As expected, existing home sales in October rose sharply as first-time buyers rushed to take advantage of the $8,000 tax credit that was due to expire at the end of this month. The National Association of Realtors reported this morning that sales rose 10.1 percent to an annualized rate of 6.1 million units. "With such a sales spike, a measurable decline should be anticipated in December and early next year before another surge in spring and early summer," said chief economist Lawrence Yun. Congress has extended the tax credit until April 30, 2010, and also extended a $6,500 credit to existing homeowners who sell their residence and buy another. California lagged behind the rest of the country in October sales, up just 1.6 percent in October. Nationwide, sales are up 23.5 percent compared to the same month a year ago, while here in California the YOY increase is 12 percent.
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In a report released today called, "Recovery to Soon Lose 'Jobless' Label," The National Association of Business Economists is predicting that the nation's economy will start to show significant signs of recovery in early 2010 as employment losses bottom out in the first quarter of the year. The report from NABE -- headed by Lynn Reaser, chief economist at Point Loma Nazarene University -- finds that the majority of economists believe it will take until 2012 for the economy to recover all of the 7.3 million jobs that have been lost since December 2007. The forecast also anticipates a steady rebound in the housing market.
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Quick quiz: What percentage of credit card users are delinquent on their monthly payments? Don't peek, but the answer is at the end of this item. According to a report today from TransUnion.com, the national credit card delinquency rate fell by 5.98 percent in the third quarter. "For the first time in 10 years, third-quarter national delinquency rates showed a decrease from the previous quarter, indicating a departure from the usual seasonal pattern," said Ezra Becker of TransUnion. Despite what the media would like to have us believe, very few people are 90 days or more behind on the payments. The report finds that the delinquency rate is 1.1 percent. In other words, 98.9 percent of consumers pay their bills on time.
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Even though most people no longer have radio antennas on their cars, Jack in the Box is back with its annual antenna ball fundraiser. The new ornament features Jack "sporting a backwards baseball cap and red wrap shades, and blowing a gum bubble." A big portion of the proceeds from the sale of these items -- just a buck at Jack in the Box restaurants -- goes to Big Brothers Big Sisters. Last year, the campaign raised $360,000 for the organization. By the way, Jack will be back in the Rose Parade this year. He'll be joined on the float by Christy Stoeckel, 2009 California Big Sister of the Year, and her Little Sister, April. Last year, its debut, the Jack float won the prestigious Extraordinaire Trophy as the most spectacular entry over 55 feet.
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Have you got a big baseball fan on your Christmas shopping list? Well, MLB is offering a 20 DVD set of World Series films that includes authenticated autographs of 12 Hall of Fame players including Yogi Berra, Bob Gibson, Reggie Jackson, Mike Schmidt and many others. Only 100 sets of the limited edition are available for $2,299. The same set without the autographs will be on sale for just $229.
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