From the Tax Foundation:
2007 State Business Tax Climate Index (Summary, PDF)
The Tax Foundation presents the 2007 version of the State Business Tax Climate Index (SBTCI) as a tool for lawmakers, the media, and individuals alike to gauge how their states’ tax systems compare. Policymakers can then use the SBTCI to pinpoint changes to their tax system that will explicitly improve their state’s standing in relation to competing states.
How much states collect in taxes is critical, but how they take it is also important. In other words, quite apart from whether a state’s total tax burden is higher than in other states, it can enact (and many states do) a set of tax laws that cause great damage to the economy.
The modern market is characterized by mobile capital and labor. Therefore, companies
will locate where they have the greatest competitive advantage. States with the best tax systems will be most competitive in attracting new businesses and be the most effective at generating economic and employment growth.
The full study is available here:
I’m going to be on the road tomorrow morning so updates may be light.
I’m still blogging from Buffalo, NY. The only place in the USA that the bubble forgot about.
Buffalo is simply amazing, but not in a positive way. It’s as if an entire city just picked up and left. Entire city blocks are vacant. Incredible old buildings and beautiful architecture, all for sale, lease, or just empty.
I was here a little more than 4 years ago. While there has been some improvement and new development, much of it still seems empty.
The city seems intent on keeping everything well maintained and up-to-date, ever hopeful that everyone will return home. Developers here are hoping the next big boom is right around the corner.
jb
From the Buffalo News:
In Buffalo, a house is a home, not an investment
http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial/20061008/1040183.asp
The old saying is that a house is the biggest single investment most people will make in their lives.
But not in the Buffalo Niagara region. Here, a house is a place to live.
While the United States has been in an unprecedented housing boom that saw median sale prices soar by 83 percent from 1995 to 2005, the typical homeowner in the Buffalo Niagara region, where housing values grew by 22 percent, has seen barely a quarter of that increase.
As an investment, housing in the Buffalo Niagara region has generally been a bust over the last decade. After factoring in the corrosive effects of inflation, the median sale price here actually dropped 5 percent in real dollars, while homeowners across the country enjoyed a 43 percent real increase in sale prices.
…
This gap between home prices here and the rest of the country is widening. In 1995, the median sale price of a home in Buffalo was 28 percent below the national average. Last year, it was 52 percent less, according to the National Association of Realtors.
The group ranks the Buffalo Niagara region as the nation’s sixth-cheapest housing market – one where median sale prices haven’t risen faster than the U.S. median in any year since 1990.
…
“The real estate bubble didn’t grow here, but the bubble, if there is one, probably won’t burst here either,” Palumbo said.
A 5% decline in real prices over the last decade. Perhaps housing isn’t always a great investment over the long-term.
jb
Haven’t hit the tax foundation report yet but I had to get this out:
Local economists have been tracking El Paso County foreclosures. They say 25 percent of all foreclosures between 2003 and last July were in zip codes 80911, 80916 and 80906. In zip code 80864, in southeastern El Paso County, almost one-third of all homes are in various phases of foreclosure.
UCCS economist Fred Crowley said residents of the area have higher commuting costs, and many purchased homes when variable mortgage rates were low. Crowley adds that Colorado is not expected to see a housing bubble burst, as home values have gone up so fast.
Here’s the link:
http://www.koaa.com/news/view.asp?ID=5769
I will say this, If Crowley’s right and a place with 1/3 of its homes doesn’t count as a bursting bubble, then we are indeed in for a soft landing.
Apparently you can redefine your way out of anything.
In a very quick look at the report, I happened to notice that one of the criteria is Individual Income Tax. Since per capita income here is the highest in the nation, we pay the highest(federal) income taxes which is part of what gets us there.
Everyone knows about our high property taxes.
I”m not saying we have a positive business climate (I’m not deluded) as far as taxes go, but I’m not sure the criteria is entirely appropriate.
We’re a lock for the bottom as long as people here make a high wage. That might be bad for business, but it’s hard to see how it’s bad for the people who live in NJ.
J.B. I lived in Buffalo 87-89. Used to be a little business there.
Liked Buffalo – friendly people. But when my white car got hit with more than 3 or 4 feet of snow, I had to dig around a little. The joke around the condos was we each had to have a different color flag for the antenna.
Friendly people. Not much doing..one of those places big business has no reason to be anymore. Eventually, the kids move away.
People came to visit me, for a while. Niagra Falls attracted them for 2 or 3 visits. After that, I was like Kevin Costner alone in the Fort.
Wow the bold is a little easier to read, I think.
turning off bold…
Anyways, 2 of my favorite subjects in one post: Buffalo and the Tax Foundation, it’s my lucky day…
Buffalo: I went to school there (UB) and I have a ton of friends who still live in the area (South Campus, Amherst, Tonawanda, et al.). The town is really suffering for a number of reasons, but I chalk it up to corruption, incompetence and a horrible tax structure that drives business away (except for Canadian cross-border shoppers) in droves. It costs more for water in Buffalo than in New Mexico (or was it Arizona?). There’s a ton of colleges and universities in Buffalo and its surrounding area (as far west, as, say, Rochester), and UB is a pretty good research university. But they don’t have a Giuliani, and Pataki has been worthless for ages, so no success with any kind of incubators or tech startups. The taxes are too damn high, and the city’s at the tail end of a decades-long exodus of all the companies and employees escaping the miasma of high taxes and cronyist government. The colleges turn out a ton of graduates every year, and they flee western NY just as soon as they can. IMHO the state needs to turn all of Erie County into a giant tax-free zone, no corporate income tax, no payroll tax, no sales tax, no property tax for 30 years to get companies in there and employing people.
As far as the Tax Foundation goes, their site makes GREAT reading, and it’s interesting to see to what degree their findings describe behaviors that seem to baffle many in the mainstream media.
Hey JB,
I don’t know what happened to last night’s post. That was odd.
Anyway, if you get some free time, head over to East Aurora and check out the Roycroft Museum/Campus and Inn. It’s about a 1/2 hour drive from Buffalo.
I spent some time in Buffalo around December ’92. I never saw the sun for 5 days straight. But I do remember the great but run down buildings.
Rich
For the record, the bold in my post was put there by me for emphasis.
AP report: Poll: Costs Still Stymie 1st-Home Buyers
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/061012/housing_ap_poll.html?.v=3
AP-AOL Poll: Most Americans Believe It’s Harder for 1st-Time Buyers to Afford a Home
WASHINGTON (AP) — The go-go days for home prices are over, but Mike Pietrafesa thinks it is still tough for people to buy their first slice of the American dream.
“There are lots and lots of houses for sale that seem as though they are priced ridiculously and they aren’t selling,” said Pietrafesa of Nassau County, N.Y. “I certainly think that the old standard of having 20 percent of your house value as a down payment is really out of the window these days. I definitely think it is harder, in that respect, for first-time buyers.”
Eighty percent of Americans believe it is difficult for most first-time buyers to afford a home, according to an AP-AOL Real Estate poll. Many people — 59 percent — believe the situation is worse now than five years ago.
Pietrafesa, 35, recalls that he had trouble finding a home he could afford. That was eight years ago. The split-level house on the Long Island is a little small, he says, but he is staying put.
Younger adults and minorities view affordability more of a problem now for first-time buyers compared with five years ago than do older people and whites, the poll found.
By region, 68 percent of those in the West and 63 percent of those in the Northeast say it is more difficult for first-time buyers to afford a home than it was five years ago. Fifty-four percent took this view in the South, and 51 percent felt this way in the Midwest.
The Census Bureau reported recently that a third of U.S. homeowners with mortgages spent 30 percent or more of their household income last year on housing costs. These costs, which include mortgage payments, taxes, insurance and utilities, are usually considered excessive if they top 30 percent of household income.
Galloping housing prices during the five-year housing boom is a big factor in this, economists say. Rising mortgage rates and incomes, which for many people had failed to keep up with inflation, are other factors, economists said.
Nationwide, median home values jumped 32 percent from 2000 to 2005, to $167,500, the Census Bureau reported. (The median price is where half sell for more and half for less.)
Even though home prices have cooled this year, some people think they are still too high.
“A lot of home prices are out of this world,” says Patricia Cheatham, 59, who lives between Southern Pines and Lakeview in North Carolina. If something happened to her mobile home, she says she would not be able to afford to buy again. “I’d probably have to find a low-income rental place,” she says.
The poll found that 46 percent of those surveyed thought the housing market in their area is overpriced.
Nearly the same amount — 45 percent — believed their market was priced about right. Only 5 percent though their market was underpriced, with the remaining few having no opinion.
People in the suburbs were more likely to view the housing market as price-inflated than those who live in cities and rural areas, the poll found.
Looking out over the next two years, 49 percent of people surveyed predicted that housing prices in their area will go up, while 18 percent thought they would go down. Thirty-two percent believed prices would stay the same. The rest did not voice an opinion.
Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Economy.com, says that the future direction of home prices probably will depend on where you live.
A study by his company predicted that slumping prices will be concentrated in the states of California and Florida and the Northeast corridor from southern Maine to just south of Washington, D.C., as well as some parts of Nevada and Arizona. In some markets, prices may not bottom out until 2009, the report says.
“But households sitting in Dallas or Charlotte, N.C., may wonder what all this panic talk is in the housing market,” says Zandi. Those are among the markets that he believes will see price gains over the next two years.
People who are interested in buying a home in the future worry most about interest rates going up, the poll showed. Eighty-four percent said that was a concern.
Slightly fewer — 78 percent — say they worry about paying more than the fair market value for their abode. Sixty-five percent fret about being able to afford their mortgage payment, while 62 percent fear that the home might drop in value. Fifty-eight percent worry that they won’t find enough money for a down payment.
The AP-AOL Real Estate poll of 2,001 adults, including 289 recent homebuyers and 401 likely future homebuyers, was conducted by telephone Sept. 19-26 by Ipsos. The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points for all adults, 6 percentage points for recent homebuyers and 5 percentage points for likely future homebuyers.
House hunters can benefit by showing patience, some analysts said.
Suresh Sreerameneni, 35, says he sees some some homes for sale in his Lake St. Louis, Mo., neighborhood sitting on the market longer than they have in the past and suggested that will shift more bargaining power to would-be buyers and away from sellers.
“If I was in the market now to buy, I would be happy,” he says. “But if I were trying to sell, I would be worried.”
Former Middletown mayor gets 43 months for bribery, part of the Operation Bid Rig in and around Monmouth. He had boasted that “he could smell a cop a mile away”. I guess up his a** was too close for comfort!!!!!!!! Great news out of Monmouth County the last week.
http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2006/10/relawsweepma.htm
FTC Competition Director to Announce Real Estate Law
Enforcement Sweep
The Federal Trade Commission will hold a press event on Thursday, October 12, 2006, at 11 am EDT to announce the results of a real estate competition sweep that will include seven law enforcement actions.
Cool. I hope that idiot Watts and his sign collusion brainstorm are mentioned at the party at 11 am.
Wouldn’t mind seeing njmls at the buffet, either. “Some more cheap caviar, you greedy relisters?”
I heard the property taxes in Buffalo are high
I was just checking out buysiderealty.com
Currently they do not support NJ. Does anyone know similar site that supports NJ?
If not, here is an offer for a realtor coming to this board. Call them and join them. You will get Salary and don’t have to travel to show houses.
Forget the taxes, if I owned a business in NJ I’d be more worried about the graft.
…let me give you the color of the bears from a representative email I’ve received:
Jim, I heard your piece on TV. In all due respect, you’re missing the board. Lennar (LEN – commentary – Cramer’s Take) is dumping inventory in order to monetize land. They are not alone. And the leapfrog game continues to the point they are negative at the margins. We must see profits this quarter, but we will see losses next quarter. Guaranteed. I don’t care what Bob Toll or Stuart Miller tell you. I can show you ground zero. Send down one of your research assistants and let me take them on a tour of Florida, Virginia, Arizona, Nevada and California. It is far worse than the National Association of Realtors, the builders or the government numbers reveal. … I am at ground zero. I am on the front line and I am not some knucklehead who does this part-time.
Let’s forget about the inventory issues and negative margins. The next shoe to drop is financing. What we we’re seeing now is the failure of buyers to get financing. Even at companies like Centex (CTX – commentary – Cramer’s Take) and Lennar, with their own mortgage companies, buyers cannot get mortgages even if they want to close on overpriced units they plunked down deposits on more than a year ago.
i’m thinking all-macro this morning. going back to commodities (sorry for tangent)….
While Oil Prices decline… or stay flat…
-US trade deficit narrows AND
-US current account deficit declines AND
-Overseas appetite for U.S. Treasuries decreases SO
-Yields on treasuries increase/prices decrease and long term rates rise SO
-Mortgage rates 15/30 year go up SO
-Affordability of housing goes down AND THEN
-We have a major housing price decline WHICH OF COURSE MEANS
-Declines in Consumer confidence, WHICH INTERESTINGLY
-Will cause the Fed to lower short term rates SO
– Consumers will hopefully keep spending short term while we wait for next boom…
-Which will cause fears about deflation depending on Consumer spending and commodity prices (see first line…Oil prices).
…what is that saying about a butterfly and a hurricane?
Curiousd
so according to the survey cited above, over 80% of people think that house prices in their area will either go up or stay the same during the next two years.
pretty amazing that we are in the midst of a severe correction if this truly reflects people’s opinions.
if true, then it would seem sheer lack of affordability is driving the downturn
#48??? we cant even be the best at being the worst…
legacycode Says:
October 12th, 2006 at 10:46 am
Code: interesting – care to give any further color? I appreciate that it may be sensitive to disclose anything more.
More importantly from my perspective is:
1. Any similar color available for this area?
2. How does weakness of a national organization in other regions spill over to affect business activities in this one.
chicago
Actually, the more I think about it, the more I think Buffalo is like NNJ, but without the proximity to NYC.
If I were examining this state to locate my business, high taxes would be a minor consideration compared to the culture of corruption that has been celebrated in these parts.
The state’s reputation for accepting slimy operators is well-known. The Tony Sopranos of the world aren’t reviled, they are revered.
My father covered state politics for UPI down in Trenton during the early 60’s, and his experience was that it was a fairly deep cesspool then. I can’t think of too many states that have had this difficult history. What’s impossible to comprehend is this state’s inability to clean up its act. Who wants to take a risk in that environment? Are we just going to lay down and take it?
Bada Bing, anyone?
rates took a little jump
http://bankrate.com/brm/rate/mtg_home.asp
SAS
Otis Wildflower: A lot of dead cities with no self-sustaining industry (net producer) are like NJ. NJ just got lucky in location. Buffalo lost the location lottery. Maybe they’ll find oil under Lake Erie.
“so according to the survey cited above, over 80% of people think that house prices in their area will either go up or stay the same during the next two years.”
he AP-AOL Real Estate poll of 2,001 adults, including 289 recent homebuyers and 401 likely future homebuyers, was conducted by telephone Sept. 19-26 by Ipsos.
I think the reason is that most people surveyed are homeowners. Right now the market is determined by buyers. The percentage of buyers that think the market will go up/down will decide the housing market
Skeptic,
Wake me up when 90% say that real estate will decline. When everybody is negative the “American Dream” it may be time. NJ,I don’t know if it will be time here, but it will be a sign of capitulation in this market.
I think the survey is misleading. For the homeowners they wish the price to continue going up and they thought the price will go up.
“so according to the survey cited above, over 80% of people think that house prices in their area will either go up or stay the same during the next two years.
pretty amazing that we are in the midst of a severe correction if this truly reflects people’s opinions.
if true, then it would seem sheer lack of affordability is driving the downturn”
Yep. That’s exactly what I posted yesterday based on conversations w/ friends and coworkers. The declines we’ve seen have not been driven by a change in market perception. It’s pure affordability. The “buyers on the sideline” are very small in number. Once the perception changes (my guess is late spring ’07 after the bounce doesn’t happen), it’s going to be interesting.
A little off topic;
“The U.S. trade deficit widened by 2.7% in August to a record $69.9 billion, the Commerce Department said Thursday. The widening of the deficit surprised economists. The consensus forecast of Wall Street economists had been for the deficit to narrow to $66.4 billion from $68.0 billion in July. For the first eight months of the year, the trade deficit widened to $522.8 billion, ahead of last year’s record pace of $457 billion. Imports rose faster than exports in August. The U.S. trade deficit with China widened to a record $22.0 billion in August, compared with $18.5 billion in the same month last year. The U.S. imported a record $26.7 billion in goods from China in August.”
China will support our dollar as long as we are greasing them. If our consumption slows, does China continue to finance us and risk losses in their currency conversion??
Still in transit, dealing with massive issues at my day job.
Did I ever mention that blogging is more enjoyable than working?
Updates will be scarce for the rest of the day, please use this thread as an open discussion. If anyone comes across any interesting articles, please feel free to post them up.
jb
Federal Reserve Finds ‘Widespread Cooling’ in Housing Market
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/061012/fed_economy.html?.v=4
However, the report found there was a distinct slowdown in housing with the majority of the Fed’s 12 regions reporting lower asking prices for homes, a softening in sales and rising inventories of unsold homes.
The Fed said that reports from around the country “indicated widespread cooling” in housing markets with financial institutions finding that mortgage lending activity had tapered off. That decline in lending was being offset to some extent by an increase in lending for commercial projects in several districts, the Fed said.
Last week, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said that housing was going through a “substantial correction” that he estimated would trim economic growth by a full percentage point in the second half of the year.
That cheaper house ain’t as cheap as you think.
Interesting article, about the DC area, but it can easily apply here.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15230632/
One of the lures of the outer suburbs is more house — maybe even one with a big yard — for less money. But a new study shows that the savings are illusory: The costs of longer commutes are so high that they can outweigh the cheaper mortgage payments.
A study of Washington and 27 other metropolitan areas by the Center for Housing Policy found that the costs of one-way commutes of as little as 12 to 15 miles — roughly the distance between Gaithersburg and Bethesda — cancel any savings on lower-priced outer-suburban homes.
And somehow the DOW keeps rising? My bet is that it’s purely on momentum. If momentum can inflate the DOW, it can certainly deflate housing.
Fed finds cooling in housing market
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061012/ap_on_bi_go_ec_fi/fed_economy
WASHINGTON – The economy continued to grow in the early fall despite a “widespread cooling” in the once-hot housing market, the Federal Reserve reported Thursday.
The Fed’s latest survey of business conditions around the country found the economy expanding with growth being described as “moderate or mixed.”
However, the report found there was a distinct slowdown in housing with the majority of the Fed’s 12 regions reporting lower asking prices for homes, a softening in sales and rising inventories of unsold homes.
The Fed said that reports from around the country “indicated widespread cooling” in housing markets with financial institutions finding that mortgage lending activity had tapered off. That decline in lending was being offset to some extent by an increase in lending for commercial projects in several districts, the Fed said.
The latest snapshot of the economy, based on reports from the Fed’s regional banks, will be used when central bankers next meet on Oct. 24-25 to consider what to do with interest rates.
It is widely expected that the Fed will for a third straight meeting leave rates unchanged, preferring to wait and see if the economic slowdown brought on by previous rate hikes will be enough to keep inflation under control.
Minutes released on Wednesday of the Fed’s deliberations in September found that Fed officials remained concerned about inflation. Those worries were seen as a signal that the Fed will not soon start cutting interest rates, something that financial markets had grown hopeful might occur given the spreading economic slowdown.
Last week, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said that housing was going through a “substantial correction” that he estimated would trim economic growth by a full percentage point in the second half of the year.
The economy grew by just 2.6 percent in the second quarter, less than half the pace of the first three months of the year, as it was battered by soaring gasoline prices, rising interest rates and the cooling housing market.
Many economists believe growth has slowed even further in the last half of the year. But recent declines in gasoline and other energy prices are expected to help bolster consumer spending in the final three months of the year and keep the economy from tumbling into a full-blown recession.
In the latest “beige book,” named for the color of its cover, two Fed districts — Dallas and Philadelphia — reported that growth cooled further in the period from mid-September to early October. But other districts reported that growth had firmed in recent weeks.
A number of districts found consumer spending — critical because it accounts for two-thirds of total economic activity — was rising at a more rapid pace even though several districts continued to note sluggish auto and home sales.
Philadelphia, Atlanta and Minneapolis reported solid back-to-school sales, New York said that sales of upscale items had picked up while clothing sales were stronger in Boston, Cleveland and the San Francisco districts.
The Fed said that manufacturing activity was holding up well with eight of the 12 districts reporting an increase in factory output. Tourism was described as strong, especially in the New York and Kansas City areas.
Farm conditions improved, the Fed reported, as rainfall brought relief to drought-stricken parts of the country.
The Fed described labor markets as “taut” especially for certain skilled workers but said that wage growth remained “generally modest.” Overall inflation was also reported under control with energy prices moderating and “few signs of increased price pressures in recent weeks.”
Increases in raw materials prices were noted by Philadelphia, Richmond and Atlanta while Minneapolis said that the price of building materials had increased. New York reported that prices for hotel rooms and theater tickets were up sharply from a year ago.
Sorry for the re-post
“The costs of longer commutes are so high that they can outweigh the cheaper mortgage payments.”
I ran that calc, and moved to shave 45 minutes off my commute for less money outflow each month.
Also factor in what 1.5 hours of extra life each day is worth, and it was a no-brainer.
Unreal,
I have that debate with people all of the time.
One of the biggest hurdles we are trying to get over is dealing with a commute, should we decide to move to Jersey.
As close as the areas we are looking at are to NYC (Maplewood/South Orange), our commutes would still more than double, the costs would more than double, and our lives would be subject to the whims of NJ Transit.
My wife and I live in Astoria, each with a half-hour commute to work. No living by a schedule, waiting for a specific train. Leave work, walk a few blocks, get on the next N or W.
Quality of life is about more than having a big green lawn you have to water. Quality of life, to me, means actually being home to enjoy life.
d2b,
It could be a function of momentum players/blackboxes. Also, don’t under-estimate the power of Goldman. At this point,they rule the world. Don’t get in their way.
We moved from a 15 min commute to the WTC to a 1 1/2 hour door to door commute.. My husband and I both grew up in fairly isolated woodsy areas.. The city was a shock to our system.. We were miserable. I think it really depends what your used to.. You don’t have to have a lawn to live in the burbs..
Mr. Oliver: If you main interest is quality of life, then you in no way should be looking to move to Maplewood/So Orange, the good commute to the city is the only thing in its favor.
Please do your self a favor, do not, I repeat do not even consider MW/SO, you will sorely regret it if you do.
Facts,
We love the housing stock there, and the areas to the west, near the towns and train, seem quite nice. The schools are well rated and for a place within an hour and a quarter of the city, it is almost affordable.
I know a bunch of young families that live there and love it.
That being said, I would love to hear more from you about the area. Why do you feel that way. What areas would you suggest as an alternative?
With the housing market the way it is, we are not moving anywhere anytime soon. I’ve got nothing but time to get educated.
South Orange is VERY sketchy.
Once upon a time (50 years ago?), it was probably a nice town…
Drive down S Orange Ave near Seton Hall at night (make sure the doors are locked).
Unreal,
We’ve checked out that end of both towns and being bordered by Newark and Irvington isn’t really our thing.
What about the areas closer to the villages?
Maplewood/SO is an area that has been on the decline for years, it has had soem what of a resurgence since the mid to late 90’a, with soem Wall St types becasue of proximity to city, and the old housing stock.
the property taxes are obscene, the elementary school may be decent, but the high school is not, its bad, lots of tension etc.
Some of the young families you know, may not be familiar with the HS, or choose to ignore it (have blinders on)
It is too close to other crime ridden areas, and that crime unfortunately spills over into MW/SO.
30+ years ago, the Oranges were the place to live, not so now,and not so with MW/SO.
Try Millburn, Short Hills, CLark and Westfield, or Glen Rock in Bergen Co, if you want older stock of homes.
I would never leave Astoria to go to MW/SO. Like the other poster said alse drive around at night.
Facts, thank you.
What you’ve noted are our concerns about the area as well. Unfortunately, none of the areas you mention are even close to affordable for a starter home.
My true hope is that we can buy here in Queens once the market settles.
d2b Says:
October 12th, 2006 at 4:23 pm
And somehow the DOW keeps rising? My bet is that it’s purely on momentum. If momentum can inflate the DOW, it can certainly deflate housing.
I strongly disagree with your opinion on the Dow.
And yeah, the taxes in Maplewood/SO could choke a horse. CRAZY!
Mr. Oliver Says:
October 12th, 2006 at 4:39 pm
My wife and I live in Astoria, each with a half-hour commute to work. No living by a schedule, waiting for a specific train. Leave work, walk a few blocks, get on the next N or W.
Gato:
I thought “N” stood for Never, and “W” for Worst! :)
From Reuters:
Centex cuts quarterly income view, lower sales
Centex Corp. after Thursday’s closing bell said it now sees second-quarter earnings per share from continuing operations of 65 cents to 75 cents, compared with its July view of $1.40. The company said net sales for the quarter fell 28% to 6,828 orders from the same period in the prior year. Centex said the results reflect “record levels” of home sales contract cancellations, driven by the inability of buyers to sell their existing homes.
Chi, they do.
And the “R” stands for rarely.
Our two lines, the N/W are consistenly ranked at the bottom of the barrel by the Straphangers Campaign.
I don’t find it to be as bad as the hype, but it could be much better. Hopefully the brand new cars that are coming on-line, beginning next year, will improve things.
That said, we’re at the beginning (or end, depending on your perspective) of the N/W line. In the morning there is always a train waiting for me. The ride home can suck, though.
chicagofinance Says:
October 12th, 2006 at 5:32 pm
d2b Says:
October 12th, 2006 at 4:23 pm
And somehow the DOW keeps rising? My bet is that it’s purely on momentum. If momentum can inflate the DOW, it can certainly deflate housing.
I strongly disagree with your opinion on the Dow.
It just seems to me like little things that can derail a rally have no effect on the market these days. After such a run-up, I expected to see some sort of a sell-off.
South Orange is shit.
Maplewood isn’t as bad, but I wouldn’t move there.
If you are looking in that direction, might as well just move to the following towns. Milburn, short hills, Summit.
Actually, if you were really, really smart. You wouldn’t move at all till the bottom hits or just move out of this area.
Don’t give me that family buisness. When the chips are down, does family ever pay your bills?
No, most families don’t, so make like a fetus and head out…he…he…
SAS
Just got word, the people who manage TIA-CREFF are moving some major jack around. To the insiders, be on the look out.
SAS
SAS,
I’ve got no intention of making any moves for a year at the earliest.
SAS,
Tell us how you really feel about South Orange???
well, South Orange isn’t as bad as east orange, brick, or newark. But, I forsee S. Orange going further down hill as the bubble pops.
There are decent pockets in S. Orange, but just not enough of them to make me want to move there.
SAS
You can talk about the Dow until you are blue in the face.The Dow is worth sh*t,as an indicator. Look at the stocks that make up the Dow. Only ten out of 30 are at new highs. What is the real value of the Dow since the last high??? The stocks that are leading the way are either a China play or defensive stocks(not military rather strategy). China and defensive, and we are ready to break open the champagne. What a farce!!! In the late 90’s, early 2000 when the Dow was lagging the nasdaq, everybody boasted that the Dow was old school, tech was the new age. Now the nasdaq at 50% off it’s old highs, lower than that real value,doesn’t matter?? A few stocks are advancing and the headlines on the “cheerleader station” is better times??? You buy that sh*t??? Look at the broad market for a better indicator. Also, the Dow transports are not confirming the move in the Dow. Make your own conclusions. A better indicator to me is the dollar. The following is just one currency (go pull up others, it’s similar) versus the dollar, this is the real issue, not the Dow. Remember a country’s currency is like a stock price of the country. You can cheer the Dow but we are at close to a 50% decline,in currency price, compared to our good friends the Canucks. Go ask the fed where this shows up in their inflation #’s. Maybe with their M3 #’s??
http://customer3.barchart.com/custom/stocks/0669.htm
Pat: “After that, I was like Kevin Costner alone in the Fort.”
That is a great expression — now that we are well into the bust, a lot of nifty metaphors have been used and repeated once too often. This one is particularly versatile. Good one!
I used to live in Maplewood about 8 years ago in the Tuscan area. I enjoyed living there but couldn’t afford the taxes, which are much worst now. Other than that, the town was just fine. It reminded me a lot of Mayberry on the old Andy Griffith show and I’ve fond memories of the town. The only problem was the outrageous real estate taxes, but Maplewood is not unique in that regard. The whole of NJ has that problem. That’s why I removed myself to PA.
njrefugee,
That was 8 years ago…
Alot had changed 8 years ago.
Along time ago, Newark was the cats meow too.
SAS
Mr. Oliver: As far as not moving any time soon becasue of prices, give it anothear year, and I believe you will have you choice of towns/areas within the tri-state NY-Metro area that you can choose to buy a decent house.