Whats going on in the World

[wader]

UpEd to 8bill

that means they're serious which is good - I'd hate to see another iconic store disappearing into the dust bin of history

 

[longcast]

Sad for Americans.

 

[Roccus7]

UpEd to 8bill

Today's Macy's Trivia - A Nantucket Whaler's tattoo becomes an iconic logo...

Rowland Hussey Macy was the fourth of six children born to a Quaker family on Nantucket Island, Massachusetts. At the age of fifteen, he worked on the whaleship Emily Morgan and had a red star tattooed on either his hand or his forearm.

If this goes through, folks in Chicago will rejoice as they still haven't gotten over their rage when the company owning Macy's bought out their beloved Marshall Field's...

 

[Roccus7]

Sad for Americans.

View attachment 72155

Some additional context would be nice. Yes interest rates and inflation have screwed home buyers, BUT there's been a significant increase of home values over that time. The Median price of a US home has increased from $359K at the end of 2020 to the current $431K, a 20% increase.

Since home value appreciation is the largest component of personal wealth for most Americans, the news isn't bleak for those out there sitting in a home purchased with sub 4% mortgage interest rates...

 

[jpd]

Here's some more context

Housing Crisis Could Be the Death Knell for America's Middle Class

 

[Roccus7]

Here's some more context

Housing Crisis Could Be the Death Knell for America's Middle Class

Article is about 1st Time Buyers, who are impacted as I commented. Current homeowners who settled in by 2020 are in good shape with those things that are driving the high living costs to their advantage.

 

[longcast]

Some additional context would be nice. Yes interest rates and inflation have screwed home buyers, BUT there's been a significant increase of home values over that time. The Median price of a US home has increased from $359K at the end of 2020 to the current $431K, a 20% increase.

Since home value appreciation is the largest component of personal wealth for most Americans, the news isn't bleak for those out there sitting in a home purchased with sub 4% mortgage interest rates...

I agree about the significant increase in home values, but an issue is the amount of debt carried to buy and/or refinance has grown. Americans used their homes to finance other items besides their home. Folks are now dealing with interest only loans expiring, needing to either keep interest only or getting a fixed rate loan. So, going from 2.75% to 7% is a huge suck on finances. Add to that the ever growing credit card debt. Along with the fact "real wages" and "net net" cash in your pocket has decreased. Inflation may be going down, but prices remain.


"Since home value appreciation is the largest component of personal wealth for most Americans, the news isn't bleak for those out there sitting in a home purchased with sub 4% mortgage interest rates..."

You do realize that is not as prevalent as one might think. Maybe for those at the end of careers and ready to retire. Who can afford to buy their homes?

 

[Roccus7]

Maybe for those at the end of careers and ready to retire. Who can afford to buy their homes?

A real estate boom is always most advantageous to those sitting on property, especially if they have a long-term, low rate mortgage, or like many retirees, it's paid for. In that case it often becomes the major legacy left to their heirs.

Yes, getting into the housing market right now is very tough for first time buyers, which I mentioned. Another major issue that gets a short shrift is student loans. Many folks who would be first time buyers are faced with crippling student loans, an issue of their own making. It's not at all new, it's something that has been deterring first time buyers now for over 10 years.

 

[longcast]

A real estate boom is always most advantageous to those sitting on property, especially if they have a long-term, low rate mortgage, or like many retirees, it's paid for. In that case it often becomes the major legacy left to their heirs.

Yes, getting into the housing market right now is very tough for first time buyers, which I mentioned. Another major issue that gets a short shrift is student loans. Many folks who would be first time buyers are faced with crippling student loans, an issue of their own making. It's not at all new, it's something that has been deterring first time buyers now for over 10 years.

And with the increase in everything and the general loss of buying power, home ownership is put further from their reach.

 

[longcast]

that means they're serious which is good - I'd hate to see another iconic store disappearing into the dust bin of history

Macy's shares surge after buyout bid, but unlocking its real estate value will take work

The famed retailer has a multibillion-dollar portfolio, but getting full value for it won't be easy.

finance.yahoo.com

They want the real estate!!!


"The cake is the real estate," Neil Saunders, GlobalData’s managing director of retail, told Yahoo Finance over the phone. "That's the core of this deal."

Macy’s actual retail business is likely only the “icing on the cake,” per Saunders. That Macy’s makes a profit — unlike most other big box retailers — makes the deal “more palatable” for real estate investors, Jonathan Miller, CEO of Miller Samuel Inc., told Yahoo Finance over the phone.

 

[longcast]

Yemen's Houthis claim responsibility for striking Norwegian tanker Strand in latest attack

Yemen's Houthi movement struck a Norwegian oil and chemical tanker with a rocket on Monday in its latest attack to protest Israel's military operations in Gaza.

www.foxnews.com

 

[longcast]

New poll reveals what voters really think of America's most powerful teachers union

An October poll found only 37 percent of registered voters have a favorable view.

www.foxnews.com

In Chicago, voters have clearly reached a breaking point. Since the last poll, it was revealed in September that CTU president Stacy Davis Gates chose to enroll her child in a private school after she called school choice racist just last year. The latest poll showed that nearly half of Chicago voters now know that Ms. Gates sends her son to a private school – and they aren’t happy.


And with all this exposed, no change. Maybe one day.

 

[longcast]

Inflation rises 0.1% in November, slightly more than expected

The Labor Department released the closely watched November consumer price index report on Tuesday, revealing just how hot inflation was running last month.

www.foxbusiness.com

 

[jpd]

Inflation rises 0.1% in November, slightly more than expected

The Labor Department released the closely watched November consumer price index report on Tuesday, revealing just how hot inflation was running last month.

www.foxbusiness.com

US inflation rose 3.1% in November, stubbornly above Fed’s target

US inflation rose 3.1% in November, stubbornly above the Federal Reserve’s long-term target and bolstering the case for central bankers to keep interest rates at current levels this spring. T…

nypost.com

 

[longcast]

Harvard president's handling of antisemitism has cost school more than $1 billion: Ackman

Harvard alum Bill Ackman says Harvard President Claudine Gay's handling of antisemitism on campus since Oct. 7 has cost the university more than a billion in donations.

www.foxbusiness.com

 

[wader]

Pliosaur discovery: Huge sea monster emerges from Dorset cliffs

Scientists marvel at the fossilised head of an underwater 'killing machine' from the Jurassic.

www.yahoo.com

 

[wader]

and all without a single US Serviceman involved

Russia has lost 87% of troops it had prior to start of Ukraine war, according to US intelligence assessment

Russia has lost a staggering 87 percent of the total number of active-duty ground troops it had prior to launching its invasion of Ukraine and two-thirds of its pre-invasion tanks, a source familiar with a declassified US intelligence assessment provided to Congress told CNN.

www.yahoo.com

 

[JackPrintMD]

Biden just gave away our money again to the Russians.

That Hunter deal really costed us all.

I can’t believe everyone dose not see we are supporting and fighting the wrong people.

 

[Rick67]

https://tnc.news/2023/12/08/can-military-mandate-menstruation-kits-mens-bathrooms/#:~:text=In%20a%20move%20to%20align,men's%20washrooms%20by%20December%2015.

 

[dsedy]

"The world is a vampire, set to drain..."