Sunday, February 1, 2015

Monday February 2 Housing and Economic stories


Russia's struggles hit home at Miami yacht party  - (www.cnbc.com)  Four yachts sat docked outside a North Miami restaurant called Lique on Thursday night for the Russian-American Chamber of South Florida Luxury Yacht Business Mixer event. And many of the attendees had shared anxieties. Ralph Navarro, CEO of Florida Yachts International, footed the bill to rent out the space in the hope of building connections with wealthy Russians with the ultimate goal of possibly making a sale. About 300 people, most of them members of the Russian American Chamber, were in attendance, and roughly 80 percent of them are Russian business owners and managers in industries ranging from real estate to computer technology and finance. It's a crowd that has grown increasingly concerned about its financial situation in light of the economic downturn of the country where many of them do business, CNBC's conversations with the attendees revealed.

Existing Home Sales Fall 3.1% In 2014 - (www.businessinsider.com) Existing home sales rose less than expected in December and fell 3.1% overall in 2014. In December, existing home sales rose by 2.4% to an annualized pace of 5.04 million.  Expectations were for the report to show sales grew 3% in December to an annualized pace of 5.08 million, up from November's pace of 4.93 million, which was a 6.1% decline from October. For the full year, existing home sales fell 3.1% from 2013, totaling 4.93 million down against 5.09 million last year. 

Uncle Sam Is Coming After Your Savings - (www.bloomberg.com) Earlier in the week, I discussed the Obama administration's proposal to tax earnings on so-called 529 college savings plans, part of a package of tax hikes that will pay for new programs such as his proposal to make the first two years of community college free. This has been touted as a plan to hike taxes on the rich to help the middle class, but in fact it's more of a plan to redistribute money from the upper middle class to the lower middle class. As I noted then, this proposal is not going anywhere, not just because Republican congressmen will block it, but because it would be very unpopular with affluent blue-state voters who currently vote for Democrats. About the only people I saw defending this particular idea were blue-state singles who haven't yet confronted the monstrous expense of shepherding their progeny into the new mandarin class to which they belong. Everyone else seems to be somewhere between confused and aghast. One comment in particular struck me, as I saw it several times on social media and in writings: "How would you feel if they did this to Roth IRAs?"

New York Gun Store To Close, Owner Blames Restrictive Gun Laws - (www.dailycaller.com)  A New York gun dealer says he will shut down two stores he operates near Rochester and move to North Carolina because of onerous regulations on the sale of firearms and ammunition. “The SAFE Act killed us in terms of business,” Kordell Jackson, who owns Jackson Guns and Ammo, told the Democrat & Chronicle. “It was very difficult with sales and regulations with transferring and obtaining firearms, so I decided to close up,” Jackson said. The SAFE Act, which was signed into law in 2013 in the wake of the school shooting in Newtown, Conn., is considered one of the toughest gun laws in the nation. It prohibits the sale of magazines that contain more than 10 rounds and puts strict limitations on features that can be attached to semi-automatic rifles such as the AR-15. It also requires ammunition dealers to perform background checks on the sale of ammunition similar to those performed during firearms transactions and outlaws all private firearms transactions.

New California Law Requires Doctor's Note For Vaccine Exemptions... - (www.kpbs.com) new state law went into effect Jan. 1 making it a little harder for California students to skip required vaccinations. The law says parents can now only claim a personal belief exemption from vaccines if they have a signed form from their doctor. But there's still an easy way out for parents who don't want their kids to get shots. California law requires students be vaccinated against diseases like polio, measles and whooping cough before they can attend school. But parents have been able to skip these requirements by signing a personal belief exemption, which says immunization is contrary to their way of thinking. Under the new California law, parents will still be able to do that. But they have to get a signed form from their pediatrician saying they've been informed of the "benefits and risks of immunization." Although the law took effect at the start of 2014, students only need this new form when they start kindergarten or middle school or move to California from out of state. Otherwise, their existing exemption will still apply.





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