The Home Economist: Money can’t

By Brett Graff
brett@thehomeeconomist.com
The National Retail Association is gushing over its recently released estimate showing we’re all about to spend $17.6 billion on Valentine’s Day gifts for the people we love — that’s an 8.5 percent increase from last year and highest amount we’ve spent in 10 years. And while perhaps that’s encouraging for the South Florida shopping enclaves, scientists say those of us who prioritize our jewels, our watches and our store-bought status items are most likely to be the least satisfied in the very marriages that many of those gifts are supposed to symbolize.
“Materialism does not benefit a long-term, satisfying, stable relationship,” says Luke Dean, the financial planning program director at William Paterson University in Wayne, N.J. “For that, you need to focus on people and the relationship and have less an emphasis on things.”
Dean has made a career out of studying money and its effect on our feelings, recently publishing powerful new findings that prove the more materialistic the married couple, the less satisfying the marriage. The results are shocking even to Dean — spouses with similar values are supposed to be happier — and suggest that if we’re truly devoted to our matrimonies, we’ll put away the cash and instead invest more meaningful resources.
It’s a goal that might be both trickier and more essential here in Miami. While it’s difficult to measure materialism, we are after all — don’t say you haven’t noticed — one of seven U.S. cities with a Real Housewives franchise. More officially, our city’s divorce rate got national attention in 2010 when The Daily Beast ranked Miami as 26th nationwide.
“The thirst for materialism pushes people to live beyond their means,” says Charlotte Karlan, a North Miami divorce lawyer.
“In South Florida you’ll see a lot of it. That thirst absolutely does drive people towards divorce.”
It’s an unpleasant ride filled with conflict and frustration, says Dean, who examined questionnaires filled out by 1,700 married couples. Spouses who said that money and possessions were essential to their happiness in life also admitted communicating less effectively with their partners and arguing with them more forcefully. Materialistic people also said their matrimonial unions were less stable and that they derived from them smaller amounts of satisfaction. These effects were amplified in couples made up of two materialistic partners, as opposed to just one.
“Generally research supports the idea that in relationships, similarities are like assets,” Dean says. “The more similar two people are, the better off their relationship. But that’s not true with materialism because there’s no person to serve as an anchor — a steady reminder that people are more important than possessions.”
It makes sense, says Olivia Mellan, a psychotherapist and author of Money Harmony, who notes that money seems to hold a permanent seat atop all the lists citing reasons for martial discontent. Spending budgets — even for the wealthy — are generally fixed. Two materialistic people will rarely agree on, say the yacht or the home renovations.
“If they have different goals they’ll fight about those differences,” she says. “Couples who polarize are normal. The trick is to remember that money is not love, power, control, security or happiness.”
The “negative conflict” mentioned by the researchers? They‘re talking about name calling and yelling, says Dr. Netta Shaked, a Miami licensed clinical psychologist. Healthy arguing — which involves respecting a different point of view — introduces solutions for solving problems, she says. What’s more, you have to feel your partner meets most of your needs and helps you feel comfortable expressing them.
“Communication is the crux to any healthy relationship,” says Shaked.
Becoming less materialistic might also help matters, says Dr. Ronda Fuchs, a licensed clinical psychologist in Miami Beach. The first step to shedding a status-conscious outlook: acknowledge that it’s selfish in nature, she says. That’s because materialism embraces actions such as acquiring and receiving, rather than sharing and giving. Reverse your self-absorption by engaging in activities that focus on the other person: volunteer together for a non-profit organization, make a meal your partner enjoys, rub the other person’s tired feet or take them for a walk to watch the sunset.
“Materialism offers temporary happiness,” Fuchs says. “Sharing is what helps us feel truly fulfilled.”

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/02/11/2635383/the-home-economist-money-cant.html#storylink=cpy

Public services reform showing mixed results, says report

By Jane Dudman

Defence, Home Office and Justice are driving through "real reform", but others are failing, thinktank reveals

Ministry of Defence Apache Longbow helicopters. A new report shows the MoD, Home Office and Justice departments are leading government reform, but others are falling behind. Photograph: MoD/PA

The Ministry of Defence under its former secretary of state Liam Fox, the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice are the three government departments where real reform is taking place, according to a new report.
In its second annual rating of central government reform, centre-right thinktank Reform says it has applied "dispassionate" analysis to assess the impact of the government's programme to cut the public sector deficit and reform public services – and has come up with some surprises.
Neither of the two departments at the heart of the government's reform drive, the Treasury and the Cabinet Office, are judged to be carrying out "real reform". The Cabinet Office's open public services white paper and transparency agency have not succeeded in changing the culture of public service delivery, so the thinktank believes the department is "coasting" on reform, while the Treasury is judged to be going backwards, because its ringfencing of health and schools budgets has put a "handbrake" on reform and efficiency in those sectors.
The report says central government's top reformers in 2011 were Fox, Kenneth Clarke and Theresa May, while the losers are Andrew Lansley and George Osborne. Fox gains praise for his support for radical civil service reform and his policy that the private sector should jointly manage the entire defence estate, while May is "driving better performance within tighter budgets".
However, the thinktank's praisethe Ministry of Defence contrasts sharply with yesterday's National Audit Office report which criticises the department for making drastic cuts in its headcount without making planning in detail how it will operate in the future.
The report concludes that the government can deliver successful public service reform, but calls into doubt the prime minister's commitment to public service reform, and criticises his "micromanagement" of NHS waiting times, nursing standards, adoption and troubled families. The thinktank also says the government's U-turn on the NHS has overshadowed the whole public service reform agenda.
"Management of reform matters," says the report. "This is a moment of truth. It is practically impossible for governments to recover the momentum of reform once it has been lost." The report says the government should implement a full-scale review of health and education workforces, to make them more flexible, adding that the proposal to introduce regional public sector pay is a mere "baby step" towards the kind of change that is required, on the model of the Winsor review of policing. It also says the government should reform "fast and at scale".
Writing for the Public Leaders Network, Tara Majumbar, a researcher at the Reform thinktank, says public service leaders across the country are using the cuts as a real catalyst for improving services. She cites West Midlands police as an example where financial pressure resulted in a programme that has "entirely changed the culture and processes of the force".
Majumbar says the prime minister David Cameron needs to recognise that there has been real change in departments that mave made the case for competition, value for money and greater accountability to users. "These departments have let public leaders make the decisions that are best for their services," she argues.

Obama, No Same-Sex Marriage Supporter, Solicits Cash at Home of Lesbian Couple

By Devin Dwyer
President Obama, who has opposed same-sex marriage but is said to be “evolving” on the issue, this evening is attending a fundraiser at the home of a lesbian couple whose 2008 Chicago nuptials were described in a local paper as the “wedding of the season.”
Obama will collect an estimated $1.4 million for his re-election campaign from an intimate group of around 40 gay and lesbian supporters at the home of Karen Dixon and Dr. Nan Schaffer in Washington, D.C., according to a campaign official.
Dixon and Schaffer, transplants from Chicago, held a wedding ceremony in July 2008 with hundreds of guests attending from all across the country, according to an account in the Windy City Times.   Photos of the ceremony are available HERE.
But their marriage was not afforded the same legal recognition and benefits as heterosexual couples because same-sex marriage is not legal in Illinois. (It’s unclear whether the couple has filed for a legal marriage certificate in D.C., where gay marriage is now performed. The couple could not be reached for comment.)
Obama has remained mum on his view on whether couples such as Dixon and Schaffer should be able to legally wed in states across the country, preferring instead to let each state decide for itself.
“I think it’s important for us to work through these issues because each community is going to be different, each state is going to be different,” he said in June after New York became the sixth and largest state to legalize same-sex marriage. Washington state this week became the seventh.
The position — a new twist for Obama, who appeared to support legalizing the unions in 1996, later opposed them and most recently said his views are “evolving” — has rankled advocates who say the president is making a calculated political decision with an eye toward 2012.
He has, however, opposed the federal Defense of Marriage Act and opposes a federal marriage amendment to the Constitution.
“The president’s position on these issues writ large are well known,” White House press secretary Jay Carney said this week. “You know his position, where it stands now, on the position of same-sex marriage. I don’t have much to add on that.”
Asked whether Obama supports marriages like that between Dixon and Schaffer and whether their marriage in Chicago should have been afforded the same rights and privileges as those given to heterosexual couples, Obama campaign spokesman Ben LaBolt offered the following comment:
“The President has long opposed a Federal Marriage Amendment, supported the repeal of DOMA, and been clear that this was a matter than states should decide.”
Schaffer is a veterinary doctor who specializes in rhinoceros reproduction, according to her biography in the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame. She is also a philanthropist, political activist and co-founder of the Windy City Media Group.
Dixon is an attorney and GLBT community advocate.

Home sales rebound across county

By Vicki Stout For Williamson A.M
Fieldstone, Westhaven were most active in 2011

 Fieldstone Farms, Franklin’s first planned development, and Westhaven, the neighborhood that will soon overtake it as the biggest in the county, were the top-selling neighborhoods in Williamson County in 2011.
According to Diane Osowiecki and Mandy Buchholz of Diane O and Friends, out of Benchmark Realty in Brentwood, home sales improved in 2011 after several challenging years.
“Fieldstone ... has a Publix grocery store, restaurants and a school. It has everything from condos to zero-lot line to a senior community,” Osowiecki said of the neighborhood, which registered 131 home sales in 2011.
Amy Tarter of Bob Parks Realty says Fieldstone remains desirable because of its good location, pool, clubhouse and homes in a wide variety of price ranges.Westhaven, with 115 home sales in 2011 — with an average sales price of $526,000 — was the second-best seller in Franklin, according to Osowiecki.“They have lots of amenities, and building has really begun booming there again,” Tarter said.
The third-most-active neighborhood in Franklin for 2011 was McKay’s Mill. According to Osowiecki, 72 single-family homes sold there.
“The community is now a seller’s market,” she said. “There’s so little inventory there. It’s a very popular live, work and play community.”
Next on the list, she said, is Ladd Park, with 58 single-family homes sold.
“The community has over two miles of Harpeth River frontage; 240 acres of open space are connected by 10 acres of trails, making it very desirable,” Osowiecki said.
Tarter said Ladd Park’s prices became more reasonable in 2011, helping it make a comeback from a lull.
Fifth on the list of top sellers in Franklin is Franklin Green with 51 sales in 2011. Osowiecki says this community’s great price point made it a top seller. Tarter says the price point and family orientation of the community enhanced its sales.
Brookfield moves in Brentwood
Osowiecki says Brookfield was the top-selling Brentwood community, with 36 homes selling in 2011.
“The homes in this neighborhood range in size from 3,000-plus square feet to 5,000-plus square feet,” Osowiecki said.
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End energy profiteering: The rich get richer, the poor get colder

By Simon Read
Big Six suppliers heading for bumper profits and bonuses as more than 5.5 million UK homes hit by fuel poverty

More than 5.5 million households are suffering under fuel poverty, many being forced to choose between heating or eating.
Meanwhile the Big Six energy suppliers increased their profit margins by 733 per cent in just three months last year. Enough is enough. Today The Independent supports a campaign to force energy companies to share their profits with the needy. The aim is simple: to make essential home energy affordable to all.
An estimated 3,000 winter deaths are caused every year by fuel poverty and as the winter chill really begins to hit home, with more snow and icy weather forecast for the next few days, it could be the worst time for the vulnerable, particularly the elderly.
Research by Age UK last month found that two million elderly people are so cold that they go to bed when they're not tired in an attempt to keep energy bills down. More than two-fifths of people surveyed admitted to turning their heating down even when cold.
Average household bills have doubled in the past six years from around £600 a year in 2006 to more than £1,200 a year now. The increases have more people than ever slipping into fuel poverty – when their gas and electricity costs account for at least a tenth of their income. According to research from uSwitch, £1,500 a year on energy is the tipping point at which three-quarters of households will start rationing their energy, three-fifths will go without adequate heating and more than a third will be forced to turn their heating off entirely.
That figure looks like edging ever closer as further energy increases seem highly likely, especially after wholesale gas prices reached a six-year high earlier this week. Meanwhile, in October the regulator Ofgem revealed that energy suppliers had increased their profit margins by a whopping 733 per cent, from £15 to £125 per household.
The campaign – End The Big Six Energy Fix – is being co-ordinated by pressure group Compass and has already attracted cross-party support from politicians as well as economists, civil society leaders, charities, religious leaders, celebrities and campaigners. The 100 leading figures are today urging the Government to tackle the predatory behaviour of big energy companies by introducing a new levy on their profits.
They set out their three demands in a letter published in today's Independent signed by a range of figures – including the Green Party leader Caroline Lucas, the former Home Secretary David Blunkett and the Tory parliamentary private secretary Mark Lancaster.
The main aim is to introduce a windfall tax on energy companies' profits and to use the money raised to make homes energy efficient, which would also reduce fuel poverty. The funds raised should be ring-fenced to help people with their energy costs, particularly those living in fuel poverty.
The campaign is launched ahead of the profit announcements of the big energy companies later this month. In the first six months of 2011 alone the Big Six energy companies posted profits of around £3.5bn.
Caroline Lucas, leader of the Green Party, said: "It is completely outrageous that the Big Six are able to rake in eye-watering profits as people up and down the country are forced to choose between heating their homes and feeding their families.
"These companies are delivering a crucial public service, and it is now the Government's responsibility to hold them to account for failing to provide anything close to a fair deal for consumers. We need to see Ofgem taking a far stronger role in regulating this out-of-control industry."
Andy Atkins, executive director of Friends of the Earth, said: "It's scandalous that the major energy firms are netting billions of pounds in profit while more than five million households in Britain struggle to heat their homes."
Gavin Hayes, general secretary of Compass, said: "If the Government can impose a levy on the big oil companies, then why not impose a similar levy on big energy companies?"
Campaigners are encouraging people to sign a new petition at www.endthebigsixenergyfix.org.uk. They hope that public support will pile pressure on the Chancellor to announce plans for a levy in March's Budget.
From today the campaign will be targeting millions of people across Britain through Twitter and Facebook.
Case study: 'It's a case of sitting back and hoping the bills aren't too high'
Owen Ellis, 77, finds paying for heating his home a real struggle, especially since the Coalition Government cut back the annual winter fuel payment this year by £50
"My monthly income is about £400 so I can't afford to keep the heating on all the time," said the former local council worker, who has been living alone in east London since his wife died three years ago.
"But I'm one of the lucky ones as the flat I rent is new and well insulated, so if I blast the heating for a couple of hours, it keeps the flat warm for a few hours longer."
He sticks £7 away every fortnight to pay for his quarterly heating bills. "It's a case of sitting back and hoping the bills aren't too high when they come in," he said.
"The Government's attitude simply seems to be that if they take the money away from the elderly and people die, it will be less of a financial burden on them."

Make money teaching online

By Kim Komando

It’s true that money-making scams are very common online. The good news is there are perfectly legitimate ways to make money over the Internet. Many don’t even involve eBay.

If you have experience as an English language teacher or tutor, you can make extra income teaching English online to Asians, South Americans and other people around the world. It has, in fact, suddenly become an incredible growth industry.

Most of the teachers providing this service work part time from home, and — thanks to broadband Internet video-conferencing — it doesn’t matter if that home is in Cody, Wyo., or Miami. Talk about globalization!

In the early days of teaching English online, freelancers had to hustle to find their own clients. Today, there are several online services that act as liaisons between learners and teachers.

Online language services all work a little differently. One might be a better fit for you than another, depending on how entrepreneurial you are.

Once you’re accepted at Verbalplanet.com (www.verbalplanet.com), for instance, you hang your shingle up in the marketplace and hope that students like your profile and experience. New teachers often offer free trial lessons to attract students and get the positive-feedback ball rolling.

Verbalplanet.com supplies easy-to-use appointment and invoicing software. You set your own rate (most tutors charge around $30 per session), and get paid by the students through PayPal.

Verbalplanet.com is a partner of Harper Collins, which publishes MP3 audio language courses, foreign language dictionaries, and other educational materials. The service takes no cut from the teachers.

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Home economists create placemats for Meals on Wheels

By Rainey Coffin The Spokesman-Review 
It began in the spring of 2009 with a conversation in a Wenatchee quilt shop.
Cathy Lobe, a member of Spokane’s Retired Home Economists, inquired about a number of homemade placemats hanging on the wall. The placemats, Lobe learned, were made by local quilters and donated to Wenatchee’s Meals on Wheels program. Lobe, an avid sewer, came home and shared the idea with the other women of the Spokane Retired Home Economists.
After some discussion and planning, Lobe and members Jan Stripes, Betsy Blake, Donna Graham and Gloria Irsfeld agreed to meet every other month to make their own homemade placemats, which they donate to Spokane’s Meals on Wheels program.
Since 2010, the group has made 2,100 placemats for Meals on Wheels recipients. The placemats also are used in meal centers.
The women, who all hold degrees in home economics, have the same goal.
“It’s ingrained in our family and consumer sciences mind that we give back,” Graham said. “Having contributed more than money and making somebody happy – that’s a real joy,” she said.
Lobe said she feels the same way. “I always knew that sewing was going to be a part of my life, but I’m not going to make clothes. I’m making them (the placemats) for somebody else, and they’re loving it,” she said.
The placemats are made with fabric and supplies donated from other women in the home economists group, giving each a unique look. The placemats include a tag, made by Lobe’s husband, Gary, which says “Made especially for you by a Retired Home Economist.” The women said the response has been positive, both from Meals on Wheels and the clients.
“One senior said that the placemats were so lovely that they should be sold at Kmart,” Lobe said.
Graham added, “For some of the seniors, that was the only thing they got for Christmas in the way of gift,” Graham said.
Irsfeld said it doesn’t take much to make those receiving the placemats happy. “It’s just a simple touch to give somebody pleasure,” she said.
The group’s efforts don’t stop with placemats. During this past holiday season, they called themselves “Christmas Angels,” collected 150 Christmas socks and filled them with personal hygiene products. The socks were donated to the veterans program at Volunteers of America and the CAPA program at Catholic Charities, which includes Crosswalk for teens and Hope House for single moms. The socks were a welcome surprise.
“We were told the Crosswalk kids decorated their Christmas socks,” Lobe said. The Christmas Angels made their goal for this year to 225 socks.
“The response was so great that we and the charities want to do it again. We know exactly what they would like to have now,” Lobe said.
Beyond the Christmas Angels and the placemats, Lobe said their next project is to start a blog about their efforts. She said they want to challenge others to make placemats, similar to the “Million Pillowcase Challenge,” a nationwide project where homemade pillowcases made from simple patterns are donated to local charities.
“Why can’t our placemat project go national?” Lobe asked.

Dierks Bentley: Home

By Dave Heaton

“Home”, the second single and title track off Dierks Bentley’s sixth album, uses a black-and-white photo of the American flag painted on a building for its digital-single cover art, immediately making you think it’s a patriotic song. It is, but it’s the rare patriotic hymn that isn’t strident and acknowledges that the United States can do wrong, that we’re still in the process of growing into the sort of democracy the founding fathers wished to create. “It’s been a long hard ride / Got a ways to go / But this is still the place that we all come home,” Bentley sings as the song’s chorus, right before hitting notes meant to evoke the majesty of the country the first time he sings it, and notes meant to evoke a more bittersweet kind of hope the second time. At the song’s end he sounds both comforted by his thoughts and driven by them to do better, to make the country better.
Thankfully, that song’s role as the album title doesn’t mean Home the album is built around the same concept; what works so well for four minutes would be hard for Bentley to sustain across an album. No, lyrically this album, like most of his others, covers a lot of territory, much of it standard country-music fodder. It starts with “Am I the Only One”, a strutting party anthem (“Am I the only one who wants to have fun tonight?”) that was the album’s first single, a No. 1 country hit in 2010. From there, he moves through a lusty rave-up (“Gonna Die Young”) and a more slowed-down, rapturous ode to drinking as a salve for the recession (“Tip It On Back”) before getting to the patriotic anthem, and follows that with a Brad Paisley-like clever joke that resembles a macho advice column (“Diamonds Make Babies”). After that are some love songs and heartbreak songs, along with another burst of lust that this time reminds us how much modern country music wants to be ‘80s hard rock (“5-1-5-0”), before winding things down with a lonely-heart song that brings up the country’s historical connection to British folk music (“Heart of a Lonely Girl”) before extending the mood of that song into a slow, moody love ballad (“Thinking of You”) that cutely ends with his daughter singing her version of the chorus.
Essentially Bentley starts off the album in almost jock-jam mode, a la his 2009 hit song “Sideways”, with him almost rap-singing, and ends it in contemplative trad-music mode, a la his 2010 bluegrass album Up On the Ridge, with him sounding on the verge of tears, and hits a lot of middle ground in between, much like his career overall has. In that way it resembles the definitive Dierks Bentley album, especially since the songwriting and performances are as strong as anything he’s done yet. It’s a varied batch of songs, but the way they’re placed together yields an album that does somehow feel like a concept album, in tone if not in either musical style or lyrical content. By the end of the album you feel like you’ve been on a journey that has reached its proper end. The starting and ending points of the album are quite different from each other, yet if I restart the album after finishing it, I hear a link between them that ups the emotional impact of both. In other words, before hearing the rest of the album—in isolation on the radio, for example—“Am I the Only One” feels like a dumb party song, but after hearing “Thinking of You”, “Heart of a Lonely Girl”, “When You Gonna Come Around” and the rest, I hear a lot of sadness in it (even if in the song his lonely partying ends when meets a fellow lonely partier, “a country cutie with a rock ‘n’ roll booty”).

There is a weighty, sad atmosphere in a lot of these songs, even when it doesn’t register at first. The pace of “Tip It On Back” and the way he sings on it are sensual, but the climate is economic wasteland, where everything is for sale and no one has the money to buy. On “In My Head”, “Heart of a Lonely Girl” and “Thinking of You” it’s people who are disappearing. “In My Head” depicts an ex-lover as a ghost who is always there, still wearing your T-shirt and sitting at the edge of your bed. “Breathe You In” is a sexy love ballad, but what is in his voice is fear at his inability to keep himself away; also, “You can wear my skin like a new set of clothes” is one of the creepier come-ons that I’ve heard, one it’s hard not to hear in the context of horrific serial-killer headlines. Singing that her body makes him feel like he’s going to die young (“Gonna Die Young”) seems like standard teenage sex-death neuroses, but in the song he gets so fixated on death imagery—from the hearse that’s chasing him to old gospel-song lines like “send my soul to the by and by”—that the air keeps getting heavier, personified by the lonesome fiddle that floats behind him like the Grim Reaper. Musically “The Woods” is all ease and the gorgeous dream of memories, but as he reminisces about escaping with girls into the woods, it’s hard not to think of horror movies, as he tells us “what happens in the woods stays in the woods.” If I was the one he was begging to go into the woods with him, I’m not sure I’d go. And then there’s this, from “5-1-5-0”—“If I don’t get some of your sweet lovin’ / no telling what I might do!”
Whether it represents Bentley releasing his inner stalker or not, there is a deep undercurrent of human longing on the album, on the fun and serious songs alike. By the end, that theme of hearts and their desires grows into something particularly powerful. Accompanied by guitar that’s both plaintive and comforting, the last song, “Thinking of You”, manages to make a tender final statement of love and devotion while still keeping a stirring sorrowful tone in the air. In doing so, it leaves you the listener with the impression that Bentley has made something special here, not just his most consistent album and 2012’s first great country album, but a work that reminds us of the separate power that individual songs can have when they’re strategically placed together on an album. It isn’t a better power than they each have on their own, but it’s a unique one.

Higher energy bills for majority by 2020 despite government reassurances

By Juliette Jowit, political correspondent guardian.co.uk,

Energy and climate polices will only reduce bills for a third of households, analysis of figures obtained by the Guardian shows

Energy secretary Ed Davey (right, with Nick Clegg) said a big uptake of loans to lag lofts and walls could save Britain the equivalent energy of two nuclear power stations. Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

Two out of three householders will pay higher energy bills at the end of the decade despite government reassurances that the average home will fork out less as a result of costly energy and climate policies.
The figures, obtained by the Guardian, come as the new energy secretary, Ed Davey, dedicated his first speech in the job on Wednesday to announcing new measures to step up home energy efficiency amid concern about public opposition to the cost of government policies.
Annual forecasts published by the Department for Energy and Climate Change (Decc) calculate by 2020 household heating and electricity bills will be driven higher by wholesale gas and oil prices, but will be on average £94 lower as a result of measures to increase renewable energy in lieu of fossil fuels, and cut overall energy use through efficiency.
But a deeper analysis requested by the Guardian shows that only one in three homes, or about 10.3m households, will see the predicted reductions in their combined bills as a result of installing one or more of the renewable energy or efficiency measures, or receiving the Warm Home Discount for low-income and vulnerable households. Meanwhile the majority of bill payers, 19.1m, will see an average increase in their bills, over and above the extra costs of rising fossil fuel prices and huge investment in the electricity grid.
These figures follow months of criticism about the cost to home owners of government policies, with critics questioning official forecasts of how much money will be saved by putting smart meters into all homes so bill payers and energy firms can manage the amount used more carefully. The analysis seen by the Guardian also shows the government has based its forecasts for money saved on an oil price up to US$20 a barrel higher than those used by organisations such as the International Energy Agency – with the effect of increasing the estimated savings and flattering the effect on their policies.
Davey, in his first speech since becoming energy secretary following Chris Huhne's resignation last week, claimed that a big uptake of loans to lag lofts and walls could save Britain the equivalent energy of two nuclear power stations.
Announcing a new Energy Efficiency Deployment Office (EEDO) in London, the Liberal Democrat minister said: "I'm hugely enthusiastic about energy efficiency. It's the cheapest way of cutting carbon – and cutting bills for consumers. It has to be right at the heart of what we do.
"EEDO will be a centre of expertise, challenging our work and making energy efficiency real and relevant to people's everyday lives. Two out of three consumers think their home is wasting energy, but only one in three is going to do anything about it. That has to change. We need to get out there and show people what energy efficiency can really do for them."
The speech at the Peter Jones store in London was the second time since his appointment that Davey has talked about energy efficiency, which officials say is key to making sure household bills are not driven too high by government policies.
On Wednesday a Decc spokesman defended those policies, saying that overall average bills would be lower than with no government action, and that even homes that paid higher bills as a result would benefit. "The point of a low-carbon Britain is keeping the lights on, not being increasingly dependent on imports from sometimes volatile parts of the world, and also make sure Britain gets its share of the green industrial revolution," he said.
Responding to the use of a higher "central" oil price forecast, the spokesman added: "You have to make some extreme assumptions about oil and gas prices getting a lot cheaper in the future for this set of policies not to be very sensible for the British consumer."
Green MP Caroline Lucas said all householders should benefit from green energy policies, but warned that the government needed to do more to encourage the take-up of renewable technology, such as wind turbines and solar panels, as well energy efficiency make-overs.
"There's no doubt it will cost money to transform our ageing energy infrastructure to deliver the green, secure power we need for the future, but failing to wean ourselves off oil and gas will cost us much more," said Lucas.
"Unfortunately, the government's plan to make these measures happen falls far short of what's needed. Ed Davey must now make it a personal priority to strengthen this weak and underfunded programme to maximise take up and deliver a good deal for households."
Decc's figures show that in both cost and as a percentage of income, all income groups and almost all household types will pay more for energy bills in 2020 if they do not implement any green energy measures or receive the Warm Home Discount. More worryingly, the increase in energy costs as a proportion of household income is greatest for the 10% lowest earners and pensioners.

Debating home rule

By Donna Barker - dbarker@bcrnews.com

PRINCETON — Princeton residents continue to hash out the pros and cons of home rule, a designation which gives city officials more taxing options, greater spending flexibility and more authority over state mandates.

About 80 people attended Tuesday's meeting at the Bureau County Metro Center, sponsored by the Home Rule Committee, a 12-member citizens committee appointed last summer to study the home rule issue for the Princeton City Council. In September, the committee recommended the city council put the home rule question before voters on the March 20 primary ballot. Members of the committee have now established a "Princeton Residents for Self-Reliance" Facebook page, which addresses the home rule issue.
In an opening 10-minute Power Point presentation, committee member Katie Chamberlain reviewed the committee's research and what the committee sees as the advantages to home rule. All communities which are at least 25,000 in population are automatically home rule communities, and all communities should be treated equally regardless of their size, she said.
"I don't think there is a problem in taking some power away from Springfield and giving it to the local community," Chamberlain added. "Home rule provides a local solution for local issues."
Following Chamberlain's presentation, the audience was given about 60 minutes to make comments and ask questions, with Al Taylor starting the conversation by asking the committee to summarize the advantages to home rule.
In response, committee member Jerry Neumann said non-home rules communities are subject to numerous mandates placed upon them, which a home rule community could reject. Non-home rule communities have more spending regulations placed upon them, while home rule communities can implement taxes to services or products, possibly through a gas tax or hotel/motel tax, in order to generate more money, Neumann said.
"Home rule just gives citizens more choices," Neumann said. "If we vote it down, the only way to generate more money would be to borrow or through more property taxes."
Committee member Joel Quiram agreed, saying Princeton has an unprecedented $28 million in debt, and that number will increase to $40 million with the new water treatment plant being built. More than 60 percent of the debt will be paid by utility bills, with Princeton's electric and water rates continuing to go up, he said.
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Home Made Theater in Saratoga Springs to present Agatha Christie whodunit "And Then There Were None"

By BOB GOEPFERT
entertainment518@journalregister.com

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Home Made Theater will open a play Friday by one of the most popular playwrights to ever write for the stage.
William Shakespeare? Neil Simon?
No. Agatha Christie.
Any theater company that craves a crowd-pleasing box office hit knows that putting an Agatha Christie work on the schedule is akin to printing money.
Home Made Theater will do one better.
Their production won’t be a mere Agatha Christie mystery — HMT is presenting “And Then There Were None,” the work that made Christie a legend. While “The Mousetrap” is her longest running play, and you can argue that “Witness for the Prosecution” is her best play, the craftsmanship of “And Then There Were None” defines Christie as the master of the genre.
The setting of the play is an isolated island to which 10 guests arrive. No one knows anyone else and they appear to have absolutely nothing in common. One by one the guests are murdered. Not only murdered, but killed in accordance to an old nursery rhyme that foretells how the next person will die. Adding to the mystery, the rhyme ends with “And then there were none,” making it seem impossible to figure out “whodunit.”
Directing the play for Home Made Theater is Dianne O’Neill Filer, who calls the play “brilliantly crafted” and describes Christie as a “very clever playwright.”
“She drops hints all throughout the play, along with red herrings by the acre,” Filer said. “Yet it is almost impossible to figure out who is committing the murders.”
Filer pointed out that though the play was first produced in 1943 and several film versions have been made (most under the title “Ten Little Indians”), audiences are still surprised at the ending. Continued...
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Taxman to target builders and home delivery tax cheats

By Nick Huber

HOME-IMPROVEMENT tradespeople such as roofers, bricklayers and carpenters, and people who make money from hand-delivered home catalogues are to be targeted by the taxman in the latest campaigns against tax evasion.
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) investigators will also focus on people who fail to complete tax returns, particularly higher-rate taxpayers. HMRC reaffirmed plans to launch campaigns targeted at electricians and people who trade on e-marketplaces such as e-bay.

Previous targets for tax clampdowns have included tutors and coaches, plumbers, medics and offshore bank account holders.
As with previous campaigns the new campaigns will try to encourage people in the targeted groups to come clean about tax owed in return for favourable settlement terms.
HMRC will use new technology to search the Internet for information about targeted people and businesses and cross-reference the information with tax returns.
Accountancy firm PKF welcomed the announcement of new disclosure facilities but questioned whether they were the most cost-effective approach to tackling tax evasion.
John Cassidy, tax investigation and dispute resolution partner at PKF, said that a broader tax amnesty for amnesty for all individuals and the self-employed would be more cost effective because of "economies of scale".

Harrison stands to lose lots of money to Franciscan Home Health

By Rachel Pritchett
BREMERTON — More information has come to light about why Harrison Medical Center is so strenuously opposing Franciscan Health System's attempt to bring its version of home health to Kitsap County.
Harrison will lose even more money with the new competition than it is now with its own Harrison Home Health, according to a letter Harrison strategist Bob Cross sent in August to the state Department of Health and obtained Tuesday by the Kitsap Sun through a public-documents request.
Harrison Home Health already is losing $284,330 a year as it provides services such as help in dressing and eating to discharged hospital patients now at home, according to the letter. If the department allows Franciscan Home Health to come in, Harrison will lose an additional $108,170 a years for a grand total annual loss of $392,500.
Harrison Home Health by far is the biggest provider of home health in Kitsap, and estimates it will make 2,436 fewer home visits after three year to Franciscan.
"We already lose money on home health," Cross said Wednesday. Both Harrison and Franciscan provide in-home follow-up for patients because it's the right thing to do, and because under health care reform "hospitals will be financially penalized by Medicare" if discharged patients return to hospitals too soon, according to Franciscan spokesman Gale Robinette.
Harrison also is accusing the department of using an outdated and capricious formula to decide whether to allow a new agency to set up shop in new territory. Currently, if there's capacity for a new agency to make 10,000 home-health visits in a specific area, then there's probably room for it to move in, according to the rule.
"Say who? Says who why?" asked Cross, adding the rule made in 1987 is not in state law. Harrison Home Health currently makes 21,864 visits annually, and without too much trouble, could increase that to 30,500 visits, according to the letter of objection to Franciscan's certificate-of-need application.
Bigger is better, Cross said. Overhead costs are spread across more patients, making delivery of services cheaper.
But Franciscan's application states it believes more agencies are needed. There are four certified providers in Kitsap now: Harrison, Group Health Home Health and Hospice, Gentiva Health Services and Signature Home Health. Franciscan believes more than six will be needed by 2015, based on the department's 10,000 rule.
Franciscan's application states the hospital system already is experiencing delays placing its patients in home-health situations.
"(Franciscan Health System) has increasingly experienced delays and problems in discharging certain patient types to home health," it stated.
Franciscan's application also suggests it wants to keep its home-health patients in the Franciscan system. They're easier to track and for a longer period of time. It expects 95 percent of its home-health business will be for patients exiting its hospitals or who have received services from its clinics.
Cross responded that Harrison Home Health never has turned down Franciscan patients, and that it's working to improve its home-health electronic patient records so that they can more easily be shared with other providers.
"The whole idea is you want different systems to be able to talk to each other," Cross said.
A decision from the department is expected in about three weeks. If granted, Franciscan could begin offering its own brand of home-health services in Kitsap County within months.

Sculpture set for new home under £44k revamp plan

By Lois Hough
LONG-awaited plans to revamp an area of Shotton have been rubber-stamped by councillors.
Shotton Town Council voted to press ahead with a scheme to improve Rowleys Drive at a cost of £44,000.
This will include tree planting, the resurfacing of the car park, the installation of CCTV cameras and the erection of a 12ft steel sculpture.
Councillors had previously been asked to decide between a scheme to transform Ash Grove at a cost of £24,000 or a pricier scheme at Rowleys Drive.
Members said both schemes were too expensive and requested a detailed breakdown of costs before they made a decision.
Gavin Griffith, housing renewal manager at Flintshire Council, told a meeting of the town council: “The renewal area funding is a window of opportunity we should make the most of before the end of the financial year.
“We don’t have a particular preference for a scheme but we have a certain amount of money we can allow for the scheme.”
Anna Roberts, renewal area project leader at Flintshire Council, said: “Both schemes offer value for money when compared to national costs.”
The makeover forms part of the Welsh Government’s 10-year Deeside Neighbourhood Renewal Area plan.
A masterplan for Connah’s Quay and Shotton, drawn up by Flintshire Council and planning consultants Urban Practitioners, was approved last July by the council’s executive committee.
It includes re-developing Connah’s Quay Civic Centre, improving pedestrian and bicycle routes, upgrading Connah’s Quay Precinct and the environment around Shotton railway bridge.
There are also plans to open up Shotton town centre by removing railings.
Cllr Janette Danks told the meeting: “If funding is not a problem then we should choose the more expensive scheme.”
The ‘steel man’ sculpture – which will take pride of place at Rowleys Drive – represents a steelworker at the old John Summers and Sons site, which at its peak employed about 13,000 people.
The sculpture, known formally as the Giant of Hawarden Bridge, was moved to a roundabout at County Hall in Mold several years ago when the former Alyn and Deeside Council offices in Ewloe closed.
But Shotton Town Council won a campaign to bring it home to Deeside.

SHOTTON Town Council is also backing a campaign to halt an incinerator being built on Deeside.
No decision has been made on the type of technology or a site to service the facility – earmarked to deal with residual waste from Flintshire, Denbighshire, Anglesey, Gwynedd and Conwy.
But an outline business case presented by North Wales Residual Waste Treatment Project (NWRWTP) bosses gave Deeside Industrial Estate as an example of a
location for an incinerator to handle waste which cannot be recycled.
Campaign leaders at Connah’s Quay Town Council wrote to members of Shotton Town Council for their support in opposition, which they pledged at a meeting on Monday night.
Previously Connah’s Quay councillor Bernie Attridge claimed a waste burner would have an “unacceptable impact” on the health of people in Deeside and beyond.
Hundreds of people from Connah’s Quay, Shotton and Sealand have also signed a petition against any potential incinerator.

Tony Mowbray: 'Red Adair' at home in Boro hotseat

By Martin Hardy
Firefighting manager understands local pride is at stake in tonight's FA Cup tie with Sunderland. He talks to Martin Hardy

Tony Mowbray is incredulous. "I would never have dreamed of going into Bruce Rioch's office and moaning about this and that," he says. "You just got on with what you were told to do." We are talking about one of his Middlesbrough players, who has a desire to go out on loan. The incredulity soon passes. Mowbray is too affable and engaging for that, as Rioch would testify.

A legend was born when the former Middlesbrough manager said of the current one, when he was captain: "If I had to fly to the moon, I would take Tony Mowbray with me."
Twenty-five years on, a fanzine taken from that quote (Fly Me to the Moon), still flourishes on Teesside. Twenty five years on, Mowbray is breathing life into his hometown football club. They lie in sixth place in the Championship, and despite a run of one win in eight games will fancy their chances when Sunderland make the short trip to the Riverside for tonight's FA Cup tie.
Red Adair's phone used to ring whenever the oil fires were out of control. At Middlesbrough, when the lights are going out, they turn to Mowbray. He was barely 22 when Rioch handed him the captain's armband of a bankrupt Third Division club back in 1986. Mowbray and a bunch of youth players with dyed blond hair somehow blasted Middlesbrough, a club locked out of their own ground at the start of that season, back into the old First Division.
The gates were not locked when Mowbray got the call 15 months ago, but there were genuine reasons for concern. Middlesbrough had received their final Premier League parachute payment. Gates had fallen to around 15,000. The unthinkable – relegation back to the third tier of English football – was a real possibility.
In their hour of need, Mowbray's bat-phone flashed and the heart warmed so much at the prospect of coming home, that he passed up the small fortune Celtic still owed him to succeed Gordon Strachan.
"Do I feel like a Boro Red Adair?" he replies. "Ha ha, yeah, but then my managerial jobs have been a bit like that. I never felt it was inevitable I would be manager here. It was always about the timing. It was more a natural thing to be captain. I was the last man standing then!
"I made a few sacrifices to take the manager's job here, I had a lot of contractual money from Celtic that I gave up to take the job. I could have been sat on my backside at home, but there was the draw of this club, the timing might never have been right again if I had waited for my contractual obligations with Celtic to have expired.
"My career would have moved on, a new manager would have come in and the two paths might never have crossed again. The draw of it was too great to risk that."
He still remembers going down to the steelworks in Redcar with his dad, a scaffolder, as a child. He feels the job losses a bit more, understands the empty seats, promises to tell them how it is. "I think I empathise with the fans more because I'm a local lad," he adds.
"I know when the fans are disillusioned, my friends are all Boro fans and they give me their thoughts.
"I grew up in this area. I lived here 'til I was 27. I lived in Redcar where there was the Corus steel plant. My dad used to take me to the blast furnace and I can still remember the heat in my face.
"I know the people of Teesside. They are hardworking, they are honest, they call it as it is and they tell you how it is. I would like to think I'm no different. The supporters know what they get from me. I will tell them how it is. I won't give them manager's spiel. There will always be an honest and a straight answer."
There is a humility and warmth to Mowbray that is refreshing. He has football flowing through his veins but he drips more with compassion. He remains unclear as to why such vitriol came his way during his brief tenure at Celtic. He wanted to build a legacy but those in power panicked less than a year into his programme.
He has the faith once more, back home, among people who trust him, but there are no illusions. Spending £1.3m on Lukas Jutkiewicz last month was a huge deal. Big earners have been shipped out, attendances have slowly started to rise, there is cautious optimism and the football is more slick.
But for now, a man who left the North-east to go to Celtic as a player in 1991, before making the reverse journey almost 20 years later, knows the importance of results. "We are trying to get a successful team on the pitch and one that will excite our supporters," he adds. "If we win, I go home, play with the kids and throw them about and tickle their tummies. If we lose, then nothing. Joking apart, the overriding factor of defeat is sadness. You feel you've let people down.
"Things are fine here though. I've worked hard since I came back and I'm still working as hard as I possibly can to try and stay in the top end of this table and try and get us back into the promised land. I enjoy coming into work every day and that is important.
"I talk to the young lads who have the Porsches and the Audis and the Bentleys and I break it down, I strip away the trappings. I say, 'I'm a guy looking you in the eye and I'm telling you this is what has to happen. I ain't interested in how much we pay you. I'm stripping you down to be a footballer. I can make you a better player'.
"I have a philosophy. We educate, we try to teach, the job is to inspire and give them a cause to fight for."
A cause. Middlesbrough's cause. Mowbray's cause.

Homeowners Make Money by Not Foreclosing

By Laurie Danas
In an effort to get rid of delinquent mortgages, some banks are offering as much as $35,000 as a bonus to homeowners that sell their properties under what they owe. The transaction, called a short sale is usually a last ditch effort, but now banks are finding these deals are faster and cheaper than foreclosures. The banks loss is about 15 percent lower than that on a foreclosure.
According to Guy Cecala, publisher of Inside Mortgage Finance, lenders are learning that several borrowers are willing to they wait for a loan modification even at the risk of repossession. In a loan modification, the monthly note is reduced to avoid repossession. Homeowners in foreclosure may go years without making payments before actually being forced out. “That’s why the banks have got to pay the big bucks,” Cecala said. “The real question is why is the bribe so big? Is that what it takes to get somebody out of their home?”
JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) is handing out the largest incentives. The bank is approving about 5,000 short sales a month and usually offers between $10,000 and $35,000 in payments. Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC) offers about $20,000 for relocation assistance. Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC) is offering incentives of as much as $20,000. Currently, Citigroup (NYSE:C) offers $3,000 to borrowers who qualify for its program. Homeowners can also get incentives through the government program, Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives, as much as $3,000.
Sean O’Toole, chief executive officer of ForeclosureRadar.com, feels offering enough for the homeowner to get a rental apartment is reasonable but giving tens of thousands of dollars to delinquent homeowners sends the wrong message. “It may make sense for people to walk away, it doesn’t make sense for them to get rewarded for doing it,” O’Toole said. “It’s not the homeowner’s fault that house prices dropped so dramatically, but they have already received months of free rent, if not cash out.”
Last November short sales made up 9 percent of residential deals. State attorneys general began looking in to foreclosure practices in October 2010.
Here’s how these bank stocks are reacting to the news:
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM): JPM shares recently traded at $37.92, down $0.22, or 0.58%. They have traded in a 52-week range of $27.85 to $48.36. Volume today was 9,271,601 shares versus a 3-month average volume of 37,585,600 shares. The company’s trailing P/E is 8.47, while trailing earnings are $4.48 per share.
Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC): WFC shares recently traded at $30.38, up $0.18, or 0.6%. They have traded in a 52-week range of $22.58 to $34.25. Volume today was 11,365,844 shares versus a 3-month average volume of 32,334,400 shares. The company’s trailing P/E is 10.77, while trailing earnings are $2.82 per share.
Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC): BAC shares recently traded at $7.93, down $0.04, or 0.5%. They have traded in a 52-week range of $4.92 to $14.95. Volume today was 130,540,254 shares versus a 3-month average volume of 270,354,000 shares. The company’s trailing P/E is 794.82, while trailing earnings are $0.01 per share.
Citigroup, Inc. (NYSE:C): C shares recently traded at $33.27, down $0.03, or 0.09%. They have traded in a 52-week range of $21.40 to $49.60. Volume today was 18,895,211 shares versus a 3-month average volume of 52,528,500 shares. The company’s trailing P/E is 9.01, while trailing earnings are $3.69 per share.
To contact the reporter on this story: at staff.writers@wallstcheatsheet.com
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Damien Hoffman at editors@wallstcheatsheet.com

Refuge could make home in Apex

The American Wildlife Refuge is looking for a permanent home and all eyes are currently looking toward Apex.
Refuge officials spoke to town council last week about their desire to build a facility in the planned Apex Nature Park. Construction on the 160-acre park has been delayed by the poor economy and no timetable has been set for its completion.
That certainly didn’t seem to quell the enthusiasm of AWR officials who believe the park would make an ideal setting for their facility.
The volunteer-driven refuge focuses on raptor rescue and environmental education and it is funded through donations.
AWR official Steve Stone proposed a land lease agreement that would not cost the town any money.
“It would be an independent facility within in the park,” said Stone. “It’s no cost to Apex. We would be completely self-supporting.”
Currently located near Raleigh, the organization would change its name to Apex Raptor Refuge upon moving to town.
Stone said the arrangement would benefit both the refuge and the Apex business community. He estimated that 20,000 to 50,000 people would visit the facility annually generating hundreds of thousands of dollars for local restaurants, gas stations and hotels.
Since the refuge would become the only facility within a 200 mile radius to have resident bald eagles, Stone said it would generate a great deal of media coverage and tourism.
“It would take three to four years before we had eagles on site,” said Stone. “So, we are talking about a long-term thing that we could build and create.”
The refuge currently makes about 130 education presentations each year at area schools, museums, parks, camps, and nature events. Those presentations are seen by an estimated 250,000 people.
There are currently 17 educational birds at AWR along with 12 birds that are being rehabilitated from various injuries before being re-released into the wild.
“Apex is supposed to be at the top,” said a smiling Stone. “Birds like to go to the top.”
Mayor Keith Weatherly said it seemed appropriate for Apex to have such a facility considering the close proximity of Jordan Lake and its large population of eagles.
“This is certainly worthy of some discussion,” said Weatherly. “We hope this can be worked out.” Councilman Bryan Gossage also expressed interest in pursuing the matter.
“I think we should have (town) staff talk with them,” said Gossage.
For more information on the refuge visit www.awrefuge.org.
Source http://www.theapexherald.com

Londoners looking to make money out of homes

By Avril Ormsby

(Reuters) - Harriet Howse is one of many Londoners looking to make a profit out of their property during this summer's Olympics, leaving the city and their homes to strangers to avoid the anticipated mayhem of an overcrowded capital.
One property website's survey says an estimated one-in-three Londoners are considering packing their bags and moving in with family and friends or heading abroad when 11 million sports fans, media and corporate clients descend on the capital for the world's biggest sporting extravaganza.
You don't have to hate sport either to be thinking about moving out.
Behind her blue door in northeast London, Howse, a fan of tennis who keeps herself fit, is planning to move out of her four-bedroomed terraced house and stay with her family. A housemate will be travelling to Japan.
"The cost of the tickets was so high that we couldn't afford to put a bid in for any of them ... and I think the mayhem and chaos caused by the Olympics would be a good reason to get out of London," Howse told Reuters.
"I'm pro-Olympics but I think the crowds are going to be crazy."
Her minimalist house, with its neutral colours alleviated by orange sofas and large paintings, is expected to fetch up to 2,000 pounds per week, four times the rent the 26-year-old university international officer could normally expect.
Other London homeowners are looking to ask for six times the usual rate.
A survey by property website FindaProperty.com last year estimated the total Olympics rental market for flats, apartments or houses could be worth 314 million pounds, based on one-in-three homeowners considering letting out some or all of their properties.
Estate agents say the number of short-let clients on their books has risen sharply.
Even high-end service specialists such as onefinestay.com, which handles properties typically worth 1.5 million pounds, is receiving between 100-150 calls a week from people looking to rent out their property during the Games.
"We're expecting it to be by far the busiest time we'll ever have had," said Greg Marsh, co-founder of the site.
"People are going to be taking off for the period of the Games in order that they can earn a bit of extra income while they are away."
WEST IS BEST FOR AMERICANS
Renting can prove attractive for visitors because it offers more flexibility while prices are likely to be cheaper than London's notoriously expensive hotels.
"You could have a bowl of cornflakes for breakfast and you don't have all the associated costs of living in a hotel," said Sarah Tonkinson, lettings director at estate agents Foxtons.
Block booking has reduced the number of available hotel rooms, with the danger that it will push up prices, though London Olympic organisers (LOCOG) recently released more than 120,000 unwanted hotel room nights for resale.
Some hotels are reportedly holding customers on long waiting lists before releasing prices, but some tour operators have said the industry's expected visitor numbers are hugely inflated.
The trick for both hoteliers and homeowners is getting the timing right when looking to charge a premium.
"It's better to take something at the lower price earlier and know you have definitely got something secure rather than run the risk and try to achieve a higher price later on," said Darren Rebeiro, head of Olympic services at Keatons estate agents.
Prices advertised before the Sydney 2000 Olympics were seven times the market rate.
"I think it is unlikely anyone achieved that," he said.
Renting is proving popular with foreign media, security firms, embassies and athletics federations, some of whom will look to book 200 rooms at a time. Others who are renting are corporates, especially from the U.S, Asia and Russia.
Demand has focused on historic Greenwich, with its maritime history and open spaces as well as its proximity to the equestrian events and other Olympic riverside venues.
One seven-bedroom property is on the market for 24,000 pounds per week.
Other popular areas, especially among Americans, include west London, with its upmarket shops, museums and luxury properties.
Wills Thomson, 48, is renting out a room in his two-bedroom flat in Chelsea to a father and son who booked last year on Crashpadder.com.
The archivist said it was an opportunity to meet "charming people from all walks of life from around the world" as well as earn a little pocket money.
"It's like staying with a friend of a friend, though they are paying for that privilege," he said.
Stephen Rapoport, founder of Crashpadder, said he expected to double the site's 2,100 hosts by Games time, while bookings were up by 245 percent compared with the same period last year.
BUY-TO-LET BONANZA
People living in Stratford, gateway to the Olympic Park, are also looking to cash in.
But estate agents in the formerly run-down part of east London, once home to noxious industries and slaughterhouses, are warning locals they may not be sitting on gold mines.
They urged caution against the expectation among some that "Mr and Mrs American" would be prepared to pay bloated rents for their properties.
Residents are likely to lose out to developers and buy-to-let property tycoons who moved in after London was chosen to host the Olympics, investing in new modern luxury apartments, which are proving more desirable.
"It's going to be the investors that earn the money," said Daniel Barbanel, sales and marketing director at local independent residential property agents Outlook.
"Because ultimately, the local people -- with respect to them -- their houses and flats aren't particularly well decorated."
(Additional reporting by Drazen Jorgic)

The key to a quality home is finding a good builder

By Mike Holmes, For Postmedia News

Green upgrades such as solar panels customize and add value to production built homes.Photograph by: Mark Bernardi, For Mike Holmes
I had a lot of interesting response to my column this week about production builders. Predictably, some builders wanted to defend themselves. Some homeowners emailed me to praise their production builders, and a few more wanted to share their bad experiences. I need to clarify a few things.
You know I'm an advocate of better building practices. This has been true for the 30 years I've been in the construction industry. In that time, I've uncovered, and torn out, lots of bad work. I spent my career trying to educate homeowners to recognize good work from bad and protect their investment.
I have always believed that homeowners — at every level of the housing market — should have the assurance that the homes they buy with their hard-earned money are well built and made to last. That doesn't meant you'll have the same finishes and upgrades, but the same level of quality and care that goes into a custom home should go into production homes. And when you have a good production builder on your side, in many cases, it does. When builders and tradespeople work together and are committed to quality, we see good results.
There are good production builders, even with the constraints of narrower profit margins and higher-volume building. These are the builders who make the extra effort, both in front of and behind the drywall and finishes, who are committed to durable construction, using sustainable materials and increased energy efficiency. They come back to service their clients' home warranties, as they're contracted to do.
So how do you find a good builder? Just as with finding the right contractor, you need to do your homework, get references and check him out. Don't just walk into a show home and fall in love with the floor plans. But, even more important, you need to make smarter choices when it comes to your upgrade packages — and if the builder doesn't offer one that makes sense for your housing investment, keep looking.
Ask yourself: Does anyone really look at those upgrade packages and think of what they really mean in maintenance and upkeep of your new home? Or do we buy using our eyes only, hypnotized by the shiny finishes?
The sad truth is that people buy eye candy and don't choose the upgrades that make sense. The most popular upgrades are the hardwood flooring and the gourmet kitchen — items that supposedly help resale.
I keep hearing people say they won't see the return on the investment of the 'behind the walls' upgrades, or on something like a metal roof. Saving tons of money on energy costs and home maintenance is longer-term thinking.
And too many people believe they won't be living in their houses long enough to recoup that initial investment. So they ask themselves: Why put money into something I won't benefit from?
Everyone buys a house these days with the idea that they'll "move up" in three to five years, from their starter home to their dream home. Really? Is life so predictable?
Or they think they'll flip the house after five years to make enough profit to move up the housing ladder. Really? Is the real-estate market so predictable?
I don't know where the five-year idea came from. I don't agree with it. I believe you should plan on staying in your home. But that's me. When I was young, people used to live their whole lives in one home; that was normal.
But the truth is, you can't predict if and when you'll move. Things happen. The market goes down, interest rates go up, and maybe it's no longer feasible to move. Or maybe you aren't going to make the money on selling you thought you were, so you're staying put. Maybe your job changes, or your family situation does. You get stuck.
Life is like that.
And because you didn't spend your money on the right upgrades in the first place, you're now spending money on maintenance and renovations, or repairs you didn't plan on. And that could have been avoided if you'd spent your money right in the first place, and money you could have saved if you'd made different choices.
Maybe that investment choice you made when you chose the granite countertop over upgrading on insulation would have, in fact, paid you back in saved energy costs. Maybe that metal roof would have lasted the entire time you had gone through two re-shingles — which it will, by the way, and still look good, and still help your resale value when you do finally move. Plus, it will have kept all that waste out of the landfill.
Look, I don't want to take all the fun out of buying a new home. I get the appeal of a gourmet kitchen and hardwood flooring.
But I'm all about spending your money right the first time. And when it comes to new housing, that money needs to be spent on quality materials and workmanship behind the walls.
How do you find a good production builder? Just as with finding the right contractor, you've got to do your homework. Ask questions and get references. Go visit other homes they've built. Ask the homeowners: Did they stand behind their warranty? Has the workmanship held up?
And, for my money, find out about what kind of upgrades they offer on your new home package. If they offer more than just lipstick and mascara, if they offer packages that allow you peace of mind, that what's behind the surface. That's the builder and the upgrade you want.
Catch Mike in his new series, Holmes Inspection, airing Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on HGTV. For more information, visit www.hgtv.ca. For more information on home renovations, visit makeitright.ca.

Playing Hardball When Selling Your Home

By Clifton French WSBT-TV Report

KINGSFORD HEIGHTS – The Facebook craze continues to grow and now people are finding ways for it to make them money. One woman in Kingsford Heights is selling her homemade desserts on Facebook.
Jennifer Marks is a stay at home mom who loves to bake. She took a couple of baking classes several years back and has been making her creations for family and friends ever since.
"I do different desserts, mostly cakes some cookies and other desserts like rice crispy treats covered in chocolate," Marks said.
Like many people in the age of social networking, Marks has another passion, Facebook. So like the ingredients in her sweets, she tried combining the two. What she came up with is the Facebook page "Jashco Cakes" and it's taking off.
"Last August I decided to start a Facebook page now I'm up to 520 some friends," Marks said.
She has pictures of creations posted throughout the page; birthday cakes, holiday cakes, cakes for bachelorette parties and cakes for sporting events. All people need to do is send her a message or leave a comment as an order, pay for it and pick it up.
Marks is currently auctioning her cakes to help raise money for her daughter's softball team.  She eventually hopes to open her own shop. She doesn't deliver and is based out of her Kingsford Heights home.
But the Facebook economy isn't only based on sweets, people are selling nearly everything.  One page called "Shop the House" is basically an online garage sale.  People sell everyday items ranging from toys to furniture.  But page is limited to people within a community.

Vail Daily column: More on the Making Home Affordable Act

By Rohn K. Robbins Vail Law
Vail, CO Colorado

In the first part of this series we identified the Making Home Affordable Act, the Obama Administration's initiative to help struggling homeowners get mortgage relief through mortgage modifications, interest rate reductions, refinancing, deferred payment or transitioning out of your home while avoiding foreclosure. We discussed, specifically, the Home Affordable Modification Program, the Second Lien Modification Program, and the Principal Reduction Alternative.
In this column, we will look at other aspects of the Making Home Affordable Act including: the FHA-HAMP, the VA-HAMP, the USDA-HAMP; Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives, the Home Affordable Refinance Program, and the Home Affordable Unemployment Program.
The FHA-HAMP and the VA-HAMP programs are mortgage modification programs which may be available to struggling homeowners with FHA, VA and USDA mortgages. The programs are designed to lower monthly mortgage payment to no more than 31 percent of the homeowner's verified monthly gross (pre-tax) income, potentially making monthly mortgage payments more affordable. If you have a loan that is insured or guaranteed by the Federal Housing Administration or Veterans Administration, you may be eligible for these programs which are offered through those government agencies. For this and other MHA programs, you may contact a Housing and Urban Development counselor at 888-995-HOPE (4673).
Similarly, if you have a loan that is guaranteed by the United States Department of Agriculture's Section 502 Single Family Housing Guaranteed Loan Program, you may be eligible for a program through that to lower your monthly mortgage payment to no more than 31 percent of your verified monthly gross (pre-tax) income. You may wish to contact your loan servicer for more information.
If you can't afford your mortgage and it's time to transition to more affordable housing, the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives program may be just the ticket.
HAFA provides two options for transitioning out of your mortgage: a short sale or a Deed-in-Lieu of foreclosure. In a short sale, the mortgage company agrees to let you sell your home for an amount that falls “short” of the amount you still owe. In a DIL, the mortgage company agrees to take the title back, transferring ownership back to the mortgage lender. In either case, HAFA offers benefits that make the transition as favorable as possible. In addition to advice available from HUD counselors and real estate professionals, HAFA's benefits include: unlike in a conventional short sale, a HAFA short sale completely releases you from your mortgage debt after selling the property. This means you will no longer be responsible for the amount that falls “short” of the amount you still owe. The deficiency is guaranteed to be waived by the servicer; in a HAFA short sale, your mortgage company works with you to determine an acceptable sale price; HAFA has a less negative effect on your credit score than foreclosure or conventional short sales; and when you close, HAFA provides $3,000 in relocation assistance. Perhaps not cause to kick up your heels, but better than it could be and better than it would be without HAFA.
You may be eligible for HAFA assistance if: you live in the home or have lived in the home within the last 12 months; you have a documented financial hardship; you have not purchased a new home within the last 12 months; your first mortgage is less than $729,750; you obtained your mortgage on or before January 1, 2009; and you have not been convicted within the last 10 years of felony larceny, theft, fraud, forgery, money laundering or tax evasion in connection with a mortgage or real estate transaction.
HARP, the Home Affordable Refinance Program is designed for those who are not yet behind on their mortgage payments but have been unable to get traditional refinancing because the value of the home has declined. HARP may be available to help you get a new, more affordable, more stable mortgage. HARP refinance loans require a loan application and underwriting process. Refinance fees will apply.
You may be eligible for HARP if all of the following apply: the mortgage is owned or guaranteed by Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae (see the first part of this series for an explanation of these programs); the mortgage was acquired by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac on or before May 31, 2009; the mortgage cannot have been previously refinanced under HARP (unless it is a Fannie Mae loan that was refinanced under HARP from March-May, 2009); the current loan-to-value (LTV) ratio must be greater than 80 percent; and the borrower must be current on the mortgage at the time of the refinance, with a good payment history for the past 12 months.
The Home Affordable Unemployment Program is intended to address those who are unemployed. Depending on your particular circumstances the UP may be available and may reduce your mortgage payments to 31 percent of your income or suspend them altogether for 12 months or even more.
To be eligible for the UP, you must meet all of the following criteria: you must currently be unemployed and eligible for unemployment benefits; you occupy the home as your primary residence; you have not previously received a HAMP modification; you obtained your mortgage on or before January 1, 2009; and you owe not more than $729,750 on your home.
There are other, perhaps slightly more esoteric MHA programs as well that include the Home Affordable Modification Program for Rural Development Loans (“RD-HAMP”), the Second Lien Modification Program for Federal Housing Administration Loans (“FHA-2LP”), and the Housing Finance Agency Innovation Fund for the Hardest Hit Housing Markets (“HHF”), all of which may afford at least some relief depending upon the particulars of your situation.
In any event, if the housing market has struck hard and you are at your wits end, don't just sit there. Relief may be just a phone call away. Call your lender and call a HUD counselor at 888/995. HOPE (4673). It may be one of the smartest things you'll ever do.
Rohn K. Robbins is an attorney licensed before the bars of Colorado and California who practices in the Vail Valley. His practice areas include business and commercial transactions, real estate and development, homeowners' associations, family law and divorce and civil litigation. He may be heard on Wednesdays at 7 p.m. on KZYR radio (97.7 FM) and seen on ECOTV 18 as host of “Community Focus.” Robbins may be reached at 970-926-4461 or at his email address, robbins@colorado.net.