1.1. HOME BUYERS
The scheme was announced last September as part of a pound 1bn housing package and offered first-time buyers earning less than pound 60,000 a chance to get on the housing ladder via shared equity home ownership. It offers buyers a loan of up to 30% of the purchase price, which is interest-free after the first five years. [1] Fireplaces were standard in all the homes K&B built there. Last year, the company did something new: It asked potential home buyers which features they actually wanted in a house. To K&B's surprise, half the respondents in Denver said they would willingly forgo a fireplace, especially if it meant they could shave 2,000 off the price of a 130,000 house. K&B no longer offers them as standard features there. [2]
Builders filled developments with a handful of cookie-cutter designs that could be mass-produced economically. If a given model didn't sell, they simply knocked down the price. That all changed in 1996, after K&B spent 110 million to acquire a small San Antonio home builder that was doing things differently. Rayco Ltd. attributed its 40% share of the local market to its strategy of building to suit customer tastes, which it gleaned through extensive surveys. At around the same time, K&B's chief executive, Bruce Karatz, happened to overhear one of his salesmen making a high-pressure pitch to a prospective buyer. [2]
The possibility of widespread effects beyond the critical area or on the development of rural counties is unlikely. This finding, however, should be qualified. If price premiums escalate, the residential consumption of households proxied by those willing to add modest amounts to the price they actually paid may also be affected. As this group did not express any overriding desire for low-density areas, such a premium escalation need not necessarily lead to widespread spillover into rural counties. Such a spillover cannot be ruled out, as this group attached higher importance to water frontage and less to distance to work than in the case of the marginal waterfront buyers. This study identifies a broad segment of the population that uses the bay extensively for leisure purposes but does not reside on the waterfront. Households in this group purchased residences with assured water access, not necessarily in the critical area. As this group does not differ substantially from home buyers whose residences do not posses any relationship to the bay, it seems that at least before the enactment of the CBCA there were no substantial barriers to bay access. [3]
Developments with assured access to the bay (but not on the waterfront) in the suburban and exurban counties can be expected to absorb most of the spillover. Because the share of waterfront homes in the suburban and exurban housing markets is small (5 percent and 12 percent, respectively), the spillovers that will occur in these counties are not expected to affect price levels beyond the critical area. The CBCA will effect only households living in the area, but not other households locating in suburban or exurban counties (those proxied by nonwaterfront buyers). [3]
The home buyers directly affected by higher waterfront premiums are older and wealthier than the rest of the population, and tend to use the bay extensively for leisure purposes. Among this group, the less wealthy households with lower frequencies of water-related leisure activities are the ones most likely to change their residential consumption as a result of an increase in waterfront premiums. Analyses of consumer reactions to the CBCA's price effects require information on both the desires and WTP of households for water-related housing attributes. [3] New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency -- 80 million of home buyer revenue bonds, 1989 Series A and B, tentatively priced by a Bear, Stearns & Co. group to yield from 7.20% in 1993 to 7.92% in 2022 for bonds subject to the federal alternative minimum tax. [4]
Further reproduction or distribution is prohibited without permission.) The industry should consider developing products that allow first-time buyers to tap into the equity locked in their parents' homes. This was the conclusion of research conducted by Peter Williams for the Building Societies Association on what the mortgage market will look like in 2020. He presented his findings in London last week. Williams, executive director of the Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association, says there is a case for parents to use equity from their properties towards deposits for their children's first homes. Current propositions involve guarantors and cash contributions but Williams says some lenders allow parental income and assets to be included when considering their children's credit profile. [5]
A joint venture with Daiichi Corporation should result in the first Office Depot in Japan in 1998. In a search for why these firms may have succeeded, we sought an explanation for why businesses, which have traditionally purchased office supplies and hardware supplies from wholesale-distributors, may be purchasing from office supply superstores and warehouse home centers. In this search we were able to distill a model of the total value of purchasing. This model considers the total perceived value of purchasing and how business buyers attempt to minimize cost and maximize value of services obtained. [6]
A relatively simple total value model of supplier selection by business purchasers was able to explain from 24-31 per cent of patronage behavior. The model postulates that businesses purchasers decide between alternative suppliers based on the relative performance of these suppliers on price, credit services, product-acquisition services, and risk-reduction services. Its empirical support confirms previous research of organizational buyer behavior that has not previously been tested directly. [6]
To shed light on our fundamental question we use a "total value of purchasing" model as a theoretical framework. Implicit in this model is the assumption that businesses select suppliers in order to maximize their perceived total value of purchasing and suppliers offer them services to help them accomplish this goal. This model is not new; rather, it is distilled from a number of overlapping models from the organizational buyer behavior and marketing channels literature. What is unique to this study, unlike previous tests of the related models, is the use of data representing actual perceptions and behavioral intentions. [6]
Large pantries and a lot of shelving space are also in high demand. "Although many customers don't use the kitchen themselves, they still want the area to make a big impression while maintaining ease of function because most do a lot of entertaining," says Sorcic. While the preferences and demands of today's luxury home buyers may be evolving and changing, the way in which these builders work with them has not. Every one of them stated that the most important aspect in bringing their customers' dream homes to reality is personal service. "Because we are so remote and our customers are often thousands of miles away as we build their homes, we want them to be comfortable in the fact that we are here working hard for them," says Tim Hild. [7]
JUST AS TECHNOLOGY IS ONE OF THE SINGLE BIGGEST DRIVING FORCES of today's robust economy, it is also driving-and changing-today's luxury home market. The typical custom home buyers used to be those in their 50s and 60s who were nearing or entering retirement. With the proliferation of Internet companies and bullish tech stocks, however, there are more young millionaires than ever looking to spend their money on elaborate custom homes. Tim and Nancy Hild, owners of Tandem, Inc. in Telluride, Colo., have seen their buyer profiles change dramatically over the last several months. "There are a lot of Internet players coming into this area and buying up property to build their luxury homes," says Tim Hild. "Many of our customers are CEOs of these start-up companies who are in their 30s and 40s." [7]
In the absence of nearby substitutes, producers can capitalize the higher costs of regulations in housing prices. In this case the controls would result in a significant price premium for home buyers. Naturally not all home buyers may be able or willing to pay such a premium, and some would locate elsewhere, either to less desirable areas or to less desirable homes within the same area. If the areas receiving this limited spillover are also constrained, prices may rise there too, creating a price spillover as well. [3] The startup costs, along with the time it takes mature buyers to decide on a home, are why many builders are "loath to approach the market," says Klaus Rohrich of Taylor/Rohrich Associates, a Toronto advertising agency specializing in marketing mature housing. [8]
Beyond aesthetics and comfort, certain fireplaces can also offer energy efficiency. Due to the rising cost of fuel, consumers are searching for more energy-efficient ways to heat their home and have turned to fireplaces as one solution. The NAR's 2007 survey asked participants about the importance of energy efficiency and found that 46 percent of all buyers listed an energy-efficient home as "very important" to them, and a whopping 92 percent said an energy-efficient home was at least "somewhat important" to them. These numbers reflect the current trend of consumers increasingly looking for ways to reduce their utility bills. Adam Martin, CFO of Martin Sales and Service, a fireplace company in Pittsburgh, Pa., has seen this trend in action. [9] In 2007, the National Association of Realtors surveyed home buyers across the U.S. to determine what today's buyer looks for in a home. In the association's report, "Profile of Buyers' Home Feature Preferences," the NAR showed that at 46 percent - nearly half of buyers - said they would spend more for a home if it had a fireplace. [9] As the weather grows colder and the price of fuel increases, now is a perfect time to talk to home buyers about the advantages of a fireplace. To do so effectively, it's essential to ensure your construction teams understand the fundamentals and best practices related to today's fireplaces. [9]
Cameron quotes Beckett's response to shadow housing minister Grant Shapps on the HomeBuy Direct scheme on March 24 2009, as recorded on Hansard, that "not a single sale had been made" since the scheme's inception. Beckett now claims this is not the case, saying that although there are no solid figures she has met "at least one couple" that has participated in the scheme. She says: "We started off with monies to put in a package with developers that could make 10,000 homes available and it is up to 19,000 the last time I looked. Developers tell us that they have registered demand from over 30,000 prospective buyers and sales are starting to filter through. "I don't know whether it is down to incompetence or malice, but it seems hard for the Opposition to get its facts right." [1]
Marginal waterfront buyers have higher desirability valuation and WTP for access to navigable water than other waterfront buyers. These findings imply that while marginal waterfront buyers are perhaps willing to give up water frontage, they will strive to purchase residences with assured water access. Marginal waterfront buyers also differ from other waterfront buyers in terms of their preferences for some nonwater-related housing attributes. In contrast to all other groups analyzed (including nonwaterfront buyers) marginal waterfront buyers prefer duplexes and town houses over single-family homes, and are willing to pay more than the other groups for them. [3] A good rule of thumb during a housing downturn, when you have more entry-level home buyers than luxury home buyers, is to reduce the cost of the house in every way you can. [10]
The scarcity of mortgages available to first-time buyers has forced many potential buyers to seek help elsewhere - and many are turning to their parents. With the costs involved in buying a home, including a deposit, now close to pound(s)28,000, according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, many buyers are unable to purchase a home without their parents either lending them money or acting as mortgage guarantors. Lawyers warn that unless care is taken when this help is agreed, problems can arise later. It is important, says the Law Society, to be clear from the outset about the terms under which the money is being provided. [11]
Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein went further in highlighting Japan's NTT DoCoMo as a potential buyer for the entire company. "An MMO deal would put DoCoMo in direct competition with rival Vodafone in its home market, mirroring what Vodafone did by acquiring Japan Telecom," DrKW said. Standard & Poor's joined the love-in by raising its long-term credit rating for MMO following last week's interim results. There was further encouragement from Credit Suisse First Boston, which reiterated its preference for MMO and Vodafone over Telecom Italia Mobiles. [12] When it comes to what matters the most to home buyers, builders may be surprised at what ranks at the top. According to the Guide Model, exterior home features ranked first among categories that separated buyers (see figure 1 above). [13]
If you are not careful, there is a danger that all of the homes on the block can begin to look alike." This is where working with the right architect becomes absolutely critical, he says. "For infill projects, a builder really needs a skilled architect who can do a good job of putting refinements on the exterior façade of the house to get away from repetition," says architect Jeff Goulette, principal with Sullivan Goulette & Wilson, which designed this home. "For those who aren't afraid to depart from the same path that everyone else is going down, urban infill projects can be a great opportunity to set themselves apart from their competition." Both traditional and modern architecture have their place for infill residential development, says Goulette. "The direction that a project takes in terms of its style depends not only on who the builder's intended buyer is, but also on the fabric of the community where it is going to be built." [14]
Purchasers of residences on the waterfront or with assured access to the water are more likely to own boats and use the bay for leisure activities than other households. To identify the households whose residential consumption is most likely to be affected by higher critical area premiums, the survey asked respondents how much more they would have been willing to spend on their house had it not been available at the price they paid. Presumably the less a household is willing to add the greater the likelihood its residential consumption would have been altered had the CBCA been in effect. Table 1 stratifies waterfront buyers into five subgroups according to their willingness to add to the price of their residence. Households not willing to add more than 10,000 to the prices paid for their waterfront residence earn approximately 12,000 to 20,000 per year less than households willing to add over 10,000. (Figure 1 omitted) Willingness to add also seems to increase with the intensity of use of the bay for leisure activities, as summarized by the water index. [3]
The dimensions, detailed in Table 2, describe the possible trade-offs households can make in response to the CBCA price effects. (Table 2 omitted) The levels are the specific values that a dimension may take. The first households expected to change their residential consumption as a result of the CBCA are prospective waterfront buyers for whom pre-CBCA prices were the maximum they were willing to pay for waterfront housing. These households (described in the first column of Table 1) are marginal waterfront buyers. The reactions of this group to the CBCA's price effects would be structured by their preferences and willingness to pay for various residential characteristics. [3]
Korea's economy was in tatters after the crisis, and its corporate and financial sectors in disarray. The funds turned businesses around and resold them to strategic buyers for several times what the funds had paid. Carlyle Group last year more than doubled investors' money when it sold a stake in South Korea's KorAm Bank to Citigroup Inc. More recently, Newbridge Capital reaped three times its investment in Korea First Bank, which it sold this year to Standard Chartered PLC for 1.6 billion. Now, however, those profits are sparking a public outcry, and the government has taken steps to favor local investors. [15]
The Treasury has said that in return for capital injections," government will need to take into account dividend policies and executive compensation practices and will require a full commitment to support lending to small businesses and home buyers". If the ONS decides these conditions give the government "power to control" the banks' "general corporate policy", it will reclassify the banks as public financial corporations. This is what the ONS did in respect of Northern Rock while it was still legally a private company last October. The trigger for the reclassification was the government's right to control policies such as dividend payments. [16] Significant home equity means move-up buyers don't have an affordability problem. Although they generally have little urgency to move, they usually have the financial means to do so. [10]
K&B's chief national competitors, Pulte Home Corp. and Centex Corp., have taken up market research as well. They offer buyers choices, but don't purport to do it at rock-bottom prices. [2] Use fireplaces to offer home buyers comfort, energy efficiency and good indoor air quality. In today's tough market, it's smart to take advantage of any opportunity to gain an edge over your competition. One way to do this may be right under your nose: the fireplaces in your homes. [9] In Phoenix, for example, a covered porch was considered mandatory until surveys revealed that less than half the buyers cared. Fireplaces may be out in Denver, but they're hot in the San Francisco area, so they are still offered in K&B homes there. [2] The only households necessarily affected by the CBCA are waterfront buyers, as all waterfront homes are within the critical area. Residences with assured water access or view of the bay may be found both within and outside the critical area. [3]
The foreign born are increasingly vital to the housing market, representing some 14 percent of recent home buyers and 18 percent of renters in 2005." [17] Home ownership slipped out of the reach of many potential buyers, most notably the younger buyers. From the mid-1980s until 1994, this measure remained flat, hovering around 64 percent. [10] Homeownership from 1995-2004 witnessed tremendous growth, peaking at 69 percent by 2004. While rates increased across all age groups during these 10 years, the younger buyers experienced the greatest acceleration in buying activity. Chris Porter of John Burns Real Estate Consulting contributed to this report. [10]
In Los Angeles, retailer Wally's Wine & Spirits began providing prefab collections as props for Hollywood studio shoots more than a decade ago, and now it fills a couple instant-collection requests a month, from 5,000 apiece to more than 1 million. The Wine Club, a warehouse-style store in Orange County, Calif., says overnight-collection buyers accounted for about 2.5% of its 40 million in revenue in 2006. At New York's Sherry-Lehmann four years ago, a client fresh from a remodeling job asked for help filling his new wine room. "I put together a proposal for 400 cases of wine, anticipating him to say, 'I'll take this or that,'" says company chairman Michael Aaron. "Instead, he says, 'I got the list. It looks good. [18]
Simon Lambert, a senior sales manager at The Chicago Wine Company, a retailer that holds a monthly auction, says overnight buyers are practically guaranteed a sub-par mix. "At a one-stop shop," he says, "it's virtually impossible to get a good, well-balanced collection." Long-time oenophiles also don't relish extra competition for already-pricey bottles, particularly from collectors who might not know their Domaine de la Romanee-Conti from a Beaujolais Nouveau. It's also, some say, an example of people buying the trappings of wealth. "It's not that these people want to be considered rich, they want to be considered connoisseurs," says Sharon Zukin, a sociologist at City University of New York who studies consumer culture. "It's similar to buying books by the foot." [18]
As the analysis required that home buyers' reactions be gauged, the sample included only transactions involving improved parcels and individual home buyers and deleted all commercial buyers. As prior experience of searching and buying is important for eliciting true estimates, the study included only households that purchased their residence in an arms-length sale. [3] The buyer, looking to save money, didn't want a kitchen island counter. Because the island was standard in the home she was considering, the salesman was pushing to change her mind. "We were building what we thought this customer needed," recalls Mr. Karatz, adding that builders should "not be so presumptuous." That insight led to a K&B survey of 600,000 recent home buyers around the nation. [2] "No matter how educated buyers are about product and trends, many still don't understand how the homes go together," says Sorcic. "They know what they want, but it is our job as builders and architects to help them realize it." [7]
"But now we have a lot of young buyers with humongous amounts of money." Because so many custom home buyers are coming from the technology arena, it is no surprise that they are demanding cutting-edge technology in their homes. Beyond the RG6 and Category 5 wiring which are becoming standard nationwide, high-end buyers are more knowledgeable about exactly what gadgets they want installed in their homes. "Technology is huge in this market," says Gary Sorcic, who with his wife, Becky, runs Gary Sorcic Construction in Weyauwega, Wisc. "These people are very familiar with today's technology. They know what is required and they are demanding it in their homes." Wilson says that while technology has always been an important part of his buyers' preferences, he has noticed a dramatic increase in the level of importance. [7] Buyers want a well built home that is delivered with excellent service. [13]
RealEstateJournal.com: Read five tips for home buyers on purchasing a home in a cooling market; plus see more House of the Week photos. [19] We've been building a lot of homes, and all of a sudden fewer buyers are showing up. It's going to take a while to work through the housing bubble," he said. "But we can mitigate some of the issues, and I'm concerned about people who are creditworthy enough to live in their homes not being able to deal with the resets. [20] The study's sample was the list of all home buyers in the period before the enactment of the CBCA local programs (1985 to 1986) in the counties surrounding the bay (excluding Baltimore), as reported in the property tax files. While buyers at the time were probably aware of the CBCA, its implications for any specific property were yet unknown. [3] Sales rose for the first time in seven months as falling prices began to lure buyers back into the market. [21]
Numbers of inquiries, viewings and offers were all down in September from August levels, according to the latest monthly report from the. It is the latest voice to claim the market is quieter and more price sensitive than in spring and early summer. Both the NAEA and the say first-time buyers are driving the current market, exacerbating the shortage of houses for sale. This is not pushing up prices. The latest monthly RICS report, published this week, shows yet another decline in the number of members reporting rising prices, from 48 to 38 per cent across the country. [22]
The court also made buyers put down a deposit of 10% of the purchase price, according to some of the bidders, a challenge for private-equity funds. It wasn't clear that the court would allow potential buyers to pledge Jinro's assets for loan collateral, which made a traditional leveraged buyout unworkable. [15] The mix of ballooning CDS premiums and collapsing share prices is a factor that can force credit agencies to issue debt downgrades, make real creditors nervous and scare would-be "real money" buyers away from the shares and bonds of the affected companies. [23] The present study is designed to test explicitly the relationship between actual perceptions of price and service performance and actual buyer intentions. A survey research design was used to gather the data necessary to test the proposed hypotheses. [6]
More specifically, it becomes critical that project superintendents score above 8.70 on overall ratings by buyers. If they do and warranty service ratings are above 8.18, then we will have recommendation levels that are 8.93, right below "Definitely Yes" but still quite high with buyers indicating "Most Likely" to recommend to their builder. This path to success in customer satisfaction involves more than providing a house that wows customers. In this path, the builder's service becomes vital in recovering from situations and maintaining a happy customer. Those who excel in customer satisfaction deliver this level of performance with a majority of their customers. NRS believes this level of performance is a big reason for those builders' success. Both John Laing and Pulte have encountered similar situations and due to each company's staff, each recovered better than most builders when houses initially fell short of goal. [13]
With some exception (e.g. Doyle et al., 1979; Puto et al., 1985), most do not explore the role of supplier loyalty, buyer inertia, and buyer-seller relationship in the purchasing decision. Of particular interest may be the role that these variables may play in "overriding" other attribute weights. Middlemen, either wholesalers or retailers, can attract customers by providing value-added services, such as directly lowering costs or providing other perceived cost-reduction services. By adopting this perspective we view all activities performed by middlemen as services (cf. Stern et al., 1996). [6]
As Rich Staky, Denver division president put it, "everything we do for the buyer is a reflection on how much we care about our buyers." Pulte Homes Phoenix spoke about the detailed processes by which its homes are checked and rechecked prior to a home buyer ever setting foot on the lot. This process includes the exterior of the home. These builders' efforts to present a clean home that showed well from the outside as well as the inside paid off given these builders' customer satisfaction numbers (which are undisclosed). [13] Phelps Homes offers customization options-and buyers are taking full advantage, driving up the cost of a home by up to 25%. [8]
Twiggy stars and woodland creatures made of bark and painted feathers are among the more organic designs available, while Nordic-style pieces in bright red-and-white painted wood or felt are similarly craft-inspired. Of the lines selected at trade fairs, James highlights those from Ohio-based Katherine's Collection because "they look hand made, although they are actually manufactured in India and the Far East." She has also picked designs from Department 56 and Midwest of Cannon Falls, both in Minnesota. The search for something special led James to the Czech Republic, where she commissioned hand-painted, mouth-blown glass baubles. These are made by Ornex, which has also produced contemporary ornaments with "a boudoir look" conceived by fashion designer Lulu Guinness. John Lewis, the British department store chain, similarly stipulates its requirements to manufacturers based in the UK, India, the Czech Republic and the Far East. "They develop designs to fit into our specific themes," says Sara Allbright, assistant buyer for seasonal events. Customers' current preferences for home furnishings are kept in mind when devising them. This year's selection includes a fabric oriental parasol, 1920s-style Asian mannequins with fabric skirts and a golden Turkish knot. Clip-on birds and flowers, such as a fabric poinsettia, are also proving popular. [24]
The most important thing, says Grahn, is that when you are building a new home on an infill site in an existing neighborhood you have to make sure the home fits well architecturally. Because the project's neighborhood already had several period three- and four-story apartment buildings, the design goal for this spec-built home was to have the same general aesthetic without being monotonous. "Just like in the suburbs, high-end residential buyers in the city want to be able to differentiate themselves from each other through the homes they live in," says Grahn. "But because we are working with standard-size city lots in very tight conditions in almost every case, zoning regulations that determine such things as setbacks and building heights also severely restrict your opportunities when it comes to creating variety in what you build on an infill lot. [14] Buyers are upgrading with the likes of gourmet kitchens and home theatres, proving that downsizing doesn't mean a loss in luxury. Real estate agents will also have to work harder to establish a relationship with potential buyers if they expect to sell. [8] Then the study randomly sampled 1,600 home buyers from the other fifteen counties. [3] You are generally better off targeting buyers who already own a home. [10]
"Each year we offer customers some collectable Christmas selections unique to Saks," says buyer Lisa -Zampardi. [24]
At Harrods, designer Natalie Sarabella's baubles, embellished with Swarovski crystals and ribbons, sell for Pounds 329 each. Buyer Bernie Jones defends their expense. "Sarabella decorations are incredibly labour-intensive to make because they are hand-painted, hand-blown glass with each measuring about 50cm in diameter." She imports the designs from the U.S., where the artist has a cult following. "People are willing to invest in quality pieces that will last a lifetime," she says. "Spending on decorations is up by at least 10 per cent this year," Jones adds. "People are either going for highly decorated, collectable designs or very simple ones such as crystal snowflakes or glass droplets that easily fit into a modern aesthetic." It's a similar story at U.S. stores. [24] Johnston, W.J. (1994), "Organizational buyer behavior - 25 years of knowledge and research", Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing, Vol. 9 No. 3, pp. 4-5. [6]
The study represents the only investigation of buyer choice involving the quickly growing alternative channel for wholesale distribution of multiplex retailers. The theoretical rationale for this model is presented and then it is used to assess the determinants of patronizing traditional wholesale supply sources versus multiplex retailer supply sources. Before we proceed, however, a brief review of multiplex retailing is provided because this largely U.S. phenomenon has global potential for explosive growth which would disrupt many traditional marketing channels around the world. A multiplex retailer is one that targets both the traditional household market as well as the business or commercial market. With one distribution format these firms attempt to appeal to two distinct market segments by performing both wholesaling and retailing functions. [6]
The rapid advancement of technology can present problems for builders in other ways. The proliferation of web sites devoted to building products and technologies has created buyers who are so informed that they severely push builders to keep up. Sorcic has also encountered customers who come in to his office armed with more product information than he has at his own fingertips. He not only finds it difficult to keep up with the latest and greatest, but he also has to explain why he is not the cheapest. [7] Things that don't go together naturally intrigue the heck out of me. One of the biggest ironies of the web today is that this wonderfully modern entity has a customer base significantly split between the knowledgeable tech buyers and regular folks who see the web as another means of buying goods and services. [25]
The likely shift in residential consumption of marginal waterfront buyers toward higher density dwellings with assured water access can probably be accommodated within the intensely developed areas designated in local programs, the grandfathered areas, and areas where higher density development may be allowed through the counties' growth allocations. As marginal waterfront buyers place high values on proximity to work, they may be reluctant to move to counties farther from employment centers. As they desire to have assured access to the bay, these buyers also seem unlikely to move far from the bay into the interior. [3] Marginal waterfront buyers express preferences for areas with many young couples or single people, rather than retirees. These preferences do not arise among other groups. [3] Falling interest rates and aggressive lending practices have helped first-time buyers more than any other group. [10] Accordingly, the homeownership rates among younger buyers reached all-time highs in 2005. [10] Says Tony Dwyer, a strategist at FTN Equity Capital Markets: "You have turned the buyer of stressed corporate debt from a buyer incentivized to make the company better and worth more, to a buyer with the goal of default. [23]
The CBCA legislation need not affect access to the bay.(5) Still, restrictive interpretation of some provisions by local jurisdictions may reduce access. If residences outside the critical area retain bay access, most of the population will not be affected directly by the CBCA.' Otherwise, an additional analysis, similar to the one conducted here for waterfront buyers, will be needed to identify the repercussions for buyers of residences with assured water access. Such a study can be expected to identify wider impacts than those found here. This article offers a practical method for analyzing the likely spatial effects of growth control programs. [3] The kitchen has become the family gathering area, so buyers want convenience, room and functionality in addition to all the bells and whistles," says Sorcic. Decorative accents such as handcarved hardwood columns, true furniture-grade millwork and imported tiles and stonework are coming into vogue more and more. [7] Faced with higher premiums for waterfront residences, marginal waterfront buyers may search for high-density residences with assured access to the water in areas with a relatively young population. They will not, however, be willing to settle for smaller residences, lower quality residences, or for residences farther from work. [3]
There couldn't be two more different audiences. As we do research on web buyers, especially the consumer set, the one data trend that pops out at me is that there really are two audiences: those that understand that credit card fraud on the Net has the same occurrence level as it does in physical transactions, and those that think when they put those 16 numbers on the web they go right to fraud.com. They're also on opposite ends of the scale in terms of Internet sophistication, orientation to technology and feelings on e-commerce. You might call them pioneers and settlers. [25] Sheth, J.N. (1973), "A model of industrial buyer behavior", Journal of Marketing, Vol. 37 No. 4, pp. 50-6. [6] McQuiston, D.H. (1989), "Novelty, complexity, and importance as causal determinants of industrial buyer behavior", Journal of Marketing, Vol. 53 No. 1, pp. 66-79. [6] K&B has started offering buyers greater choice of add-ons. Want a coffee bar in the master bedroom? That'll be an extra 150 to 300. Prefer a "loffice" -- a combination loft and office space for a computer? That could run as much as 900 extra. [2] Slightly more sensitive to distance from work and to residence size (number of bedrooms) than other waterfront buyers, marginal waterfront buyers are willing to pay higher premiums for an additional bedroom or a reduction in driving time to work. [3] Approximately 70 percent of all buyers willing to add 20,000 or less cite water frontage as the main consideration in choosing a residence, compared with 88.2 percent of the buyers willing to add more than 20,000. [3] Frustrated by tapped-out entry-level buyers, builders try their hand with existing homeowners. [10] Marginal waterfront buyers are willing to pay slightly higher premiums than other waterfront buyers for a new residence, over medium- or low-quality second-hand residences. These findings suggest marginal waterfront buyers are a distinct group in terms of their preferences. [3] Several nonprofit groups have set up an organization -- the National Community Stabilization Trust -- to bring together buyers and sellers. [26]
Retail buyers are increasingly ordering "exclusives" or specifying precise colours to raise the style stakes. "Homeowners - particularly couples and families with older children - are looking for decorations that will suit their living environment," says Geraldine James, a buying manager at Selfridges. "They expect to see individual and exclusive lines here, which is why about 30 per cent of our 2,000 designs are exclusive." [24] The most striking difference between marginal waterfront buyers and other waterfront buyers is the lower valuations of water frontage by the marginal waterfront buyers. While marginal waterfront buyers view water frontage as a desirable attribute, they accord it lower ratings than the average waterfront buyer. They are unwilling to pay any statistically significant premium for water frontage. [3] HomeBuy agents, firms that help buyers liaise with developers offering properties through HomeBuy Direct, say it has taken from September until the start of April to officially launch the scheme. [1] The threat comes on two fronts. Low-income buyers may develop brand preferences that will stick with them as they migrate up the income scale. [27] Interest from prospective buyers has been incredible and we have 48 applications waiting for approval, but as the scheme has only been running for less than a month it is too early for completions." [1] Developers are offering storage racks or rooms, hoping buyers will equate wine with the good life. [18] Hite's victory showed how local Korean companies can have an edge over foreign investors even without antiforeign measures. Private- equity funds usually seek returns of at least 25% on their investments, while corporate buyers, such as Hite, often want to expand their businesses, squeezing out savings by combining operations. [15]
RANKED RECOMMENDED SOURCES
(27 source documents numbered in order of appearance in text)
3. The spatial effects of land use regulations: A missing link
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1.2. HOME CENTERS, WAREHOUSE HOME
"Early default" is defined as either delinquency (missed payments for more than 60 days or foreclosure within the first year after origination. Haughwout, Peace, and Tracy confirm the finding of Demyanyk and Van Hemert that, although credit/lending standards are important determinants of early default, they alone cannot explain the timing and the magnitude of the crisis in 2007 and 2008. They also confirm that, even if depreciation in house prices is an important determinant of increased delinquencies and foreclosures in the immediate precrisis years, a large portion of the increase in serious delinquencies remains unexplained. Keys et al. found that (observed lending standards in the subprime mortgage market did deteriorate; and the main driving force of the deterioration was the securitization of those loans. In their analysis of the subprime crisis, Mian and Sufi suggest that securitization of mortgage assets may have increased the supply of credit in geographic areas that had relatively more mortgage application rejections a decade before the crisis (in 1996; such credit allowed more home purchases and thereby could have led to the rapid increases in house prices between 2001 and 2005. [1]
The paper is organized as follows. It briefly describes the evolution of the U.S. subprime mortgage market, the crisis, and some of the earlier research that analyzes factors associated with loan termination (exit from the market. It outlines the empirical analysis of explanatory factors of prepayment, default, and termination (prepayment and default combined within two years of loan origination; it further compares the number of prepaid and defaulted loans per year within two years of origination. It points to the quick termination of subprime loans, indicating that these loans must have been designed and intended to be temporary and their existence most likely did not contribute to increased homeownership rates in the United States between 2001 and 2006. [1]
The government's efforts to revive the housing market have focused on supporting low mortgage rates through Fed purchases of mortgage securities, as well as on -lowering barriers to refinancing and mortgage -modification. Interest rates on mortgages tumbled last week after the Fed said it would buy 300bn of Treasury securities, as well as more than double its planned purchases of mortgage-related securities to 1,250bn. Mortgage lenders could originate as much as 2,780bn of new home loans this year, according to the MBA's forecast, of which 1,960bn could be the result of refinancing. It warned that such a wave of applications would be a big operational test for the industry, not least because of the need for closer scrutiny of documents and appraisals after an -"epidemic of fraud" against lenders in recent years. [2]
A veteran in that situation needs less than an 8 percent down payment on the total loan amount. In April, VA loan rates on a 3o-year mortgage were about 1 percent lower than what's available on conventional home loans, says Bruce Reichstein, president of VALoans.com, which originates nationally from its Houston headquarters. Reichstein notes that jumbo VA mortgages make up less than 10 percent of his total business. They're helpful for retired officers and other eligible veterans who can supply a down payment. [3]
The random sample of company names and addresses for businesses in the selected SIC codes were provided by American Business Lists of Omaha, Nebraska. Although this firm is a well-respected provider of mailing lists, about 6.7 per cent of the addresses were non-deliverable, due to businesses being terminated, sold, or relocated. Therefore, of the 3,181 questionnaires actually delivered, 1,211 were returned for a response rate of 38.1 per cent. Of those returned, 425 were usable for this study. The reduction in size was because we only analyzed those responses where the businesses purchased both at a wholesaler-distributor and a multiplex retailer (office supply superstore or warehouse home center) within the last year. As suggested in the four hypotheses that were developed, we needed to measure buyers' perceptions of supplier performance on price, credit services, product-acquisition services, and risk-reduction services and patronage intentions toward suppliers. [4]
The identification of the relevant "costs" of a particular product is not always a simple matter. Two alternative components to a production process may have the same purchase price but different overall costs due to quality differences; or they may have the same purchase price and quality but different overall costs due to differences in supplier reliability in delivery, credit terms, technical support, problem recovery, etc. That is, total product costs comprise not only purchase price, but also costs associated with the full range of supplier services provided (or not provided). It is from this total value (a function of perceived total costs) perspective that we explore how business firms make supplier choices between a traditional wholesale-distributor and the new emerging multiplex retailers - specifically, office supply super-centers and warehouse home centers. This total value of purchasing model is not entirely new. [4]
Similarly the office supply regression equation had an F-value of 19.17 which was statistically significant beyond the 0.0001 level and had an adjusted R-squared of 30.91 per cent. Overall these results suggest that the total value of purchasing model explains a significant amount of the variation in purchasing of businesses at traditional wholesale supply sources versus multiplex retailers. In terms of the four hypotheses we find support in the warehouse home center sample for H1 and H4. As multiplex wholesalers outperform multiplex retailers on prices they attract more customers (support for H1) and as wholesalers outperform multiplex retailers on risk-reduction services they attract more customers (support for H4). [4]
1.3. HOME CENTERS, HOME DEPOT
"We are extremely pleased to welcome Nicole to our team," said Mike Fitzgerald, president and CEO of Bank of Georgetown. "She brings great energy and managerial experience to our Friendship Heights branch, is a strong addition to our leadership team, and we're confident she'll help provide superior, personalized service and quality financial solutions to our customers in D.C. and Maryland." Gilbert has more than 14 years of experience in local banking, most recently working as the assistant branch manager for the NASA Federal Credit Union in Columbia, Md. In this role, she was responsible for supervising overall branch operations, processing and disbursing consumer loans, and settling home equity loans. [5] Family emergencies can put the brakes on financial capabilities, which is why AAFCU has helped many families in debt. Last year, a family turned to the credit union, fearful their home was going into foreclosure. August explains, "They were three months behind on their mortgage. They had several loans with us, so we were able to work out the loans." "It saved them 282 a month," says August. [6]
Member Gloria Harrell came to the credit union for help with payday loan problems. She thought her dream of home ownership was impossible, Anthon says. "She didn't know how she could pay her rent and utilities, much less handle a mortgage." Together, they set up a spending plan. "We found some adjustments in her variable expenses-such as groceries, eating out, and impulse spending-to work on paying the payday lenders," Anthon says. Harrell acknowledges Anthon for working with her despite her "great mountain" of debt and for respecting her practice of tithing. Over time, Harrell improved her credit to the extent she could obtain a mortgage and buy a house. [6] By mid-April, the credit union had closed more than 5 million in Mortgage Relief Loans with another 6 million in the pipeline. "Not only does this product help members keep their homes, it builds loyalty and potentially reduces losses," says Bresko. [6]
Jaffee calculated that the subprime mortgage market funded approximately 5 million home purchases between 2000 and 2006, with slightly more than 1 million loans to first-time homebuyers. [1] FHA granted 1.3 million endorsements in 1987, notes the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Despite an expansion of the overall home mortgage business over the next 20 years, FHA endorsements still fell by 56 percent during those two decades. [3]
The actual Echo Boom was a five-year span between 1989 and 1993, when for the first time since 1964 the number of births in the U.S. surpassed 4 million. This group, the second largest after the baby boomers, is just coming into its own as an adult consumer force. "Although Generation Y isn't always considered a viable marketing prospect, as they continue to age, within the next five years they'll be flooding the home ownership market and are a force of about 74 million," says Steven Kleber, president of Kleber and Associates, an Atlanta-based marketing consultant specializing in the home building industry. Members of Generation Y may earn more than their parents did at a comparable age, but their money doesn't stretch as far. Costs for basics such as housing, insurance and education have escalated as average income growth for the middle class has slowed. The result is that many in this generation feel less economically secure than their parents did. This is likely to affect their home buying and ownership goals and attitudes. [7]
Uniform, off-the-shelf houses traditionally helped builders keep a lid on costs. K&B says its big volume -- last year it built 11,500 homes -- lets it hold down prices even while offering some custom touches. Its strategy is to price its base model aggressively, undercutting prices of similar homes in a given neighborhood. The strategy is helping revive K&B's fortunes, after a prolonged real-estate slump in its biggest market, California. Sales in 1997 were more than double what they were in the early 1990s, when the company sold under 5,000 houses per year. It has ambitious goals: to sell 13,500 houses in 1998 and 16,250 in 1999. For the 1997 fiscal year ended Nov. 30, K&B earned 58.2 million on revenue of 1.89 billion, its best showing since 1989. [8]
"We won't have the lowest price in the market," says a spokesman at Bloomfield, Mich. -based Pulte, the nation's largest home builder. It claims the best value for the money, such as brand-name appliances. Kathryn Hulka, 49 years old, recently bought a four-bedroom K&B house near Scottsdale, Ariz. The computer executive says she was attracted to the 200,000 home because it wasn't loaded with "a lot of garbage that really doesn't mean a lot." When Kristine and Robert Fangman began looking at retirement houses, they quickly tired of the high, vaulted ceilings they saw in home after home. [8]
If house prices in the area appreciated 1 SD above the mean two years before origination, there is a 7-percentage-point increase in the likelihood a loan will be prepaid. This perhaps indicates that individuals build their expectations about future home values based on immediate past values (or the past trends. [1] If a mortgage is originated to refinance an existing mortgage, it is more likely to be refinanced again after two years or less, compared with home purchase (purchase-money loans. [1]
The authority to draft regulations under national mortgage laws would remain with the Fed. But states would be given "clear authority to enforce federal mortgage laws," according to the Treasury plan. During the housing boom, the Fed was reluctant to use its rule- making powers to the extent some consumer advocates wanted to crack down on lending practices, including the proliferation of subprime loans, or those to people with weak credit records. Fed officials said that cracking down too hard might choke off the supply of credit and that the market could sort out most of its own problems. Since the Treasury plan would keep the Fed in its central rule- making role, "it's safe to say that if this regulatory framework had been in place years ago, it would not have prevented the current mortgage-market meltdown," said Thomas Lawler, a housing economist in Leesburg, Va., pointing to the central bank's relaxed approach as subprime lending surged from 2002 through 2005. [9]
About half of seriously delinquent borrowers have a second mortgage, according to Credit Suisse Group. When the administration two months ago announced its 75 billion program to help stabilize the housing market, the plan drew criticism from investors who own mortgage-backed securities because it didn't address the question of second mortgages. Investors, who include pension funds, insurance companies and hedge funds, say that rewriting the first mortgage without touching the second violates their rights, because second mortgages are supposed to be repaid second. They also say the original Obama plan created a conflict of interest, because many loans are serviced by big banks that also hold second mortgages -- and, as a result, have a financial interest in how these loans are handled. [10] The undersupplied Saudi housing market is likely to offer significant opportunities for public and private firms alike. In November 2008 the managing director of the Saudi Home Loans company (SHL), an Islamic mortgage lender, said that only 30% of Saudi nationals owned their homes, although official estimates tend to be higher. [11] The Mortgage Bankers' Association's index of applications to buy a home or refinance a loan soared 32 per cent for the week ended March 20, as the interest rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage plunged to a record low of 4.63 per cent. The low rates prompted homeowners to refinance their mortgages to trim their monthly payments. [2] Since January 13 the rate on standard long-term mortgages charged by lenders to prospective home owners has jumped from 5.04 per cent to reach 5.51 per cent on Friday, according to mortgage market analysts HSH Associates. [12] In the same time, the homeownership rate increased from 42 percent to 49 percent among the 25-34 year-old demographic. The impact of these two groups alone accounted for approximately 1.3 million additional owned homes over the last 10 years. [13]
The birth rate for Generation X is 15 percent less than it was for baby boomers, but immigration is making up for some of the lower birth rate, says James Chung, president of Reach Advisors, a marketing strategy and research firm based in New York. For the next decade, Generation Xers will be a notable group because they are entering their prime home trade-up years, age 35 to 42, Chung says, adding that this generation now buys 51 percent of newly constructed homes. Born between 1980 and 1995, this generation is also termed millenials or echo boomers, as they are primarily the offspring of baby boomers. [7]
Mark Wilson (top left) is president of London Bay Homes in Naples, Fla. His long-established business enjoyed a 50,o surge in business last year, and he expects the same growth rate this year. His company builds elaborate custom homes, mostly in the 2 million to 4 million range. [14]
The green options that now come with Shea's retirement homes add about 5% to 8% onto the cost of a home. "They will claim in survey data that they are willing to pay more" but they haven't actually displayed that in their buying patterns, he added. "People are still making up their mind about what they think about these products and what they are willing to pay," Mr. Kahn said. Shea said these homes achieve a 50% reduction in the therms associated with heating water, 75% reduction in energy used from lighting, 40% reduction in energy used from clothes washers, and a 41% reduction in energy used by dishwashers. The company plans to build 20,000 of these homes in the next 10 years, with 1,400 to 1,500 expected to come online this year. [15] "We've seen about a 20 percent increase in our fireplace sales, especially over the past year. Today's customers are driven by the need to save on rising fuel costs, to find a more energy-efficient way of heating their home. In the past, their No. 1 reason for purchasing a fireplace was for the pleasing aesthetics, but now our customers are looking to reduce their energy bills. [16]
Aesthetics have fallen to the No. 2 spot." Of the different types of fireplaces available on the market, direct-vent gas fireplaces are the most energy efficient, and indeed, these fireplaces have been the most popular at Martin Sales and Service for new home construction. While consumers may see energy efficiency as important, they may not know exactly how a fireplace helps. At Martin Sales and Service, they discuss zone heating and its role in energy efficiency with their customers. Says Martin: "We explain to customers that zone heating with a fireplace allows them to keep the living areas warmer, while the rest of the home stays cooler. [16] Nowadays, certain fireplaces can also play a role in a home's energy efficiency and indoor air quality, two areas that have received increasing attention in recent years. By choosing the right types of fireplaces and installing them correctly, housing giants can capitalize on the multiple benefits this home feature offers. [16]
Bulls would prefer to see investment pros' attitudes stripped of any remaining equanimity. Home Depot (HD) and Lowe's (LOW) are both based in the South, carry much the same merchandise, frequently locate stores near one another and have ridden the housing boom-bust cycle in tandem. From time to time their share prices diverge, as corporate fortunes and investor preferences ebb and flow. Now, though, Home Depot shares have outperformed enough-losing "only" 21% this year to Lowe's 37%-that it could be time to bet on a reversal. [17] "HLL was taken aback by Chik's popularity," says Hemant Patel, analyst for the sector at ENAM Securities of Mumbai. Meanwhile P&G, which sells home and personal care products through an unlisted arm in India, took a leaf from the competition's book--it slashed prices of premium detergents Tide and Ariel by up to half last year to increase its measly market share. [18]
Alternate distribution channels for supplying the business or commercial customer in the U.S. have become more common over the last two decades. Increasingly office supplies and equipment are being distributed to the business customer through office supply superstores such as Office Depot, Office Max, and Staples which sell approximately 80 per cent of their merchandise to business/commercial accounts. Building materials and related products are being purchased by general and specialty contractors and other business/commercial accounts from warehouse home centers such as Home Depot, Home Base, Home Quarters, and Builders Square which sell approximately 20-30 per cent of their volume to these customers. Everything from food supplies, to office supplies and industrial supplies and equipment is finding its way to the business customer via membership warehouse clubs such as Sams and Price/Costco which sell about 50-70 per cent of their merchandise to business/commercial accounts. [4] Especially in the building and remodeling trades, risk-reduction services are critical because errors in deliveries, stock-outs, unknowledgeable personnel, and so on, can create substantial costs to the builder or remodeler. This customer has a crew and equipment scheduled to do a job and a mistake made by the supplier (either wholesale-distributor or warehouse home center) can cost more than the product itself. [4]
Of the nine categories in the survey related to products and services, exterior home features was the first pivotal category that a builder has to get right with buyers. This was followed by overall ratings for the walk-through process. [19] Deborah Wege, community relations and education manager, and a credit union development educator, says, "We have a TransUnion program that sees our second mortgages with members and triggers any negative monitaring activity on the first mortgage held by another lender. Our goal is to reach out to members before their homes go into foreclosure." The credit union doesn't advertise this product but instead uses it to assist the most desperate members. [6]
1.4. HOME EQUITY
Almost three-quarters (72%) of the mortgages (based on loan balance) are for detached single family homes, while one-quarter are condominiums and 5% are either 2-4 family homes or planned unit developments. [20] Approximately 35% of the loans by aggregate balance are covered by FHA insurance, 22% are covered by VA guarantees, 11% carry private mortgage insurance, 7% are Farmers Home Administration (formerly called RD) guaranteed, and 25% have LTV's equal to or less than 80%, and are therefore not required to have insurance or guarantees. [20] Just 30 to 40 percent of all subprime loans in the sample were purchase-money (used to purchase rather than refinance a house. The remaining borrowers refinanced their existing homes, and refinances do not contribute to an increase in homeownership. [1]
In 2005, a large group of state regulators banded together to investigate allegations of lending abuses by Ameriquest. The states charged that Ameriquest in some cases inadequately disclosed loan terms, urged appraisers to inflate estimates of home values and encouraged borrowers to lie about their incomes to qualify for loans. Ameriquest settled those charges in January 2006 by agreeing to pay 325 million in fines and change some of its practices. Damian Paletta contributed to this article. [9] When others retreated from the investment banking business, the bank made an opportunistic bid for the U.S. assets of Lehman Brothers. Rivals have taken big writedowns on their portfolios of leveraged loans, but Barclays has kept them on its balance sheet at their original value. Even as many banks shrink their overseas operations to concentrate on home markets, Mr Varley continues to trumpet the virtues of being a global universal bank. [21] Barclays Capital estimates that banks and loan investors owned 838,400 foreclosed homes as of Feb. 1, up from 549,000 a year earlier. [22] Then HANDS and other nonprofit groups will rehabilitate and sell the homes, mostly to people with low or moderate incomes. Thomas Kelly, a spokesman for J.P. Morgan Chase, declined to disclose the total balance due on the loans but said they were sold at a "big discount." The bank is looking at other opportunities to sell or donate foreclosed homes to community groups, he said. [22] J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. said it sold 47 defaulted home-mortgage loans to a New Jersey nonprofit group that seeks to find new owners and alleviate neighborhood blight. Across the country, other community groups also are exploring how to buy foreclosed homes to prevent them from turning into eyesores or havens for crime. Many lenders, in turn, are eager to unload foreclosed homes, particularly those in poor neighborhoods. [22] Despite the fall in interest rates and the measures to support the banking industry, credit growth to the private sector is decelerating, especially loans to businesses and for home purchase. [23]
The couple had 64,000 in debt and were paying 1,300 a month on loans and credit cards. The credit union granted a home equity loan for 70,000, which paid off all debt, brought the utilities current, and gave them 10,000 for needed home improvement. "After that, they had 500 a month to put into their budget," she says. [6] We always stress the importance of keeping in contact with creditors." Since the couple owned their home, the credit union could help. "I offered them a home equity loan with the agreement everything would be paid off and all bills, including their two car loans, would be brought up to date," says August. [6]
1.5. HOME SALES
President Bush and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson began a full- court press to make the administration's case that it has the twin housing and credit situations well in hand. Speaking on the economy to a Rotary Club meeting in Fredericksburg, Va., Mr. Bush reinforced his opposition to a federal bailout of lenders and real-estate speculators, but said administration initiatives will help still-creditworthy homeowners renegotiate their mortgages and remain in their homes. "It's going to take a while to work through the housing bubble, but we can mitigate some of the issues," Mr. Bush said. [24] Fitch assigns a rating of 'AA+' to Alaska Housing Finance Corp.' s (AHFC) 80.9 million home mortgage revenue bonds, 2008 series B. The bonds are expected to be sold during the week of Aug 4th as a negotiated transaction. [20] Administration officials estimate that addressing second mortgages could help as many as 1.5 million homeowners. "By bringing the first and second lien together, we can reduce monthly payments for borrowers and make it more likely they can stay in their homes," an administration official said. [10]
Borrowers need to consider if the cost of default - which includes the cost of renting after the default - outweighs a potential (future benefit from home equity, should the home price increase in the future. [1] Compared to a year ago, however, home sales and prices remain extremely depressed. [2]
Year-on-year new home sales were down by 41.1 per cent in February and median prices were down by 18.1 per cent. Omair Sharif, analyst at RBS Greenwich Capital, said: "It is clearly far too early to call a bottom in the housing market, especially given the deterioration in the labour market, but the February data have allayed some fears that the housing market would continue to freefall." [2]
"The magic here is investors and servicers coming together to deal with an unprecedented situation so we don't have perverse outcomes and so that we don't have a market failure," Mr. Paulson said. With a whiff of recession in the air, it was at least the second time during the Treasury secretary's time in Florida that he described the current market as "unprecedented." In the meantime, there were more indications that the housing market remains mired in its tough slog. The National Association of Home Builders' index of builder sentiment for sales of new, single-family homes was unchanged at 19 in December, where it was in both October and November. That's the lowest since the inception of the index in 1985, the NAHB said. "At this point, many builders are bracing themselves for the winter months when home buying traditionally slows, scaling down their inventories and repositioning themselves for the time when market conditions can support an upswing in building activity -- most likely by the second half of 2008." [24]
"I think we're entering another golden era of housing reminiscent of the Vanderbilts and the railroad barons of the early 1900s," says Wilson. "They may not be on the same scale as back then, but we are definitely seeing large estate homes that haven't been built for decades." All builders agreed that two of the more important areas of these homes in terms of budget and time spent on design are the kitchen and master bath areas. Sorcic says his clients are concentrating a lot more money on these areas, even moreso than the common areas of the home. "People are spending a lot more time in their bathrooms, so they want privacy, luxury and convenience. [14]
Going green in retirement doesn't have to mean living off the grid or in minimalist space, according to builders. That's good since many boomers aren't looking to trade in their current homes for smaller accommodations as they get older, according to a 2007 report on the state of the nation's housing released by Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies. How green do boomers want to go when it comes to housing? So far boomers seem to want to enjoy high-end living in their later years but they are interested in using less energy in the process. [15] Dave Rozycki, co-CEO of Parkbridge Lifestyle Communities, a Calgary-based builder with developments in Alberta, Ontario and Quebec, says it can take customers up to two years before settling on a home. "This is not an impulse purchase," says Rozycki. "This could be the last house they own." That means having the patience to develop longterm relationships, notifying customers about open houses and new developments, and responding promptly to customer inquiries. [25]
The true story behind customer satisfaction scores is that most builders consistently deliver below the "Definitely Yes" level previously mentioned. Most builders will give less of a priority to the outside of the house compared to the efforts their staff exerts on the inside. The results of NRS's study suggest most builders should re-think this strategy. Those builders who excel with customer satisfaction scores have put this strategy to their advantage. It is not uncommon for the NRS team to see builders fail reach the 6.25 exterior home features threshold and more often fail to reach the walk-through threshold of 9.75. Scores below these levels result in a longer road to reach high customer satisfaction and in some cases, customer dissatisfaction. The second part of the Guide model in Figure 1 shows the results for those who excel in customer satisfaction where they did not achieve a score higher than 9.24 on the overall walk-through process. When this happens, the overall project superintendent and overall warranty service ratings are vital to keeping customers' referral levels high. [19]
When builders fail to deliver a perfect or near perfect home at the walk-through, it is very important that project superintendents and warranty service staff do an excellent job. Educate your staff on the important role they play in keeping customers happy, especially when a home has several items needing attention. If they fail to deliver, home builders will end up with lower than desired referral levels. Provide training for these folks and make sure they have well documented procedures to make customers happy. [19] A sense for the tradeoffs commercial customers are willing to make between price and risk reduction services can be obtained by examining the standardized regression parameters which are 0.17 for price and 0.31 for risk. If a warehouse home center performs poorly on risk reduction services than it can compensate for this only by a more than proportionate gain in price performance (i.e. lower prices). [4] In the four smaller cities we sent 260 questionnaires to potential customers of warehouse home centers and 165 to potential customers of office supply superstores. The primary goal of the questionnaire, as it relates to this study, was to identify the services a wholesaler-distributor or multiplex retailer could offer businesses and how each of these alternative supply sources was rated on performance, as perceived by the business customer. [4] A total of 3,410 questionnaires were mailed during May 1994: 2,090 to potential customers of warehouse home centers and 1,320 to potential customers of office supply superstores. The smaller sample size for the office supply study was determined by the sponsor of the research who was interested in both types of multiplex retailers but felt that the warehouse home centers posed more of a competitive threat to a wider number of wholesaler-distributors. [4]
When NRS interviewed John Laing Homes Denver, the NRS Diamond Award Winner (#1 builder in North America in Customer Satisfaction), employees spoke about how important it was to have a clean home for buyers at the initial walk-through. [19]
If customers had scores above 6.25 on exterior homes features and a near perfect score -- above 9.75 -- on the perceptions of the overall walk-through process, then the model predicts that customers would have recommendation ratings of "Definitely Yes," or 9.53, on the " Would recommend to family and friends " question. According to the NRS database, this is the shortest pathway to success for builders. This finding is supported by this year's winners of the NRS Award presented by Professional Builder. [19]
Why heat the whole home when you're not using the whole home?" Rethlake makes a good point: explaining zone heating to customers allows sales staff to not only touch upon the topic of comfort, but also the topic of energy efficiency. Drafts are the most common callback home builders experience with fireplaces, and they have a direct impact on occupant comfort. For homeowners, there's little that's more annoying then relaxing before a cheery fire with cold drafts moving through the space, causing both the room's air and floors to feel uncomfortable. After a home is built, drafts are one of the most complex issues to solve, so it's best to be proactive about preventing mistakes from occurring during construction. [16] Tim Rethlake, vice president of new construction sales at Hearth & Home Technologies, recommends that builders discuss a concept called "zone heating" with customers. [16]
1.6. FIRST-TIME HOMEBUYER
Southern belle on South Carolina's Kiawah Island rekindles owners' youthful memories. Although it was the first custom home that they'd ever had built for themselves, the owners of this seashore gem on Kiawah Island, S.C. approached the ambitious undertaking in the manner of seasoned pros. At the outset of the project, the couple presented architect Chris Rose with a detailed "manifesto" that they had created to serve as a design guide for him to use as he developed the plans for their new home, an unparalleled oceanfront beauty intended for their enjoyment during their retirement. The result of their efforts, says Craig Gentilin, project manager for builder Buffington Homes, was that this project really "became the true manifestation of their dreams." Both the architect and builder say that they welcomed their clients' "involved" attitude and that it contributed significantly to the successful, and timely, completion. "The inspiration for this home is about embracing family," says Cathy Buffington, who co-owns Buffington Homes with husband, Dan. "Our clients really wanted to recreate the charm and character of the places that they remembered growing up in themselves and be able to share that feeling with their family and friends." [26] In 1981 Home Depot became a publicly held company and two years later operated 19 stores. That year, 1983, was a key year for the industry because it witnessed the spread of this concept to other parts of the country: Builders Square in Texas; HomeClub in California; and Home Quarters Warehouse in Virginia. [4]
As a nation founded and settled by immigrants, the country has always had a dynamic population. Never has this been more true than today. The U.S. population in the early years of the 21st century is undergoing profound change with increased immigration, a huge age group entering retirement age, another generation in their prime home-buying years, large regional migrations and more. All of these factors will have a huge impact on home purchasing and selling habits and home buyers' design preferences - with major implications for residential developers. [7] Single women will be increasingly active in the home buying market. Though those over age 65 buy fewer homes than younger people, the enormous size of the baby boom generation means that senior citizens will be a major home buying group and could very well be a prime market for new construction. This three-part series examines changing U.S. demographics and the ramifications for home ownership patterns and purchasing habits. [7]
For subprime mortgages, the data seem to suggest that the number of foreclosed homes, with mortgages funding the home purchases, already exceeds the estimated number of first-time homebuyers with subprime mortgages. [1] The low mortgage rates coupled with falling house prices have also helped to spur a slight pick-up in home sales in recent weeks. [2]
Homeownership rates are highest for the demographic over the age of 55. Approximately 81 percent of households over the age of 65 currently own their home, a rate that has steadily increased over the last 25 years. [13] Gary SorCiC (bottom right) started Gary Sorcic Construction in Weyauwega, Wisc. in 1978. He began as a framing contractor and has evolved his business to the point where he builds around six custom homes per year in addition to some light commercial contracting. [14] "Instead of buying a new place, people are opting to renovate existing home for retirement." Norman says this trend partly accounts for the healthy home-renovation market, which has jumped around 10% each year for the past decade. [25] The Kuki'o development includes a spa, fitness center and two Tom Fazio- designed golf courses (one is 10 holes, the other 18). It is run by the San Francisco-based Discovery Land Company, which operates similar communities in several states and in Mexico. Mr. Frank, who sold the Grey Goose brand to Bacardi for 2 billion in 2004, bought the home new in February 2005, about a year before his death. [27]
On one recent day in late February, visitors to the blog section of the site could read a concise summary of the contents of the recently passed federal stimulus bill; an article about a New Hampshire company that manufactures prefab near-zero-energy homes; a piece about residential wind incentives offered by a New York state utility; and much more. Other free-of-charge areas on the site include a question-and-answer section (some answers come from other site visitors, and others from GBA's 15 on-staff advisors) and a "green homes" feature that contains articles on specific green home projects. The latter section is divided both geographically and by project type, allowing readers to focus on projects in the south or midwest, for example, or browse through green remodels or net-zero-energy projects. There's no shortage of free information about green building on the Web, of course, although the material on the GBA site is distinguished by its unusually high quality and a conspicuous absence of advertising. In the long run, the site will probably succeed or fail on the basis of its subscribers-only area, known as GBA Pro. [28]
The Active Alerts system allows users to set up and save searches according to "preferred titles, subjects and/or authors," said the company. Patrons are then notified when the system identifies new materials that match those criteria. Working in conjunction with this notification system, the Lib2Home feature is geared specifically toward libraries with existing mail-order and home delivery programs. In addition to the alerts sent to patrons, Lib2Home sends notifications to relevant librarians and staff members so that they can quickly process the materials identified by the Active Alerts criteria for checkout and delivery. "All of the residents in our 15,000 square mile library district can use this service," said Dan Howard, director of public services at the Washington State Library. [29]
Alternatively wholesalers that perform well on risk-reduction services compared to warehouse home centers do not need to be as price competitive. [4] The stabilisation of home re-sales in February is an encouraging sign, as it suggests that prices have fallen enough and buyers are returning, but it is not enough. [30] At John Laing Homes' new Roubion development in Los Altos Hills, Calif., where home prices start at about 2 million, glass-enclosed cellars are a standard option. [31] Chris Toland of the Corcoran Group, who represented the buyers, said the sale price was 4 million. That's 1 million more than Ms. Spears paid four years ago, but down 2 million from the original asking price. [27]
"Buyers have a lot of time to browse the Internet and price products, which can present a definite challenge," says Sorcic. "People sometimes question price differential, but once I explain that what they've found on the `net is a wholesale price, and I mark-up for my expertise and service, they are generally very understanding." Wilson agrees that buyers are better informed, but says they are not pushing his business in terms of product selection. "We've always been a leader in design and materials selection in this market, and we're still driving the styles," says Wilson. [14] Importantly all three of the standardized regression parameters had approximately the same value with the value on risk a bit higher. This suggests that a higher price can be traded off with improved product acquisition services and better risk reduction services. If a multiplex retailer fails to do a comparable job to wholesale-distributors on product-acquisition services and/or risk-reduction services it will need to proportionately lower its prices to attract customers. [4]
The last scenario shows the results when a builder passes on the exterior of the home but fails on the walk-through, project superintendent, and warranty process target scores. This path leads to a significant drop in the recommendation levels to 6.58 or "Borderline Likely" to recommend their builder and is not a good result for a builder. The best in customer satisfaction keep situations like this to a minimum by having the project superintendent or warranty representative provide superior service. [19] Repairs are going to be needed in a newly constructed home. It is the service that a builder provides during and after the building process that makes up the difference between those that delight homebuyers and those that don't. [19] With approximately 15 custom homes underway at any give time Buffington Homes operates using a "master builder formula" in which an individual project manager is in charge of overseeing the day-to-day construction affairs for each home. "We have a staff of highly qualified project managers and carefully select the right one for each case based on their personality and skill set. It really becomes a marriage of the client, designer and the manager. [26] "We are on a new growth path," says Arun Adhikari, managing director of home and personal care, which accounts for most of HLL's earnings. Shares of HLL, after years of decline, have climbed 25% this year to around 4. This time Hindustan Lever is gingerly embracing growth at the expense of margins. [18]
For years, it was taken as a given at Kaufman & Broad Home Corp. that people in Denver liked snuggling up in front of a fire on snowy winter evenings. [8]
David Hollingworth, mortgage specialist at London & Country, who attended the research presentation, has reservations about the idea. He says: "We must not keep putting the parental home at the centre of every solution. It's easy for us to talk about parental equity as the solution for children to get on the housing ladder but we're equally talking about it being the solution to bolstering their income. "We could end up squeezing from both sides, leaving parents thinking that they're going to be carrying a lot of debt over a long period." [32] The products work like second charge mortgages, where the money raised underpins the purchase. He says: "We're in an important part of the cycle now in terms of the rise in home ownership. [32] With home ownership currently estimated at only 30% of the population, there is huge potential for growth in mortgage lending and also construction. [11]
Almost a week after it joined the Fed in a bid to ease banks' access to funds, the European Central Bank announced that starting today it would offer unlimited emergency funds "at below market interest rates in a special operation to head off a year-end liquidity crisis," as the Financial Times reports. That surprise move "suggests the ECB is still frustrated at the failure to ease financial market tensions," the FT notes. Separately, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown invited counterparts from France and Germany to a London summit next month to further join their efforts to calm the "financial turbulence" affecting the international economy, the FT adds. The British capital is already humming with such activity today, including the U.K. Treasury's latest extension of a guarantee for creditors of troubled mortgage lender Northern Rock, as the FT notes. The Guardian also reports that government advisers have drawn up "a secret plan" to divide up Northern Rock among Britain's biggest retail banks "within days of an emergency nationalization," a plan that would let the government "reduce its role almost immediately" if that happens and which would "also help the government find a way to ease the bill for the taxpayer." Elsewhere in London, Bank of England Gov. Mervyn King this morning was testifying before an unhappy House of Commons Treasury Select Committee and acknowledged that the anguish was far from over. "A painful adjustment faces the global banking sector over the next few months as losses are revealed and new capital is raised" to shore up bank balance sheets, he said. [33] Plans by the Treasury to raise 2,000bn in new debt over the 2009 financial year are driving yields on government bonds higher and complicating the Fed's efforts to push mortgage rates lower. In spite of a poor employment report last Friday, which typically would send long-term yields on Treasury bonds lower, they rose. [12]
An administration official said that "we don't feel like we need safe harbor for our program to be successful." The revised program requires mortgage servicers to determine whether a borrower is eligible for the Hope for Homeowners program and includes financial incentives to encourage these refinances. Many investors say they would be willing to take a principal write-down in exchange for getting troubled loans off their books. [10] The revised plan also encourages the use of the federal Hope for Homeowners program, which allows borrowers to refinance into a more affordable, government-backed loan, provided the investor who holds the mortgage agrees to a principal write-down. [10]
So I just want to let you know we got a strategy." The extent of that strategy isn't entirely clear, though its main component so far is the Treasury Department's recent orchestration of a plan to help some classes of troubled homeowners. It is aimed at helping them to avoid defaulting on their mortgages -- a class of loan that through mass packaging and repackaging into tradable derivatives is at the heart of world-wide credit problems. [33] Given the impossibility of knowing when any first-time homebuyer who used a subprime mortgage would have become a homeowner with a prime loan, if ever, the data do not support the argument that subprime mortgages in creased homeownership. [1] In a hypothetical "success" example, if a borrower took out a subprime loan in 2001, say as a first-time homebuyer, and then refinanced into a better loan in 2004, the same borrower most likely could have skipped the subprime step and become a first-time homebuyer in 2004, starting with a more stable loan and avoiding high interest rate payments and prepayment penalties. [1]
VA home loan guarantees dropped from 455,616 in 1987 to 133,237 in 2007, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs. [3] Belvoir FCU identifies members in trouble through loan denials, seminars, and front-line staff. BECU reaches out to members before their homes go into foreclosure. [6]
At La Vita, a new 32-home development by KB Home in Henderson, Nev., four of six house plans include cellars (capacities range from 850 to 1,440 bottles). [31] COMMENT: Some of Wally's "instant cellars" go to real-estate agents who use the wine to "stage" vacant houses, including a 29 million home in Brentwood, Calif., with a 500-bottle collection that sells separately for 30,000. [31]
"I can focus on what I really need to be focusing on, that is, to build the best product that I can for the client." Once the project was underway, Gentilin brought in kitchen and bath designer, Linda Farrone, of Cabinet Concepts, and interior designer Amelia Handegan, to provide their input into finishing the living space in terms of traffic flow, cabinetry location and personal use requirements. Although Buffington Homes has its own stable of tradesmen that it relies on, "for this project we recognized that we would also need a lot of outside help," says Gentilin. [26]
"Not only should it be designed so that water can get in and out as quickly, and in as unrestricted a manor as possible, but you have to recognize the effect the harsh beach conditions have on the construction materials themselves." According to Gentilin, maintenance is a huge issue for homes in his market. "This environment really puts the 'lifetime' guarantee of a product or material to the test." Exterior finish materials for this home included cedar, slate, brick, and closed-cell PVC millwork -- all selected for the durability and beauty. "We put a tremendous effort into waterproofing the entire structure," he says. "In fact, we essentially treated the exterior walls as if they were the roof of the home. [26]
Major Products Used: APPLIANCES: Miele; Sub-Zero; Viking; ABBAKA; CUSTOM CABINETRY: Deerfield Builders Supply; Rutt; Renato Saavedra; DOORS: Bolection Door (interior, custom 5-panel doors); Marvin Windows & Doors (exterior); Russell Millworks (custom exterior mahogany); LOCKSETS: Baldwin; Bouvet; Restoration Hardware; PLUMBING FIXTURES: Waterworks; Perin & Rohe/ROHL; Kohler; Grohe; Eljer; St. Thomas; Franke; TILE: Daltile; LIGHTING FIXTURES: Vaughn; Roy Electric Lighting Co.; Rejuvenation; Paul Ferrante Lighting; Palmer Hargrave; Nicholas; Waterworks; HOME CONTROLS & AUTOMATION: Crestron; HVAC: geothermal; Unico; MOLDING/MILLWORK: Curve Makers; Berlin G. Myers Lumber Corp.; Benson Millworks (stair tower); Decorators Supply Corp. (medallions); LeBeouf Architectural Woodwork; WINDOWS: Marvin Windows & Doors; EXTERIOR FINISH: western red cedar; PAINTS & STAINS: Sherwin-Williams; ROOFING: Evergreen Slate Co. [26] Builders have been studying and surveying boomers. While this generation is far from homogenous, the industry sees some evidence that today's new wave of environmental concerns and rising energy costs will factor into boomers' housing decisions. Shea started advertising its green active-lifestyle homes in January. [15]
The housing market requires an efficient financial structure to reach a new equilibrium based on supply and demand, rather than on bank lending preferences. Since this will establish a floor for home valuations, it will ensure the success of broader government measures to stop the rot on bank balance sheets and in the real economy. This will ultimately restore liquidity in mortgage-backed securities (MBS), improving confidence in the public sector's own net asset position, including in the Fed's balance sheet. Even if house prices were to rebound from current depressed levels, net consumer debt levels remain elevated and the focus of households will remain on repairing their personal finances. This, together with rising unemployment and expectations of future tax hikes that will be needed to pay for the government's massive bill will continue to drive consumers to rebuild savings and cut expenditure. [30] Philadelphia FCU staff stay alert for overdrawn accounts, delinquencies, and comments about tight finances. Photo: Gloria Harrell of Alexandria, Va., attained her dream of home ownership after obtaining financial counseling at Belvoir FCU, Woodbridge, Va. Harrell credits her deep faith and the CU for helping her work through the payday lending cycle that made it difficult to make ends meet. [6] Belvoir Federal Credit Union, Woodbridge, Va., identifies members in financial need through loan denials, imminent foreclosures, educational seminars, and front-line staff, says Kelli Anthon, financial counselor for the 236 million asset credit union. [6]
"More than any other financial institution throughout the region, Bank of Georgetown offers banking professionals an incredibly unique opportunity to deliver high quality, personalized banking services in a truly entrepreneurial environment," said Gilbert. "This means I can offer customers extremely flexible and highly competitive solutions to meet their needs, and I look forward to bringing that kind of powerful support to my customers." Prior to working with NASA Federal Credit Union, Gilbert held positions at several other financial institutions including Navy Federal Credit Union in Vienna, Va., Colombo Bank in Bethesda, Md., and Maryland Federal Bank in Hyattsville, Md. She began her career as a teller and advanced to senior management positions including branch manager and assistant branch manager. [5]
Despite a lot of emphasis on service when it comes to customer satisfaction, home quality is still #1 according to the data. [19] The new guidelines balance "the needs of all stakeholders -- the customer, the investor, the servicer and communities across the nation," said Kevin Moss, executive vice president of Wells Fargo Home Equity Group. [10]
Vent-free (or unvented) gas fireplaces also come with indoor air quality concerns. National green programs, such as Energy Star, will actually disqualify a home from receiving green certification if it has a vent-free gas fireplace. B-vent gas fireplaces are designed to not impact indoor air quality; however, these fireplaces are at risk for backdrafting. Backdrafting occurs when another appliance, such as a bathroom or kitchen ventilation fan, is pulling air from the home at the same time as the fireplace, creating a negative pressure indoors that draws exhaust air back into the home, typically carrying combustion gases with it. The best way to minimize the possibility of this occurring is to install a combustion air duct or to replace the B-vent flue with a triple-wall flue. Choosing the right types of fireplaces and installing them using industry best practices will help ensure the peace of mind and well-being of your customers. [16]
Warehouses usually average 100,000 square feet, primarily selling space, with an additional 10,000 to 15,000 square feet outside devoted to lawn and garden. These warehouses typically stock 30,000 SKUs but some of the larger stores stock up to 50,000 SKUs. Indeed warehouse home centers, serving both the professional customer and household customer, have become a formidable competitive force in U.S. distribution. [4] The U.S. government must subsidise finance for viable borrowers with sound leverage ratios to aid distressed home sales. [30] Sales of new homes in the U.S. rebounded from a record low in February, according to data released yesterday. [2]
A spokeswoman for Tower Homes, HomeBuy agent for south London, says it too has not achieved any completions but has some pending sales with Barratt Homes. [34] The three founding partners of Office Depot wanted to apply Home Depot's techniques - large, well-stocked, no-frills stores - to the office supply industry. Office Depot copied so well, right down to the name, that they had to state there was no affiliation with Home Depot for six months and give that company 25,000 worth of office supplies to keep Home Depot's legal department at bay. These companies were dedicated to shortening the channel of distribution for office supplies. [4] Meanwhile Home Depot has entered Canada and is considering future international expansion. The office supply superstore traces its roots to both membership warehouse clubs and warehouse home centers. In 1986, two companies independently opened the first stores in this format. Staples opened in Massachusetts in May, and Office Depot launched its first store in Florida in October. [4] The retailer becomes the "captain" of the marketing channel. For some companies, power retailing is a strategic advantage that provides prolonged competitive strength in both the marketplace for consumer and business purchasing. To gain a better insight into the history and growth of multiplex power retailing we briefly review the two lines of trade studied in this research: warehouse home centers (pioneered in 1979) and office supply superstores (pioneered in 1986). [4]
In the two larger cities we sent 525 questionnaires to potential customers of warehouse home centers and 330 to potential customers of office supply superstores. [4] When it comes to customer satisfaction, there are multiple paths to success. Most companies have their own unique pathway to customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction. It boils down to the overall experience that each company is structured to provide to its customers. In doing its research, the NRS Solutions Team observed several trends regarding what matters most to customers during the home building process and to what degree. [19] Sea Coast Management Company, which manages retirement communities in Maine, is offering existing residents incentives to install solar hot water heaters and offering a Toyota Prius and/or a free solar hot water system to new customers purchasing a home. [15]
"What baby boomers are looking for is the Lexus hybrid" rather than the Prius, Mr. Andreen said. "Baby boomers are focused first on what they want." Shea's homes are trying to tap this niche market, blending luxury living with energy efficiency, according to the company. [15] In 2011, the first baby boomers will reach the traditional retirement age of 65. Many will see their children leave the home for good over the next couple of decades. Retirement and the empty nest are typically signals that prompt many to sell their primary residence and downsize to a more affordable home or move to a warm-weather retirement area. [7] In today's market, building a quality move-up home in a highly desirable area has a much higher chance of success today than building entry-level homes in remote locations. [13] Builder Erick Grahn lives in the same area where he builds homes, and this, he says, keeps him in touch with what works best for his clients in terms of location, style and amenities. It also allows him to identify properties that may be suitable for future projects. "I'm not trying to re-invent the wheel here," he says. [35] The buyer's perception of the exterior of the home is one of the most important areas for a builder to focus. [19]
"The city of Chicago is very pro-growth when it comes to new residential development," says the builder. "Because of this there has been a real revival of the inner-city neighborhoods. It started on the north, but now you really see it all spreading throughout the west and south sides as well." These days, it is the city's older, stick-frame homes, which have reached the end of their usable lives, that provide builders with the most promising opportunities for finding available land for new development, says Grahn. "There's usually not much left of them worth saving, so in most cases they are removed rather than rehabbed." A tear-down site, however, does not give a builder carte blanche to build a brand new home that is so grand it virtually dominates the existing streetscape, he warns: "Urban infill projects are most successful when they complement rather than disrupt the existing social and economic fabric of the neighborhood where they are located." [35] Shea Homes, one of the nation's largest home builders, believes baby boomers are looking for communities that make an environmental difference. This month, Shea announced the opening of Victoria Gardens, an "active lifestyle," or retirement, development in Florida sandwiched between Orlando and Daytona Beach. [15]
Crowned by a soaring, 16-foot coffered barrel ceiling and framed by massive cast stone columns, the luxurious spa tub at the heart of the regal bath is designed to pamper master and mistress in majestic fashion. "The home features a very formal, French Chateau design theme with a lot of honed marble and mosaic tile," says builder Bruce Bleiman, of the 3.6 million residence located in Weddington, N.C. "We carried this same elegance into the master retreat and bath." [36] THE HAWAII HOME of Sidney Frank, the late liquor importer who created the successful Grey Goose vodka brand, recently sold for 10.5 million to a group of investors who promptly re-sold it for an undisclosed sum. [27] HOTEL AND GAMBLING giant MGM Mirage is asking 28 million for a Las Vegas home once owned by casino magnate Steve Wynn. [27]
Tim and Nancy Hild (top right and top center) started Tandem, Inc. inTelluride, Colo. in 1992. They build luxury homes of all sizes, but most range between 4000 and 7000 square feet.Their very high-end homes usually cost between 325 and 400 per square foot. [14] With the stock-price spread between the two recently at a two-year high, Lowe's is now the cheaper stock based on forecast earnings, market value per retail square foot and cash flow (though not free cash flow, where Home Depot retains an advantage). [17]
Two regression equations are necessary, one for warehouse home centers and a second for office supply superstores. All four hypotheses predict positive values for the beta coefficients. The standardized regression parameters and related statistics for the two regression equations are presented in Table V. Both regression equations are statistically significant. [4]
The reliability for the relative patronage preference for office supply superstores versus office supply wholesalers was 0.54 and that for warehouse home centers versus hardware wholesalers was 0.65. While these reliabilities are somewhat lower than ideal, they are also adequate according to the Nunally (1967) criteria. It should also be noted that the validity of the scales was not formally assessed although the items that comprise the scales came from field interviews and have face validity. [4] Since warehouse home centers and office supply superstores currently operate in nearly every major metropolitan market in the country, a sample of medium and large cities was selected. [4] Neither title qualifies as sexy but each engages in topics tied eternally to the global economy: security (both in the office and in the home), and real-estate sales and marketing. [37]
New home sales climbed 4.7 per cent month on month after plunging by a revised 13.2 per cent in January. [2] In the late 1980s, however, sales gains began to slow, and by 1990, Home Depot had overtaken Lowe's as the largest home improvement chain. [4] "The generation before boomers would settle for the basics," says Ann Parsons, sales and marketing manager for Ontario-based Phelps Homes, a specialist in adult lifestyle communities. [25]
You definitely do not have the same degree of freedom that you have in a suburban setting where you may be able to rotate a home on the building site in order to bring in sunlight or views." The challenge when designing a single-family home on an urban infill lot is to address its exterior envelope and, working within the same constraints as neighboring homes, develop a plan that makes it look unique, says the architect. [35] "In the past, the kitchen in an urban home was almost treated as an after thought. Today this is where people spend 80 percent of their time when they are home. Because of this we wanted to avoid having this space feel cramped or dark." [35]
"Time is the enemy" when homes sit empty, said Patrick Morrissy, executive director of HANDS. [22]
HANDS plans to acquire title to the homes, mostly in or near Newark and Irvington, N.J., through foreclosure or negotiations with the current owners. [22] Local nonprofits that want to make bulk purchases within geographical areas usually find the foreclosed homes are owned by dozens of banks and investors, making it difficult to buy in bulk. [22]
Today, warehouse home centers operate in most major metropolitan areas and have begun entering smaller markets as well. [4] Qwest's CEO said the company plans to deploy fiber-optic connections to select areas within 20 markets, but unlike rivals has no plans for an Internet TV service. American Eric Volz, a surfer turned real-estate broker serving a 30- year jail term in a Nicaraguan prison, was ordered freed Monday after an appeals court threw out his conviction in the murder of his Nicaraguan lover. [24] Bill Glavin, a special assistant to FHA Commissioner Brian Montgomery, told Forbes that FHA is "inundated" with requests from lenders who want agency certification. He adds that FHA fiscal year 2008 loan volume is forecast to rise 168 percent over 2007 results. Higher loan limits for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and FHA were a centerpiece of this year's economic-stimulus plan. [3] Three years ago, member Luis Beza-Cay, a recent college graduate, asked the credit union for help developing a spending plan and establishing credit. He'd just started his first full-time job. He sees the credit union as a financial partner. "They created a plan for me and gave me solutions to my financial situation. [6] Surveying consumer preferences may be fundamental in most industries, but home builders are late catching on. Like its rivals, K&B's longstanding policy was to build first and hope for the best. [8] The first obstacle is convincing people to move at all. Not only are Canadians retiring later in life, they're staying in their current homes longer. [25] The clients were really surprised and pleased because we pretty much 'nailed' it on the first go around." With a reputation for superior quality construction, materials and attention to detail, Buffington Homes was the top choice by both the client and architect to handle the project, which took 30 months to build. [26] Due Diligence: Architect Frank Lloyd Wright designed this home in 1952 for Ray Brandes and his first wife, Mimi. [38]
One of about 150 "Usonian" Wright houses, the single-story home features redwood cabinetry and furniture designed by the architect and concrete floors with a radiant-heating system. [38] The 12,000-square-foot home is one of only two on the Tom Fazio- designed Shadow Creek golf course, which Mr. Wynn built in 1989; listing agent Florence Shapiro says the house is within a chip shot of the 18th hole. [27]
The buyer of the nearly five-acre property will also get playing rights on the course. MGM acquired Shadow Creek as part of its 4.4 billion purchase of Mr. Wynn's Mirage Resorts in 2000. As part of the deal, Mr. Wynn, who now runs Wynn Resorts, was allowed to remain in the house for five years; he moved out last year, a spokeswoman says. [27] "People are looking for decorations that work in different contexts," says Allbright. "They want to hang them from vases or mantelpieces, use them in table arrangements or clip them on to presents." Given the quest for individuality, it's no surprise that the vintage 1940s and 1950s examples amassed over the past year by Julie Hassan, a buyer for Liberty's Regent Street store in London, were snapped up within days of being displayed. [39]
Despite the lures of river views, car parking and lower prices, most buyers still long for the period facades and tree-lined squares of west London, rather than the pioneering outposts beyond the City. They pay a heavy price for their preferences, as a comparison of two new loft schemes shows. In Bermondsey, a mile or so east of Tower Bridge on the south side of the river, London Buildings is selling the final phase of its Alaska development. Characterised by stylish architecture and stylish residents, this particular block offers very large living/working spaces with fitted kitchens and bathrooms. They can be bought for £100 a square foot, which means the equivalent of a large two-bedroom flat, plus office space, would cost around £145,000. [40] Land use controls affect the relative cost of development at different sites and consequently the spatial array of housing prices. Some consumers may alter their residential choice in response to the changes in relative prices. [41]
The rise in rates is a disappointment to government officials, who had hoped that a steep fall in house prices and low financing costs would lure new buyers into the nation's depressed housing market. [12]
Mature homebuyers-the retired or semi-retired-will drive three-quarters of the housing growth in Canada over the next decade, according to clayton Research, a real estate economics consulting firm in Toronto. For developers of retirement communities, the challenge is to figure out what this generation of retirees wants in a home, and in a community. [25]
"An infill site, particularly on Chicago's north side, can be a very, very expensive piece of property," says Grahn. "Because of this we have to do everything we can to maximize usable indoor and outdoor living space for our clients." Goulette developed the floor plans for the home using what he calls classical "piano nobile" organization. That means the main living spaces of the home - including the formal living and dining rooms, kitchen and great room - are on the second floor. The advantage of this, he says, increases living space by keeping the foyer on the ground floor where it will not encroach into the valuable entertaining space upstairs. [35] Victoria Gardens marks Shea's debut in the Florida retirement market though the company is building similar homes in northern and southern California, Arizona, and Washington. The energy-efficient features are considered standard in these homes. Other retirement communities from Texas to Maine are taking similar steps and adding green features to existing homes. [15]
According to Dr. Jack ReVelle, Six Sigma expert and quality guru, the average home has more than 60,000 points of failure during the building process. Having superb customer satisfaction scores means lessening those points of failure and doing a lot of things right throughout the home building process. [19] Unless I'm way off, I believe a marketing program that creates brand preference by protecting sensitive customer information is a home run for almost any e-tailer. If I were Barnes & Noble, and going after Amazon.com, this would be one of my key weapons. Amazon collects a ton of data about you when you buy from them. [42]
I also look for sites that are wider than a standard city lot." These can be can be a goldmine, says the builder, in terms of increasing the opportunities for what you can build when it comes to a planning and building a single-family home in the city. [35] Michael Dickens is the CEO of BuildIQ, which provides online information, tools and training in home building best practices to help builders take their homes and businesses to the next level of quality and performance. [16]
Make sure the presentation of the home at the walk-through is the very best it can be. While this includes having a high quality home, the walk-through process addresses service as well. Make sure your homes are clean, well built and are ready both inside and out. [19] Keep in mind, however, the home exterior must be followed up with good service to do well. [19]
In production home building, there are three main types of fireplaces: direct-vent gas fireplaces, B-vent gas fireplaces and electric fireplaces. No matter the type, they naturally add to the aesthetics and comfort of any room. [16] The regression equation for the warehouse home centers had an F-value of 23.14 which was significant beyond the 0.0001 level and had an adjusted R-squared of 24.4 per cent. [4] The existing supply of large-lot homes, mostly located in the suburbs, may already be sufficient to meet needs through 2025 in many parts of the nation. [7] The red brick pattern on the walkway and porch trim continue around the base of the home, providing a continuous site line. [43] A massive home sell-off by retiring baby boomers could spur a significant contraction in the home building industry. [7]
"We also have two full-time estimators on staff to provide support for our project managers. We don't start a job until we can give the client a very tight estimate on their actual costs. As decisions are made, they are plugged into an already established formula unique to each project. This helps our managers stick to the task at hand, building the home, because it removes the burden of financial estimating and accounting from their job." "This is a tremendous help to me because it allows me to do my job and not get bogged down in the financial details," says Gentilin. [26]
Losing a basement and a garage can cut the cost of a single-family home by as much as 20%. [8] Saudi Arabia faces a rising unemployment problem, in common with many states, but perhaps uniquely in the current global climate it is still seeing rent levels rising. Partly this is because of sizeable financial and legal barriers to home ownership, which the government seems bent on addressing. [11] Part two looks in depth at the characteristics of different demographic groups pertaining to home ownership. [7] American developers were concerned boomers would find the concept unappealing, which is exactly what Feinberg & Associates, a home design firm in New Jersey, discovered in focus groups conducted from 2003 to 2005. [25] In another high-profile deal, Daewoo Heavy Industries & Machinery Ltd.' s auction by creditors drew a bevy of interested parties at home and abroad, including Carlyle Group and J.P. Morgan Partners. [44]
"In the past, basements were not traditionally used for living space in city homes," says Grahn. Not so in this home where the basement includes an abundance of informal entertaining space as well as a separate guest suite. The master suite occupies more than half of the home's third floor and has its own private deck that overlooks the rear courtyard. [35] The entablature over the porch is in correct proportion to the size of the columns. The side gables of this Craftsman home evenly distribute the visual weight of the primary mass. [43]
The 47-year-old real estate agent and her husband have about 50 bottles. They recently bought a home at Roubion, which has a 1,000-bottle cellar. To bridge the gap, she's already started saving empty bottles that she'll use to fill the upper rows of the floor-to-ceiling cellar. She'll also ask her friends to pitch in. "Our plan is to immediately host a 'cork- it' party and have everyone bring a bottle," she says. Ms. Weeks sees no incongruity in buying a cellar she'll struggle to fill. "It's mainly the look of it. What word can I use?" she says. "It's just so fabulous." [31] From the use of combined heat and power plants to the way it builds homes to maximize efficiency, Denmark leads the way. [45] To help, the architects use the front and rear elevation windows to open up the home. [35]
A common design feature in suburban homes, it is rarely seen in urban infill homes, says Grahn. [35] What's more, single women own almost twice as many homes as single men, Kleber finds. These are sound reasons to study and cater to women as a separate home buying market. [7] Part three analyzes how changing demographics will impact home building over the next couple of decades. [7] With the nationwide increase in disposable income, there has been a corresponding increase in the level of detail and architectural finish in luxury homes. Wilson says the homes he's building, and homes nationwide for that matter, are getting bigger and much more ornate inside and out. [14] The grand, four-story, 10,005-square-foot, shingle-style home features three floors of living space with the ground level being reserved for the garage, beach entry and showers, and a kennel for the family dogs. [26] The reasons Home Depot" has held up better are no mystery. It was earlier in hunkering down for a recession, closing its Expo centers and other stores. [17] The 6,500-square-foot, five-bedroom home features a central great room, covered lanai, swimming pool and lava-rock ponds. [27] For warehouse home centers, businesses in 13 SIC codes representing the building and contractor trades and some lines of retail trade were selected. [4] In the early 1990s, Lowe's announced a major repositioning strategy to enter the warehouse home center industry. [4] Currently, about a dozen companies operate the "big box" warehouse home center format stores across the country. [4] An Army retirement community in San Antonio recently announced plans to install solar hot water systems in the community's 180 homes. [15] "There is no doubt that the green trend is going to accelerate more and more," said Rick Andreen, president of Shea Homes Active Lifestyle Communities division, in an interview. [15] The homes were left vacant after the collapse of a real-estate investment scheme that led to fraud charges against several participants by the U.S. Justice Department. [22]
The white wide-plank siding with black roofing keeps within the home's farmhouse style. The small window in the top of the roof provides a visual break in the white vertical siding on the top of this home. [43] The findings have changed many preconceived notions about what people really want in a home. They have transformed the way K&B does business. [8] Top Business Trade Magazines Title: TopSafety Location: Birmingham, AL Circulation: 1,200,000 Magazine Profile: Written for management and employees of organizations and other readers, focusing on creating safer environments in the workplace and at home. [37]
Generation X women are 70 percent more likely than early boomer women to have a college degree, Chung says. They are also likely to marry and have kids later, making them more likely to purchase a home while they are still single. [7] The stone and timber keep within the log cabin style of the southwest. They also blend in with the environment. In this custom home, big stones in the landscaping lead up to the front door and draw attention to the entrance. [43]
The dynamic exterior design includes multiple balconies, double brick chimney towers, undulating courses of hand-cut cedar shingles and distinctive windows. Inside and out, the home features a blend of historical styles including Federal, Georgian, Victorian and Charleston details which contribute to its one-of-a-kind character. In addition to its distinctive cedar shingle siding, the exterior features a brick-accented porte cochere entry with a groin vaulted ceiling, and a varied facade which breaks up the exterior massing and adds visual interest while providing virtually limitless ocean views from inside. [26] In addition to building some home theaters that range from 150,000 to 500,000, whole-house systems run with touch pads are becoming the norm. [14] In 1979, Bernard Marcus and Arthur Blank opened in Atlanta, Georgia three Home Depot stores of approximately 65,000 square feet in size and handling 18,000 SKUs. [4] Betting on Lowe's to regain a bit of turf on Home Depot looks reasonably attractive. Markets like this furnish small investors with certain advantages over professional money managers. [17] Before you build your next project, consider the following design principles from the book "What Not to Build: Do's and Don'ts of Exterior Home Design." [43] Mark Wilson, president of London Bay Homes in Naples, Fla. echoes that statement. [14] According to Craig Gentilin, project manager for Buffington Homes, everything about this one-of-a-kind oceanfront beauty is special. [26] Belvoir Federal initiated the Home Rescue Program to help members who meet certain criteria. [6] "After we come up with a design for a home," says Rose, "we create a working model of it so that the client can get a sense of it in three dimensions. [26] "While the clients wanted a large home," says Rose, "they did want it to appear so. [26] Bringing more light into the interior of an urban infill home is always a challenge, Goulette says. [35] There's every reason to believe that women will continue to grow as a home buying force. [7] Recent immigrants will be a significant force in the home buying market. [7] A rounded roof line and stone that appears across the front of the home and porch steps highlight the home's entrance. [43] Now HLL (ticker number 6261674 on the Mumbai stock exchange) jostles for display on the bargain counter with the likes of CavinKare, a privately held firm in Chennai that sells Chik. Why this down-market extension? Because, in the long run, CavinKare threatens HLL's position in the middle class, where it does 2.4 billion in annual revenues, 70% from personal and home care items. [18] Texas, California and Florida have the highest percentage of veterans, adds Reichstein. Being Sunbelt states, they also are havens for retirees looking to purchase more-expensive homes. [3]
Planning a custom home in Los Angeles County, Alan Bursteen plotted a spread with a nine-hole putting green, a screening room and a glassed-in cellar big enough for 800 bottles of wine. When he moved his family there this spring, just one thing was missing: the wine. The 49-year-old television producer has done the occasional winery tour and charity tasting, but he calls his wine knowledge limited. He hired a consultant who charged 50,000 to put together a 420-bottle collection ranging from Antinori (Italy, 1997 Ornellaia, eight bottles) to Zinfandel (California, one 1998 Turley Wine Cellars' Hayne Vineyard). [31] The homes being offered include energy-efficient appliances and insulated windows alongside gourmet kitchens and master suites that resemble a "spa-like sanctuary." Like plenty of Florida retirement communities, these homes also are tucked amid hundreds of acres of parkland, and sport an 18-hole golf club and a tennis center. [15] Rozycki says securing and zoning land is increasingly difficult, and starting a retirement community is capital intensive. "You're not just building homes," he says. [25] Billed as eco-friendly and energy-wise, the homes feature solar attic fans, green-fiber recycled insulation, motion-sensor triggered lighting, energy-efficient windows and appliances, and garages outfitted with electric-vehicle charging stations. [15] "You definitely do have to deal with a much tighter confinement of the spaces in an urban location," agrees Laura Wallace, project manager for the architect. "It becomes all about the compression of the layout within the lot." One advantage that this home had, she says, is the site's footprint. [35] The average size of a new home has topped out at 2300 square feet after rising steadily from 1500 square feet in 1970. an increase of 53%. [46] The window size and style is continuous throughout the garage and the home. [43] The two-door garage mirrors the look of the home, using maroon vertical siding, wood timber and beige doors. [43] The key to winning exteriors is maintaining balance, proportion, scale and unity in the exteriors of the homes you build. Here are a few homes that honor these time-tested principles of design and create beautiful, harmonious exteriors. [43] The shell is completely waterproof even without the siding on it." All of this extra effort will enhance the longevity of the home, he says. [26] The home, which was sold after framing was completed, was finished in February 2005. [36] The homes were advertised as having a carbon footprint that is 20% to 30% less than that of a "typical household." [15] The home also features an alley-loaded detached garage with space for four cars. [35] Secondary mass refers to the additional shapes that are added to create the overall look of the homes. [43] Similarity can also be seen in the driveway stone wall, which matches the stone used on the foundation of the home. [43] "There really is no weak link anywhere in the home in terms of design or execution." [26] Hoping to apply the efficiency of web technologies to solve some of the logistical problems of delivering materials directly to patrons at home, Auto-Graphics has recently announced two new features for its AGent VERSO ILS: Lib2Home and Active Alerts. [29] MGM Mirage has already sold the other home on the course, which belonged to former Mirage executive and current Wynn Resorts chief operating officer Marc Schorr. Mr. Wynn's spokeswoman said he was traveling and not available for comment. [27] Laundry rooms in the basement and on the third floor and an elevator make the home more accessible. [35]
The Fed has bought 92bn of mortgage securities since the start of the year under a plan that could see it purchase up to 500bn. [12] As mortgage rates soared to all-time highs in the early '80s, the national homeownership rate dropped. [13] Under the revised plan, mortgage-servicing companies that participate in the loan-modification program for second liens must automatically modify the second mortgage when the first mortgage is reworked. [10] In a plan scheduled to be officially released Monday, the Treasury proposes to remedy "gaps" in mortgage oversight by creating a federal Mortgage Origination Commission run by a six-person board composed of representatives of the Federal Reserve and five other agencies involved in banking regulation. [9] A larger origination amount is associated with larger monthly mortgage payment. The greater incentive to refinance more expensive properties may be a desire to lower monthly payments or a need to extract cash to cope with those (larger monthly payments. [1]
The post has been vacant, but previously was held by Lewis Kaden, who is now a vice chairman at Citigroup. On the personnel front, Merrill Lynch plans to bring back former top bond executive Jeffrey Kronthal as a consultant on its portfolio of sub-prime mortgage assets which have triggered huge losses, people close to the firm said. [24] All loans purchased with tax exempt bonds are expected to be for qualified first-time homebuyer loans. [20] When owners come to sell, the loan is repaid by splitting the proceeds between the government and the developer. [34] Hoping to get new owners in faster, HANDS bought the loans, rather than waiting for J.P. Morgan Chase to complete foreclosure proceedings and take possession. [22] VALoans.com plans to debut a VA construction loan with a single closing within a few months. [3]
Improving confidence in bank balance sheets is a crucial step in bringing the crisis to an end. It is not enough. As the history of bank rescue plans during this crisis illustrates, efforts to thaw the winter freeze in bank balance sheets do not automatically launch high summer in inter-bank and credit markets. The effects of this crisis are much bigger than the impact of toxic assets. If policy measures are to stop the market fear they need to reflect this. The success of banks' sales of their toxic assets will be determined by their willingness to add new risk to their books. [30] Public records list the buyer as an LLC, with Arizona businessman Dorsey Lynch as trustee. Mr. Lynch said he and his partners bought the property as an investment and have already re-sold it (the deal is expected to close in October). He wouldn't disclose the buyer or the sale price. [27]
Surprisingly, the data also showed that the number of buyers who listed fireplaces as a "very important" or "important" feature was evenly distributed across the U.S. rather than depend on the geographic area; buyers in the South, Northeast, Midwest, and West gave fireplaces equal importance. [16] To account for differences in samples and response rate between counties the study weighted the results to reflect the total number of buyers. Both the pilot and baywide surveys were conducted by mail, using the total design method (Dillman 1978). [41] The court set a high bar for private-equity bidders. It required a buyer to purchase new shares of the company for cash, with creditors receiving debt repayment at full value. [44]
Monday, National Oilwell Varco said it agreed to buy oil-equipment company Grant Prideco in a cash-and-stock deal worth about 7.5 billion. Bristol-Myers Squibb reported it has signed an agreement to sell its medical imaging group to private equity firm Avista Capital Partners for about 525 million. The sale comes two weeks after the company announced as part of its restructuring that it planned to sell the unit. Loews announced plans to eliminate its Carolina Group tracking stock and replace it with that of tobacco maker Lorillard, which will be spun off as a separately traded company. [24]
The 700,000 tab remains the retailer's largest instant-collection sale, Mr. Aaron says, but now the company says it fills about three turnkey-cellar orders each month. Michael Lorber, a 27-year-old principal of a real estate agency, likes to buy wines gradually for the 400-bottle cellar in his New York apartment. He took the express track for his new one-bedroom pied- a-terre in Boston, where he plans to entertain friends and business associates in a wine-bar area off his open kitchen. [31] COMMENT: Owner Jeff Smith began organizing and appraising messy cellars in the Los Angeles area in 2002. Now, he says, one-third of his business is buying and selling wine. [31]
The reality is that looking forward even a year or two, the population of pioneering types start to become a small minority, and the settlers take over-just like in the old west. This is one more case of the fundamental market cycle, moving from innovators to the mass market. Internet marketers that want to increase the numbers of"settlers" using their site have to change. They must add to their communication activities in such a manner that they assuage concerns about doing business on the Net. [42]
The vivid neon trees on sale at the Selfridges department store in London last year are among the unhappy ghosts of Christmas past. This year, however, retailers are answering demand for better designs and homeowners are responding by splashing out increasing sums in their quest for quality. Even families whose festive fripperies have become heritage pieces, handed down though the generations, are seeking unusual new examples for their collections. "I overheard a woman in a shop in Surrey (England) saying 'I really don't need any more but I simply must have this one,' " says Piers Croke, sales director of Gisela Graham, a -London-based Christmas decoration specialist. Which ornament tempted this discerning shopper? An item from the company's Rose Ball collection, which is based on Austrian artist Silke Leffler's illustrations for Der Blumenbal, a children's book published in Vienna. [39] With many expensive new houses and condominiums including dedicated space for wine, owners are often finding themselves a few cases short of a cellar. Many, of course, will fill them the old-fashioned way, accumulating a case here or there over the years. [31] Not all the new owners are depleting global stocks of Chateau Latour. Two months ago, Kurt Manley, 44 and his wife, Sara, 30, issued a challenge to wine store co-owner Kristen Kowalski: Their new house has a cellar with a vaulted ceiling and 18th-century French monastery floor tiles, and they had a week to fill it with 700 bottles, in time to host a fund-raiser for Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty. "He was really complimentary," says Mr. Manley, a real estate developer in Eagan, Minn. [31] A carport separates the main house from a studio, which the owners now use as a family room. Included with the house are its original blueprints and correspondence between Mr. Brandes and Mr. Wright, who never visited the site but consulted on its selection. Mr. Brandes, a builder, was his own general contractor on the home's construction and did much of the carpentry work himself. [38] Current owners Jack Cullen and Deborah Vick bought the house from Mr. Brandes, Mr. Cullen's stepfather, in 1984. Ms. Vick says the house had to win her over -- "it's small," she says -- but it ultimately did; she now serves on the board of the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy. [38]
Empirical evidence from various locations have tracked incidences of growth controls causing price premiums (Katz and Rosen 1987), the spillover of development (Dowall 1984; Schwartz et al. 1981), or price spillovers (Pollakowski and Wachter 1990). The questions planners need to pursue are which of these effects will occur in any specific case and where will the development spillover take place. Planners can then analyze the effectiveness of a proposed program in achieving its goals and its implications for consumers and various local jurisdictions. [41] Land use controls, established thorough the political process, structure the location choices for the development process. Planners need to be able to assess the likely effects different land use measures will have on various activities and their locations (Faludi 1987; Moor 1983). Land use controls encompass a variety of measures, such as density controls, use restrictions, fees, and review requirements. [41]
The effects of growth controls on sprawl cannot be generalized, but have to be analyzed for each case and by consumer subgroups. The CBCA study identified a significant group of buyers that purchased residences not on the waterfront but with assured access to the bay, and whose income levels and demographic characteristics are similar to those of average (nonwaterfront) buyers in the Chesapeake Bay region. [41] A comparison of the four groups (Feitelson 1992) shows that buyers of waterfront residences tend to be older and wealthier than all other groups. [41]
Buyers of residences with assured water access do not differ substantially in terms of income, age, or family composition from households that purchase residences with no relation to the bay. The main difference between purchasers of water-related housing and buyers of residences with no water amenities is in their involvement in water-related leisure activities. [41]
"Considering I'm only there two days a week, I can't keep on top of it," says Mr. Lorber. He spent a couple hours with a personal shopper at Gordon's Fine Wines & Liquors, a chain in the Boston suburbs, spending 3,000 for 40 bottles, including Caymus from California, Bollinger champagne, Montrachet from Burgundy and some sweet French Chateau d'Yquem. "I completely stocked up," he says. Instant stashes have their detractors. Wine experts say the collections tend to be less diverse than those gathered over time because buyers are limited by what's in stores or at auctions. [31]
Variety: The Writers Guild turned down requests from producers of the Oscars and Golden Globes telecasts to use clips or let writers contribute as long as the strike against the studios and television networks continues. Separately, NBC confirmed that late-night hosts Jay Leno and Conan O'Brien will return to work Jan. 2, with the hosts saying they were motivated by the need to keep their non-guild staffers employed. They will broadcast without writers, and there are doubts about whether top-tier stars will cross the picket lines to be guests. David Letterman's Worldwide Pants production company, which owns his show, seeks an interim deal with the guild. In a surprising show of union solidarity, the Directors Guild agreed to share its inside information on new-media compensation with the striking writers. "All this is Vladimir Putin's strategy. I will be guided by this strategy," Dmitry Medvedev, deputy premier of Russia and Mr. Putin's choice to succeed him as president, told a meeting of the Kremlin-allied United Russia party where Mr. Putin confirmed he would serve as prime minister under a President Medvedev, as The Wall Street Journal reports. "Naivete is sometimes worse than thievery," Sergei Taratukhin, a defrocked orthodox Russian priest, tells the Journal, at a time when he is trying to get back his clerical robes and recanting the sin of siding with a political foe of the Kremlin, the Journal reports. [33]
Net operating margin decreased somewhat to 11.7% in fiscal 2007 from 14.6% during fiscal 2006. Fitch's rating definitions and the terms of use of such ratings are available on the agency's public site, www.fitchratings.com. Published ratings, criteria and methodologies are available from this site, at all times. Fitch's code of conduct, confidentiality, conflicts of interest, affiliate firewall, compliance and other relevant policies and procedures are also available from the 'Code of Conduct' section of this site. [20]
Doyle et al. (1979) found that delivery, price, and payment-terms were most important in straight-rebuy situations, while price, product performance, delivery, and guarantee were most important in first-time buying and modified-rebuy situations. They also found that post-purchase evaluation and search for potential suppliers was very limited in most industrial rebuy situations. [4]
"The A-guest-list wines will be elsewhere." Jeff Smith, author of "The Best Cellar" and owner of Carte du Vin, a wine-organizing company in Beverly Hills, Calif., says that rather than analyze his potential clients tasting preferences, he tries to figure out their collecting style. He outlines 13 collector types, including "Bargain Hunters," "Bankers" (who hope to sell the wine for a profit later), and "Point Men," whose focus on ratings leads them to churn their collections to get rid of low-scoring bottles. Mr. Smith says he'll assemble cellars for all types. The inventory spreadsheets he includes with each one has price data, ratings from Robert Parker and the Wine Spectator, and when to drink each bottle. [31] "For almost 40 years now, we've used the Mail Order Library to extend the library's reach to folks living in the vast expanses between towns." Now, with the combination of Lib2Home and Active Alerts in a library running AGent Verso software, more of this process can be automated, which "reduces the need for new branch locations and additional management staff for the library," the company said. [29] "The owner will not only have a tight structure upon completion, but also one that will not present problems 20 or 30 years down the line." Gentilin, who visited the site every day during construction, says that he considered this job as a rewarding challenge. "It always seemed to make me smile -- in spite of the long hours." [26]
The trouble with avoiding basic financial planning is it can lead to a nightmare when bills pile up. Finding the best financial fit for members in need may involve showing them how they reached their current crossroads. Bernhard recently met with a member who contacted him through the credit union's Web site. She had a delinquent medical account in collections. "When I met with her, I pulled three credit reports, which she had never pulled or viewed. After we looked these over together, we identified the delinquent medical account, determined the source, contacted the creditor, and set up a payment." [6] With Copenhagen set to host U.N. climate-change talks in December--a successor to the expiring Kyoto Protocol will be discussed--and the global recession beginning to hit environmental plans everywhere, Denmark's example couldn't be more timely. While countries like the U.S. let tax credits for renewable energy wax and wane, smothering infant green industries in the crib, Denmark has stuck with them. [45] The U.S. Treasury's plan to subsidise investor purchases of toxic bank assets will help lift financial valuations. It is only when real assets are valued on their own merits rather than on the availability (or, in truth, lack) of financing to invest in them that this bear market rally will be transformed into a sustainable recovery. [30] The shares trade at about a third of Barclays' net asset value, suggesting investors are still unsure about whether the bank will need more capital. [21]
While communication programs about the issue have worked with pioneers, settlers haven't received the message. Should we dumb down the message? Should we say, "Hey! You're still not liable for unauthorized charges-even on the web!"? I'm not sure that's the answer, but we do need to tell this vast audience that they have only as much to fear regarding e-business as traditional business. The personal information issue is a trickier-because a fair number of pioneers are also worried about this. In our survey of holiday e-buyers, both groups expressed concern over this issue. The key is that the Internet community has done little to ease customer apprehension on this issue. [42] The tool provides cut off levels of performance builders need to hit to predict high satisfaction with customers. [19]
Data shows if a builder scored above 8.70 on the project superintendent, but fell short on the warranty target of 8.18, (but not less than 6.49) the buyer would still maintain a high recommendation level of 8.08. The second possibility that could work is that the builder doesn't exceed the target of 8.70 with the project superintendent, but does exceed the 8.18 target for warranty. When this happens, the builder maintains high recommendation levels at 8.24 ("Most Likely" to recommend). [19] The unit once belonged to hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons, and before that to Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards. Mr. Toland said the buyers are from Los Angeles, but would not identify them (he said they are "not celebrities"). [27] Even in the long-established Florida luxury market, buyers are getting younger and younger. [14] Theoretically, an unlimited amount of credit-default swaps can be written and bought on any issuer, and there are incentives for buyers to make companies look sickly. [17] SUSAN SONTAG'S Manhattan penthouse has found a buyer, only weeks after it went on the market. [27]
More Americans are willing to sacrifice space for amenities. crown molding, wood floors, granite countertops and housing floor plans that reduce furnishing needs and heating and cooling requirements. [46] As housing is a multiattribute good, consumer reactions can be viewed as trade-offs among various housing characteristics (Lancaster 1966). To analyze such tradeoffs, consumer preferences and WTP for housing attributes need to be known. These can be elicited through survey-based techniques termed decompositional multiattribute preference models (Louviere and Timmermans 1990; Timmermans 1984). [41]
Ranganayaki is a 20-year-old domestic helper from Srirangam, a small south Indian town. Like many of the country's laborers, she is a regular customer for penny shampoo packs at her neighborhood shop. Used to be, the store owner would hand her one called Chik, a regional product. Today she has a wider choice, including colorful sachets made by Hindustan Lever Ltd., the Indian joint venture of European giant Unilever. [18] According to company residential services director Peter Yost, the key feature of GBA Pro is that it not only enables users to find information, but to easily share it with clients, subs, inspectors, and other team members. A "My GBA" feature lets subscribers save information from the design library in individually named project folders, which can be E-mailed to as many people as desired, whether or not those recipients subscribe to the site themselves. [28]
Homeownership rates among the under-25 demographic increased from 15 percent in 1994 to 25 percent in 2004. [13]
The recently launched GreenBuildingAdvisor.com Web site seems likely to become a regular stop for both homeowners and building professionals in search of information on energy-efficient and green build- ing (Figure 13). While that description may prompt skepticism on the part of some readers - we've all seen our share of books touted on the jacket as "indis- pensable to beginner and expert alike" that turn out to be dispensable to both - this site does seem to have something for everyone. The key is its two-tiered structure, which combines an abundance of free con- tent with a subscription-only area for industry pros. [28]
The Chesapeake Bay Critical Area (CBCA) law, enacted by Maryland in 1984 in response to the deterioration of the bay's natural resources, strives to reduce adverse impacts on the bay's water quality and on natural habitats by regulating development along the shore and on adjacent land. The legislation designated a one thousand-foot strip of land around the tidal water of the Chesapeake and its tributaries as a critical area, for which a regulatory resource protection program was enacted (see Figure 3). (Figure 3 omitted) This program consists of plans and ordinances prepared by the local jurisdictions according to criteria developed by the Chesapeake Bay Critical Area Commission (Davis 1987). [41]
The formal validation of the scales is an area that future research needs to address. To test the three hypotheses we developed the following regression equation. [4] Features explore the methods and the minds behind the trends, and examine the talent and technologies that are opening up new opportunities for small business and provide the knowledge, tools and resources to help small-business owners succeed. [37]
RANKED RECOMMENDED SOURCES
(46 source documents numbered in order of appearance in text)
4. Multiplex retailers versus wholesalers A test of the total value of purchasing model
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/26.html
19. Finding your Path to Customer Satisfaction Success
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/16.html
26. Timeless Treasure
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/18.html
7. Housing Demographics and You
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/13.html
35. Urban Edition
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/11.html
15. Green Homes for Graying Boomers
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/12.html
6. Workout Strategies That Work
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesC/15.html
43. Curb Appeal
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/5.html
31. WEEKEND JOURNAL; The Home Front: The Overnight Wine Collector; Facing Empty Cellars, Homeowners Try Buying Bottles 'By the Foot'
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/16.html
27. WEEKEND JOURNAL; The Home Front: Private Properties
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/15.html
1. Quick Exits of Subprime Mortgages
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/16.html
16. Fire 'em Up
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/1.html
41. The spatial effects of land use regulations: A missing link
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/28.html
14. The table: High-tech praise
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/23.html
22. One Nonprofit's Solution To Housing Foreclosures
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/12.html
25. WHAT HOMES DO RETIREES WANT?
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/17.html
2. Applications for US home loans surge
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/6.html
10. U.S. News: Loan -Modification Plan Revised to Address Second Mortgages
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/2.html
8. Surprise! A Home Builder (Finally) Surveys Buyers
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/25.html
3. A Good Time for Government Lending
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesC/16.html
30. US Treasury programme is not enough for recovery
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/8.html
24. The Evening Wrap: Seeking to Soothe; Online edition
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesC/19.html
20. Fitch Ratings; Fitch Rates Alaska HFC 81MM Home Mortgage Revs 'AA+'
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesC/3.html
13. Create Move-Up Magic
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/7.html
17. Where Pricing Anomalies Abound
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/1.html
18. A Penny a Packet
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/18.html
38. WEEKEND JOURNAL; The Home Front: House of the Week / A Basic Wright
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/6.html
12. Fed home loan purchases fail to keep mortgage rates from rising
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/19.html
29. Lib2Home/Alerts from Auto-Graphics
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/2.html
33. The Morning Brief: U.S.: Trust Us, We Can Fix the Credit Crisis; Online edition
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesC/18.html
28. Fine Homebuilding and Environmental Building News Publishers Launch Web Site
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/0.html
9. The Treasury's Blueprint: The View from Washington -- Housing: New U.S. Panel Aims to Fill Gaps in Mortgage-Sector Oversight
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesC/17.html
42. Welcome to suburbia: E-settlers take over
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/24.html
11. Saudi Arabia economy: House and home
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/8.html
37. Media Metrics
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/17.html
34. HOMEBUY DIRECT: Politicians in row over HomeBuy sales figures
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/3.html
44. Korean Firms Get Feistier; In Two High-Profile Deals, Foreigners Are Outbid by Local Rivals
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/19.html
39. Seasonal sparkle Nicole Swengley on tasteful ways to trim the tree; [SURVEYS EDITION]
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/14.html
32. FIRST-TIME BUYERS: Parental equity could help more first-timers
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/1.html
45. The Gusty Superpower.
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/7.html
46. Home buyers ' preferences are shifting
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/20.html
36. Royal Treatment
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/19.html
21. Barclays' top team sets out to win over the critics
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/18.html
5. Bank of Georgetown; Bank of Georgetown Hires Nicole Gilbert as Vice President and Branch Manager of Friendship Heights Branch
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesC/4.html
40. The cost of going west: On the Move/Anne Spackman:; [London edition]
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/27.html
23. Eurozone
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/13.html
4. Multiplex retailers versus wholesalers A test of the total value of purchasing model
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/26.html
19. Finding your Path to Customer Satisfaction Success
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/16.html
26. Timeless Treasure
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/18.html
7. Housing Demographics and You
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/13.html
35. Urban Edition
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/11.html
15. Green Homes for Graying Boomers
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/12.html
6. Workout Strategies That Work
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesC/15.html
43. Curb Appeal
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/5.html
31. WEEKEND JOURNAL; The Home Front: The Overnight Wine Collector; Facing Empty Cellars, Homeowners Try Buying Bottles 'By the Foot'
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/16.html
27. WEEKEND JOURNAL; The Home Front: Private Properties
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/15.html
1. Quick Exits of Subprime Mortgages
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/16.html
16. Fire 'em Up
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/1.html
41. The spatial effects of land use regulations: A missing link
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/28.html
14. The table: High-tech praise
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/23.html
22. One Nonprofit's Solution To Housing Foreclosures
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/12.html
25. WHAT HOMES DO RETIREES WANT?
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/17.html
2. Applications for US home loans surge
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/6.html
10. U.S. News: Loan -Modification Plan Revised to Address Second Mortgages
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/2.html
8. Surprise! A Home Builder (Finally) Surveys Buyers
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/25.html
3. A Good Time for Government Lending
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesC/16.html
30. US Treasury programme is not enough for recovery
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/8.html
24. The Evening Wrap: Seeking to Soothe; Online edition
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesC/19.html
20. Fitch Ratings; Fitch Rates Alaska HFC 81MM Home Mortgage Revs 'AA+'
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesC/3.html
13. Create Move-Up Magic
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/7.html
17. Where Pricing Anomalies Abound
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/1.html
18. A Penny a Packet
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/18.html
38. WEEKEND JOURNAL; The Home Front: House of the Week / A Basic Wright
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/6.html
12. Fed home loan purchases fail to keep mortgage rates from rising
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/19.html
29. Lib2Home/Alerts from Auto-Graphics
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/2.html
33. The Morning Brief: U.S.: Trust Us, We Can Fix the Credit Crisis; Online edition
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesC/18.html
28. Fine Homebuilding and Environmental Building News Publishers Launch Web Site
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/0.html
9. The Treasury's Blueprint: The View from Washington -- Housing: New U.S. Panel Aims to Fill Gaps in Mortgage-Sector Oversight
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesC/17.html
42. Welcome to suburbia: E-settlers take over
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/24.html
11. Saudi Arabia economy: House and home
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/8.html
37. Media Metrics
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/17.html
34. HOMEBUY DIRECT: Politicians in row over HomeBuy sales figures
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/3.html
44. Korean Firms Get Feistier; In Two High-Profile Deals, Foreigners Are Outbid by Local Rivals
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/19.html
39. Seasonal sparkle Nicole Swengley on tasteful ways to trim the tree; [SURVEYS EDITION]
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/14.html
32. FIRST-TIME BUYERS: Parental equity could help more first-timers
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/1.html
45. The Gusty Superpower.
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/7.html
46. Home buyers ' preferences are shifting
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/20.html
36. Royal Treatment
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesA/19.html
21. Barclays' top team sets out to win over the critics
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/18.html
5. Bank of Georgetown; Bank of Georgetown Hires Nicole Gilbert as Vice President and Branch Manager of Friendship Heights Branch
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesC/4.html
40. The cost of going west: On the Move/Anne Spackman:; [London edition]
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/27.html
23. Eurozone
http://iresearch-reporter.com/themes/trim_demo/9/Sources2/SourcesB/13.html