source: Realtor.org/NAR 7/2005
Senate Passes Energy Tax Incentives
The Senate has passed its version of an energy policy package
on a vote of 85-12. Among the many provisions in the bill
are tax incentives for investment in energy efficient and
alternative energy technologies for both commercial and residential
property. The legislation must be resolved with a similar
House bill. That effort may be completed by late July.
Source: Realtor.org/NAR 7/2005
Capital Gains Data Released
The Joint Committee on Taxation has released current data
on capital gains. The study shows that nearly 10% of all
tax returns filed include capital gains. Forty percent of
those returns with capital gains are filed by individuals
with income less than $75,000. That group of tax returns,
however, accounts for only 10% of the $327 billion of capital
gains reported during the same period. By contrast, only
13% of all returns with capital gains are filed by individuals
with income more than $200,000, but those returns represent
84% of the $327 billion of reported capital gains.
Source: Realtor.org/NAR 7/2005
Landlords Learn About Tax Write-Offs - Book Available
If
you own rental property, you should be taking advantage
of the many tax
write-offs available. "Every Landlord's
Tax Deduction Guide" by Stephen Fishman gives residential
landlords the plain-English information they need to save
money on taxes. Learn how to maximize your deductions. Visit
or call (1-800-874-6500) Information Central's Library in
Chicago on the 4th floor for this new title.
Source: Realtor.org/NAR 7/2005
FTC Proposed an
Increase in Fees to Access the Do-Not-Call Registry
On April
18th, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a proposed
rule amending the Telemarketing Sales Rule. The
newly proposed rule would increase the fees for access to
the Do-Not-Call Registry. Under the proposed revised fee
structure, telemarketers will continue to have access to
up to five area codes free. Additional area codes would cost
$56.00 (currently $40.00) each. The fee for access to all
280 area codes would increase to $15,400 (currently $11,000).
It should be noted, the original fee structure (2003) was
$25.00 for each area code beyond 5 and $7,375 for access
to all area codes. The deadline for commenting is June 1,
2005.
Source: National Association
of Realtors, May 2005
Old Military Bases to House Oil Refineries?
The Bush Administration has indicated that it would recommend
using old military sites to house oil refineries and will
direct federal agencies to work with states and local communities.
Clearly, if a base's land use requirements were modified
to accommodate an oil refinery, the surrounding community
would be impacted. NAR followed up with the Department
of Defense's Office of Economic Adjustment indicating this
concern.
OEA indicated that the proposal was still fresh and was
unclear on how it would work within the federal property
disposition
process. Source: National Association of Realtors, May 2005
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