Real Estate Daily News Buzz is designed to give news snippets to readers that our (yet to be award winning) editors thought you could use to start your day. They come from various business perspectives, real estate, government, the Fed, local news, and the stock markets to save you time. Here you will find the headlines and what the news buzz for the day will be.
On Monday, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 154.64 points, or 0.9%, to 17,959.44. The Standard & Poor’s 500 gained 7.89 points, or 0.4%, to 2,078.54. The NASDAQ composite added 16.04 points, or 0.3%, to 4,781.42.
Benchmark U.S. crude fell $1.26 to close at $55.26 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, a benchmark for international oils used by many U.S. refineries, fell $1.27 to close at $60.11 in London. Wholesale gasoline fell 2.5 cents to close at $1.535 a gallon. Heating oil fell 1.1 cents to close at $1.951 a gallon. Natural gas fell 32 cents to close at $3.144 per 1,000 cubic feet.
INVESTORS EXPECT HIGHER STOCKS IN 2015, BUT ALSO TURBULENCE
NEW YORK (AP) — Can the U.S. hold everyone else above water? That is the question investors are asking as Wall Street heads into 2015, continuing a bull market that is on pace to celebrate its sixth birthday in March. On more than one occasion, investors dumped stocks following geopolitical flare-ups and concerns about the global economy, only to jump back in when an economic report or results from a big company suggested the U.S. economy was still resilient. This bull market may be slowing down, but it still has had a remarkable run. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index has more than tripled from its March 2009 low. Wall Street strategists, who typically are bullish on the U.S. stock market, expect the advance to continue into 2015.
ZILLOW & TRULIA MERGER GETS STOCKHOLDERS NOD
No. 1 online real estate search engine Zillow (NASDAQ:Z) and No. 2 Trulia announced Thursday that their respective stockholders approved the previously announced merger of the two companies. Zillow stockholders approved the merger - first announced in late July - at a special meeting in Seattle on Thursday, while Trulia (NYSE:TRLA) stockholders approved the merger at their meeting in San Francisco. The stock swap deal, originally valued at $3.5 billion, still awaits clearance from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. The FTC has been analyzing how a Zillow-Trulia merger could impact competition in the online real estate industry. The agency made a second request for information from the companies in early September. In a filing made with the SEC in November, Zillow agreed not to close its pending acquisition of Trulia before Feb. 1 because of the FTC's review. But Zillow said it could complete the deal before then should the FTC grant early termination, close its investigation or accept for public comment a proposed consent agreement settling the matter.
IT’S BECOMING EASIER TO SHOP OVERSEAS THIS HOLIDAY SEASON
NEW YORK (AP) — This holiday season, it’s almost as simple to shop on the other side of the world as it is to buy from a store down the block. International online payment services like AliPay and PayPal are trying to ensure that a South Carolina fashionista can buy a faux fur vest from China with just a few clicks on her computer and a New Zealand biker can use his smartphone to pick up a rare part from a Colorado company. These services come as shoppers and retailers alike have a growing appetite to buy items from any country, regardless of distance and regulations. In fact, a PayPal report estimates that by 2018, about 130 million shoppers will be spending over $300 billion a year across the border, up from $105 billion in 2013.
COMING SOON TO US: CUBA LIBRE, WITH REAL CUBAN RUM
MIAMI (AP) — U.S. rum aficionados are abuzz over the possibility of mixing a Cuba Libre with authentic Cuban rum, now that they will be able to bring home liquor distilled in the communist nation. Relaxed limits on what licensed U.S. travelers can bring home mean that Americans will be able to enjoy small quantities of the liquor at home. But, with the embargo still in place, the rum won’t be flooding bars or the market. And it’s unclear what the news means for industry titan Bacardi, which was driven from its Cuba headquarters by the 1959 Castro revolution. In the past, Bacardi has left the door open for a return to its homeland. But company representatives wouldn’t give details when asked Thursday what, if any, plans it has if the more than 50-year-old embargo on Cuban goods ends, now that President Barack Obama is working to normalize relations with the country.
EXPRESS SCRIPTS TURNS TO AbbVie IN HUGE HEPITIS C DEAL
The nation’s largest pharmacy benefits manager is throwing its weight into the fight over high-cost hepatitis C drugs with a coverage restriction that might ultimately lower prices and improve patient access to groundbreaking treatments for the liver-destroying virus. Express Scripts said Monday that it will no longer cover Sovaldi and Harvoni — two Gilead Sciences drugs that cost more than $80,000 each for a full course of treatment — or Johnson & Johnson’s Olysio starting Jan. 1, except under limited circumstances. Instead, it will make AbbVie Inc.’s Viekira Pak, approved only Friday, the preferred treatment for patients who have the most common form of hepatitis C, genotype 1.
FRENCH POWER COMPANY TO PAY $772M TO US IN BRIBERY CASE
WASHINGTON (AP) — A French power and transportation company has agreed to pay $772 million to resolve allegations that it bribed high-ranking foreign government officials for lucrative projects, the U.S. Justice Department said Monday. Federal prosecutors said Alstom S.A. falsified its records and paid tens of millions of dollars in bribes for help in obtaining more than $4 billion in projects in countries including Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the Bahamas. The bribes were often funneled through middlemen who the company hired as consultants and who were referred to in internal documents by code names such as “Mr. Geneva” and “Mr. Paris,” officials said.
RAILROADS SEEK ONE-PERSON CREWS FOR FREIGHT TRAINS
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — When American freight trains delivered cargo after World War II, the steam-belching beasts commonly had seven people aboard — an engineer, a conductor, up to four brakemen and a fireman. Trains have since grown much longer, seemingly stretching to the horizon and often taking 20 minutes to pass through a crossing. And crews have been reduced in size — to five people in the 1970s and two in 1991. Now U.S. railroads want to put a single person in charge of today’s huge locomotives, taking another step toward a future in which the nation’s rail-cargo system increasingly could resemble toy train sets — highly mechanized networks run by computers or distant controllers. For the moment, freight trains generally have two people aboard — an engineer who drives the train and a conductor who oversees the long line of cars. Railroad executives want to reduce that to a lone engineer, saying advances in safety systems, including a new automatic braking system under development, could minimize risks.
NY REQUIRES OCWEN REFORMS, $150M HOMEOWNER HELP
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York financial regulators have reached a settlement with Ocwen Financial Corp. requiring the nation’s largest subprime mortgage servicer to reform its practices and provide $150 million to help struggling New York homeowners. The consent order requires William Erbey to resign as executive chairman of the corporation and chairman of four related companies: Altisource Portfolio Solutions, Altisource Residential Corp., Altisource Asset Management Corp. and Home Loan Servicing Solutions. The settlement of the state Department of Financial Services investigation also requires an independent monitor on site for up to three more years. It calls for $50 million in direct restitution to former and current Ocwen homeowners in New York, with $10,000 each to those who lost their homes to foreclosure since 2009.
TUCSON POLICE DEPARTMENT SHOWS HOLIDAY SPIRIT
TUCSON - The Communications Division of the Tucson Police Department (TPD) last week gave gifts to all 71 students of the nonprofit Imago Dei Middle School in Downtown Tucson. The tradition began four years ago. Many of the students and families have limited means and the goal was to provide them with a happy holiday season. Gifts included shoes, socks, shirts, sports equipment, CDs, gift cards, games, toys, and similar items based upon a wish list from the students. Also included were gifts of classroom supplies. The event was in partnership with the Imago Dei Middle School Board of Directors and Santa’s Helpers, Inc., who donated jackets and sports equipment to the students. In addition, the TPD division this morning also gave gifts to residents of Strauss Manor at Pantano, a nonprofit senior citizen apartment community for low-income residents. Donations included food for their emergency pantry, cleaning supplies, personal hygiene items, small appliances for residents in need, along with a small gift for each resident of the 80 units.Tucson Police Department Communications Division: https://1.usa.gov/1zp89BH
MORTGAGE DOWNPAYMENT ASSISTANCE STILL AVAILABLE
TUCSON - Approximately 20 assistance grants remain for the Tucson NeighborhoodLIFT® program, sponsored by Wells Fargo, NeighborWorks America®, and the Primavera Foundation. Each grant provides $15,000 toward a mortgage downpayment for eligible homebuyers with annual incomes that do not exceed 120 percent of the Tucson area median income – about $68,400 for a family of four – with income maximums varying depending on family size and type of loan. Among other things, potential buyers must complete an eight-hour homebuyer education session with the Primavera Foundation or another HUD-approved counseling agency. For more information, contact Primavera at (520) 882-5383, or follow the link https://bit.ly/1wey480