Continue Reading Add comment January 22nd, 2009
One of the nation’s largest builders is trying to shock the flatlining new-home market into action with an incentive plan that will slash monthly mortgage payments for qualified buyers. Read more »
Continue Reading Add comment January 22nd, 2009
The latest housing starts data from the U.S. Commerce Department is sobering.
Both the production of single-family homes and new building permits fell by double digits in December, reaching a record low, the government said. Housing starts fell 15.5% compared to the previous month.
The weakening economy, which sprung from the real estate crisis, is now making the housing problems even worse. And the construction slowdown, in turn, is contributing to the economic malaise.
This is not only bad news for construction workers. New homes keep materials manufacturers and suppliers, plumbers, and electricians in business.
Obama’s plan to jump start the economy with infrastructure projects could help fill the void. But it’s not going to help homebuilders who can’t compete with the growing number of low-priced bank-owned properties.
“Builders are addressing the supply issue,” National Association of Home Builders Chief Economist David Crowe said in a news release today. “Washington policymakers must now act to boost the demand side of the equation by including a robust home buyer tax credit and mortgage rate buy down in the stimulus package that is moving through Congress.”
Continue Reading Add comment January 22nd, 2009
A plan for a mixed-use community in Honolulu has just received the approval of the Hawaii Community Development Authority. The development, proposed by Chicago-based General Growth Properties Inc. affiliate Victoria Ward Ltd., will span 60 acres and ultimately encompass approximately 17.3 million square feet of commercial and multi-family space.
Continue Reading Add comment January 22nd, 2009
It’s a fact of life in corporate relocations, company headquarters are based on one critical element—where does the ceo want to live? Oh, sure companies will hire consultants to analyze costs of doing business, tax incentives, etc. etc. But at the end of the day…
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Hilton Hotels announced it’s relocating from Los Angeles to the Washington, D.C. area. This is a company that’s founding family—Conrad, Barron, Paris—is practically synonymous with the Beverly Hills lifestyle.
But the Hiltons sold their stake in a 2007 leveraged buyout. New CEO Chris Nassetta told the Washington Post that the company was making the move to take advantage of the lower costs, proximity to key markets such as London and the huge pool of talent around Washington.
I’m not buying it. Nassetta is a veteran of Marriott, based in suburban Maryland. The D.C. area is hardly a low cost real estate market. And Nassetta himself has said much of the company’s future growth will have to come from Asia, which is more accessible from the West Coast. Hilton had major layoffs after the buyout. Is Nassetta really now having trouble luring talent to that hell hole Beverly Hills?
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