A worker constructs a new home in Geneva, Illinois, June 23, 2009. REUTERS/Jeff Haynes

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The National Association of Home Builders said its preliminary NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index was 17 in July, up from 15 in June.

Readings below 50 in the index, which was launched in January 1985, indicate more builders view market conditions as poor rather than favorable. The July index was above expectations of 16, based on a Reuters survey of economists.

“In an encouraging sign, the improvement was driven by a 3 point gain in the index of present conditions to 17, implying a pickup in new home sales,” said Michelle Meyer, an economist at Barclays Capital in New York.

“The fact that the gain was driven by current conditions is a positive sign, suggesting home buyer interest increased despite the rise in mortgage rates over June,” she said.

The rise in home builder sentiment is a positive for the U.S. housing market, which has been showing some signs of stabilization, with sales rising and home price declines moderating in many regions of the country.

“Builders are seeing slightly better sales conditions this month as consumers take advantage of the first-time buyer tax credit, low interest rates and attractive home prices,” NAHB Chairman Joe Robson, a home builder from Tulsa, Oklahoma, said in a statement.

The government’s $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers, part of the economic stimulus package, is helping boost sales.

But there is concern about what lies ahead, Robson added.

“A true recovery in the housing market and overall economy cannot take place until the continuing foreclosure crisis is abated and a decent flow of credit is restored to housing production,” Robson said.

“Meanwhile, the stalled jobs market is a major concern to builders and potential home buyers alike,” he said.

The gauge of current single-family homes sales rose to 17 from 14. The index of sales expected in the next six months, however, was unchanged at 26. But the measure of prospective-buyer traffic climbed, rising to 14 from 13, the group said.

The U.S. housing market is suffering the worst downturn since the Great Depression as a huge supply of unsold homes, tighter lending standards and record foreclosures push down home prices.

HOME BUILDERS ARE HURTING

U.S. home builders, struggling under sinking demand and a credit crisis, have faced a flood of homes in foreclosure.

But, interest rates on mortgages have fallen in recent weeks, a key development that could help turn the hard-hit housing sector around.

Home builders have curbed their new construction. They have also been reducing their inventories of unsold homes by slashing prices at the expense of profits to pay off debt and keep afloat.

“Although today’s HMI is positive news that helps confirm the market is bouncing around a bottom, the gain was entirely contained in the component gauging current sales conditions, while the component gauging sales expectations for the next six months remained virtually flat for a fourth consecutive month,” NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe said in a statement.

“Builders recognize the recovery is going to be a slow one and that we are facing a number of substantial negative forces,” he said.

On a regional basis, the housing market index declined in only one of the four regions in July. The Midwest was unchanged at 14 and the South posted a five-point increase to 20. The Northeast posted a three-point decrease to 16. The West was unchanged at 15 this month.

http://www.newsdaily.com/stories/tre56f599-us-usa-housing-homebuilders/

reviewed by Moishe Alexander, CFC  canadian funding corp CEO

The total number of houses sold rose by an amazing 27% in June while the average sale price rose 2%. Keep in mind that these statistics include all of the GTA from the Hamilton/Wentworth townline in the west to the Durham/Northumberland townline in the east and from Lake Ontario north into Lake Simcoe. Of course not all areas experienced the same amount of growth, however, Durham Region (on the most part) is in line with these increases. To see a 3 year comparable market evaluation for South Pickering, North Pickering, Ajax, Whitby, Oshawa and Courtice/Bowmanville click on Durham Region.

The other statistic to take notice of is the number of homes for sale this year as compared with last year. While sales have increased 27% this June, the number of new listings has decreased by 17% and the number of active listings has decreased by 30%. What does this mean for sellers and buyers? There is a lot less inventory to choose from and a lot more people who are looking to buy. This would explain the rise in the number of multiple offers we have been seeing over the past several weeks as well as the increase in prices.

Who knows where all of this will end up in the next several months. There is still some speculation in the economic circles that the “worst is yet to come” and yet others have changed their predictions to an earlier anticipated recovery.

http://getmovingwithkaren.blogspot.com/2009/07/june-housing-statistics-are-in.html

reviewed by Moishe ALexander, CFC  canadian funding corp CEO

Ordinarily, one would think that chattels are not included in an agreement of purchase and sale concerning real estate. And, most of the time they would be right.

However, this is not the case when we are talking about the sale of a business. Under the Real Estate and Business Brokers Act the term “real estate” is defined to include real property, leasehold and business whether with or without premises, fixtures, stock-in-trade, goods or chattels in connection with the operation of the business.

Bob operated a small electrical contracting company. After 25 years in the business, he felt that it was time to retire. In addition to the 10 trucks all clearly marked “Bob’s Electric”, he had recently purchased a minivan. Bob used this vehicle to get to work. He acquired it right at the end of the year so that he could maximize the depreciation. Bob listed the business and negotiated an excellent price.

You might imagine his surprise when it came to the day of closing and his lawyer had prepared a Transfer of the minivan for him to sign. Bob said it was not part of the deal. There was nothing about the minivan in the agreement of purchase and sale. This was true!

His lawyer reviewed the agreement and said that the definition of “real estate” when it concerned the sale of a business included chattels. Since the minivan had been acquired and used in connection with the business, no matter how remote this connection might be, the minivan was deemed to be part of the deal. The obligation rested upon Bob to clearly exclude it, if that was his intention. It did not have to be written into the agreement to become part of the deal. Silence meant the minivan was part of the deal.

So, on closing the purchaser received an assignment of the lease, the stock-in-trade, the fixtures, the 10 trucks, and to his surprise, Bob’s brand new minivan that he drove to work.

In addition, there is one more little problem here worth mentioning. Bob was attracted to the minivan because of the zero percent financing spread out over five years. You guessed it! The agreement of purchase and sale conveyed the title to the assets “free and clear of all encumbrances”. So, out of the funds due on closing, Bob had to pay off the loan on the minivan in order that the purchaser would get clear title.

This little glitch arises in many business transactions, but most of the time neither the buyer nor the seller are aware, and no one asks about the minivan that the owner uses to get to work. There was some good news however. Bob had been thinking about buying a Mercedes.

http://ontariorealestatesource.blogspot.com/2009/07/dont-sell-minivan-by-mistake.html

reviewed by Moishe Alexander, canadian funding corp CEO

I do not know whether it has anything at all to do with my profession, or if it is the series of books that lawyers are so fond to prominently display behind their desks. Those old, conspicuous textbooks with ominous titles written in gold Gothic characters on yellowish or greenish hardbound covers, barely readable, much less understandable. I noticed that no matter whether the law office is located in Canada or in the United States, those textbooks look exactly alike. I still have to see a single lawyer actually reading one of them, however, so my personal theory is that those books are hollow inside and used to conceal who knows whatever arcane secret items or, perhaps, just unsavory culinary recipes. In real estate too we are fast approaching the time when our shelves are going to be filled with all sorts of books. Yellow, red and blue, with manuals covering all sorts of topics from Ethics in Real Estate to How to Write a Contract And Not Go To Jail. I have been tinkering with the idea of writing a manual myself – just a small pocketbook entitled “Top 10 Successful Strategies To Defuse Sellers Armed With Pitchforks”, which I figure would be an instant hit with many of us.

With the ever-advancing technology of our times fields of expertise that are crowd-oriented, such as the legal and real estate professions, are poised to experience dramatic changes in the forthcoming years. As it relates specifically to real estate, to be sure, technology has had already a great impact but innovation is not over yet and it is not confined merely to the use of sophisticated hardware. There is on the horizon a new conceptualization of professionalism, an absolutely novel way to haess individual resources for the common good of all. It is called ‘collective intelligence’, a techno-jargon concept that will revolutionize the way we – the professionals – think, act and interact among ourselves as well as with the communities we serve. Collective intelligence tinkers with the way cognition and information processing are structured and relayed to consumers, especially when they involve knowledge, expertise and leaing. It also delves into methods of gathering and sharing information and resources that bind different groups, or associations, or disciplines. Real estate is, of course, intertwined with banking, law, economics, marketing and urban sciences and collective intelligence links and bind together different networks or resources to coordinate a more efficient and comprehensive response to ever- sophisticated demands.

Real estate professionals are called more and more to field questions that go over and beyond the mere act of selling. In fact, it can be said that selling in real estate already represents the last stage when the professional is finally compensated. But before that there is an array of issues that must be confronted and answered, ranging from understanding regional economics such as, for instance, local job environments and trades to proficiency in specific areas such as cultural orientation and demographic diversity to acquaintance with well-defined facets of disciplines the likes of architectural styles, land-assembly and development, and contract law. This radicalization of the real estate business to come is in response to the evolution of choices of market participants. Although singular consumers do not have more power over market events than before, they certainly have improved their chances of getting what they want because they have a greater variety of choices. We are, in essence, entering an era where the professional leas and stores information gathered from a group or organization and is ready to deliver it to a consumer, or another group or organization, on demand for the purpose of enhancing choices through expertise.

Sharing information is of paramount importance in real estate, since there is not a ‘national’ market per se. Real estate is made of a compilation of local economies, each abiding to a set or sets of local inputs and variables. What is happening in Toronto does not directly affect what is happening in Vancouver. And yet, there is a common thread shared in the needs of individual expressions of market participants, no matter where they are located. The Realtor, as an integral part of his function and purpose, is going to be required to contribute to the building of a consensus decision-making process that involves meeting everyone’s needs and which is intended to promote and enhance the decision-making process of each individual consumer, whether a person, a group of persons or an organization.

http://realestatesold.blogspot.com/2009/07/tinkering-with-cognition.html

viewed by Moishe Alexander, CFC CEO

“We are looking forward to the areas that address energy efficiency,” said Moishe Alexander CEO, Canadian Funding Corp. ” Ralph Izzo and PSEG are moving in the right direction and their work has been admirable.”

“Transparency and continuous improvement are an important part of working towards a sustainable future,” said Ralph Izzo, chairman, president and chief operating officer of PSEG. “This report is meant to strengthen dialogue with stakeholders and help us achieve our collective goals.”

The report highlights PSEG’s emphasis on addressing climate change, upgrading aging infrastructure, and investing in workforce development. It underscores the company’s commitment to social responsibility and points to a number of energy efficiency and renewable energy initiatives that have the potential to mitigate climate change and create revenue and jobs.

• Report highlights include PSEG’s work to:
• Invest in energy efficiency and renewable energy
• Reduce greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants
• Manage risk, reduce debt and manage capital spending
• Build a strong, resilient workforce
• Increase funding for environmentally-oriented community groups
• Attract jobs and revenue to local communities

The company’s utility, PSE&G, is investing millions of dollars in accelerated gas and electric infrastructure investments, which is improving reliability while providing an economic stimulus. And it is working to build the green economy on the basis of universal access to energy efficiency and renewable energy, so that its benefits can be realized by people of all economic means.

PSEG is proud of its place on the Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index, a list comprised of the leading 20% of North American companies in terms of sustainability performance. Dow Jones and PSEG agree that long-term shareholder value is created by embracing opportunities and managing risks derived from economic, environmental and social developments.

PSEG’s Sustainability Report is consistent with Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) guidelines, which are quickly becoming the standard in global sustainability reporting. GRI guidelines were used to identify key performance indicators including some specific to sustainability reporting in the electric power industry. PSEG sponsored a GRI workshop last year where stakeholders reviewed the Draft Electric Utility Sector Supplement.

Public Service Enterprise Group is a publicly traded diversified energy company with annual revenues of more than $13 billion, and three principal subsidiaries: PSEG Power, Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G) and PSEG Energy Holdings. PSEG has recently launched several initiatives to help combat climate change including offering $105 million in loans for solar installations in New Jersey, bidding to build a 350-megawatt offshore wind farm, launching Energy Storage and Power (a compressed air energy storage business), converting its truck and car fleet to hybrid vehicles and exploring the possibility of a new nuclear plant to be located in South Jersey.