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.

Tuesday, the Dow Jones industrial average lost 94.15 points, or 0.6%, to close at 15,914.62. The S&P 500 index fell 5.75 points, or 0.3%, to 1,795.15 and the NASDAQ composite fell 8.06 points, or 0.2%, to 4,037.20. Benchmark U.S. crude for January delivery rose $2.22, or 2.4%, to close at $96.04 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

BROADWAY BLVD – CITIZEN’S TASK FORCE MEETING THURSDAY
The next meeting of Tucson’s Broadway Citizens Task Force is this Thursday evening, December 5, 2013 starting at 5:30 p.m., at the Child & Family Resources building (2800 E. Broadway). An agenda and materials are available online at www.tucsonaz.gov/broadway. For questions or more information, please contact [email protected] or call (520) 622.0815.  For more information about the Broadway Boulevard, Euclid to Country Club project, please visit the project on the web at www.tucsonaz.gov/broadway or call the info line at (520) 622-0815.  The Regional Transportation Authority Plan includes project #17 as: widen Broadway to 6 travel lanes, plus 2 dedicated bus lanes; bike lanes; and sidewalks. The City of Tucson is leading this project, and is in the early stages of Planning & Design.  Working with a Citizens Task Force, the project scope and roadway configuration alternatives are being reviewed. The Planning & Design Phase is estimated to conclude in 2015.  A Final Design Phase will follow, which will bring all construction plans to 100% complete and construction-ready. Construction is not anticipated until 2016. 

TUCSON CITY COUNCIL APPROVES EMPLOYEE COMPENSATION PLAN
TUCSON (NN) – Mayor and Council of Tucson voted 6-1 Tuesday to give most employees a 55-cent-an-hour pay raise, but cautioned some hard choices lie ahead in the next fiscal year. The raises will affect all permanent and probationary city employees, except 911 dispatchers and public safety personnel. Those employees received alternative salary increases. Councilman Steve Kozachik cast the dissenting vote, saying the raises were not affordable in light of current and imminent budget challenges.  Mayor Jonathan Rothschild said the city has enough money right now to cover the remaining six months in this fiscal year, and budget challenges requiring both new revenues and possible cuts would need to be addressed in the near future.
2014 Employee Compensation Plan Memo to Mayor and Council: https://1.usa.gov/Iqjs4A

DOWNTOWN 2ND SATURDAYS LOSING MAJOR FUNDER
TUCSON (NN) – Providence Service Corp. says it will stop funding about half of the $12,000 a month it takes to run the monthly 2nd Saturdays after Dec. 14. Providence says it will redirect the money to causes that better support the company’s mission of creating healthier communities. Downtown Tucson Partnership CEO Michael Keith, who sits on the 2nd Saturdays steering committee, says the committee will do all it can to find alternate funding for the event.

AMERICANS TURN TO MOBILE DEVICES FOR CYBER MONDAY
NEW YORK (AP) — Millions of Americans logged on to e-commerce sites Monday to take advantage of deals ranging from free shipping to hundreds of dollars off electronics and half-price clothing on what was expected to be the busiest Internet shopping day of the year. And many of those purchases were made using mobile devices. The spending surge associated with Cyber Monday came after a disappointing Thanksgiving holiday weekend in stores. It also showed that shoppers are increasingly comfortable buying on tablets and smartphones.

JUDGE: DETROIT CAN USE BANKRUPTCY TO CONFRONT DEBT
DETROIT (AP) — A federal judge ruled Tuesday that Detroit can use bankruptcy to cut employee pensions and relieve itself of other crushing debts, handing a defeat to the city’s unions and retirees and shifting the case into a delicate new phase. Judge Steven Rhodes, who wondered aloud why the bankruptcy had not happened years ago, said pensions can be altered just like any contract because the Michigan Constitution does not offer bulletproof protection for employee benefits. But he signaled a desire for a measured approach and warned city officials that they must be prepared to defend any deep reductions. The ruling came more than four months after Detroit filed for Chapter 9 protection.

HOLIDAY WEEKEND GAVE BOOST TO AUTO SALES
DETROIT (AP) — Americans proved last month that they’re head over heels about small sport utility vehicles. They also wanted to buy more than just video game consoles and big-screen TVs on Black Friday. November auto sales rose 9% above a year ago, with a solid piece of the gains coming over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. Sales ran at an annual pace of 16.4 million cars and trucks last month, the best in almost seven years. The numbers gave further evidence that the small SUV is replacing the car as the vehicle of choice for families and aging baby boomers.

US HOME PRICES RISE JUST 0.2% IN OCTOBER
WASHINGTON (AP) — A measure of U.S. home prices rose only modestly in October, adding to signs that prices have stabilized after experiencing big gains earlier this year. Real estate data provider CoreLogic said Tuesday that prices increased 0.2 per cent in October from September. That’s up from a 0.1% gain in September. But it is down sharply from a 0.9% increase in August. One reason for the slowdown is that the figures aren’t adjusted for seasonal patterns. Prices usually decline in the fall and winter, when sales slow.

NONBANKS SERVICING STUDENT LOANS COME UNDER AGENCY
WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal consumer finance watchdog is expanding its oversight to Sallie Mae and other companies that collect student loan payments. A rule issued Tuesday by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau extends the agency’s supervision to nonbank companies that manage large volumes of student loans on behalf of lenders. The CFPB already oversees banks that service student loans, but it says most student loans are serviced by nonbank companies. It says the scrutiny is needed to ensure servicers comply with consumer laws at a time when more people are falling behind on their student loan payments.

J.C. PENNEY SAYS KEY SALES MEASURE UP IN NOVEMBER
PLANO, Texas (AP) — J. C. Penney Co. says a key sales measure jumped 10.1% in November, helped by a strong start to the holiday shopping season. The Plano, Texas-based company’s stock rose 5% in after-hours trading Tuesday. J.C. Penney said revenue from stores open for at least a year improved because of its merchandise selection and promotions despite a competitive retail environment. The figure is a closely watched indicator of financial performance because it strips away the impact of recently opened or closed stores.

CHICK-FIL-A WORKING TO REMOVE DYES, CORN SYRUP
NEW YORK (AP) — Chick-fil-A says it’s removing high-fructose corn syrup from its white buns and artificial dyes from its sauces and dressings as part of a push to improve its ingredients. The fast-food chicken chain says the reformulated buns are being tested in about 200 Georgia locations, while the sauces and dressings will be tested starting early next year. It says it also removed a yellow dye from its chicken soup and that the new recipe should be in all restaurants by the end of this month. It’s also testing a new peanut oil, with hopes of a rollout early next year.

INSURERS WARN OF NEXT MAJOR PROBLEM WITH OBAMACARE
(Reuters) – U.S. insurers fear that a surge in enrollments on the revamped government-run healthcare website could create more problems for insurance companies already struggling with error-filled applications for coverage three weeks before a sign-up deadline. In what could become the next major headache for President Barack Obama’s signature domestic policy, a group representing leading U.S. insurers said on Tuesday that technology fixes that will enable millions of people to sign on to HealthCare.gov have not fully addressed faulty data that the site has been sending these companies about their new enrollees. The problems include enrollment forms with erroneous personal information and duplicate or missing applications. In some cases, consumers who believe they have signed up may not have a file with the insurer. “So far we’ve been able to deal with these issues because there’s been relatively low volume,” Daniel Durham a vice president for policy and regulatory affairs at America’s Health Insurance Plans said. “But now that the floodgates are open at the front end… we’re going to see a lot more volume. And health plans just don’t have the personnel to do all this manually.” Durham said insurers need “clean” enrollment files so they can be processed by the Dec. 23 deadline for coverage to start on Jan. 1.

ASIAN MARKET SEEN TO BE PRESSURED BY REVIVED FED TAPERING TALK
TOKYO (Reuters) – Asian shares could come under pressure on Wednesday after the world’s share markets were rattled by fears of an impending reduction in the U.S. Federal Reserve’s stimulus following positive U.S. data. European shares suffered their biggest falls since August while Wall Street retreated for a third straight day on Tuesday, dropping from record levels as investors took profits. In Asia, Japanese shares are likely to open lower, with the Nikkei futures falling more than one percent from Tuesday close.

SpaceX ROCKET LIFTS OFF ON FIRST COMMERCIAL SATELLITE LAUNCH
CAPE CANAVERAL, FL (Reuters) – An unmanned Falcon 9 rocket developed by Space Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, blasted off on Tuesday to put the company’s first commercial satellite into orbit, staking a potentially game-changing claim in a global industry worth nearly $190 billion a year. The 22-story rocket lifted off from its seaside launch pad at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 5:41 p.m. EST/2241 GMT. Perched on top of the rocket was a 7,000-pound (3,175 kg) communications satellite owned by Luxembourg-based SES S.A., which operates a 54-satellite fleet, the world’s second-largest. The satellite, known as SES-8 and worth more than $100 million, will be positioned to provide television, broadband and other communications services to customers in India, China, Vietnam and elsewhere in Asia. “It’s an extremely important satellite for us,” Martin Halliwell, chief technology officer of SES, told reporters before the launch. The global satellite industry had revenues of nearly $190 billion in 2012, including nearly $90 billion in television services alone, the Satellite Industry Association trade group reported in October. The U.S. share of the market is 45% the report said.

 SYCAMORE IN LEAD TO ACQUIRE K&G FROM MEN’S WEARHOUSE
(Reuters) – Sycamore Partners, LLC is in advanced talks to acquire off-price chain store K&G from Men’s Wearhouse Inc, the clothing retailer embroiled in a takeover battle with Jos. A. Bank Clothiers Inc, according to four people familiar with the matter. K&G sells men’s, women’s and children’s discounted apparel and accessories from brands such as Calvin Klein, Kenneth Cole and Rocawear. It accounted for 15% of Men’s Wearhouse’s fiscal 2012 net sales of $2.5 billion.

Business 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.

The Dow Jones Industrial average slipped 7.45 points, or 0.1%, to close at 15,392.20. The NASDAQ composite increased 5.77 points, or 0.2%, to 3,920.05. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index inched up 0.16 of a point Monday to close at 1,744.66.

Benchmark crude fell $1.59, or 1.6 per cent, to close at $99.22 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

STUDY: 15% OF YOUTH 16-24 OUT OF WORK AND OUT OF SCHOOL

WASHINGTON — Almost 6 million young people are neither in school nor working, according to a study released Monday. That’s almost 15% of those aged 16 to 24 who have neither desk nor job, according to The Opportunity Nation coalition, which wrote the report. Other studies have shown that idle young adults are missing out on a window to build skills they will need later in life or use the knowledge they acquired in college. Without those experiences, they are less likely to command higher salaries and more likely to be an economic drain on their communities.

US EXISTING HOME SALES DROP 1.9% IN SEPTEMBER

WASHINGTON — Americans bought fewer existing homes in September than the previous month, held back by higher mortgage rates and rising prices. The National Association of Realtors said Monday that sales of re-sold homes fell 1.9% last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.29 million. That’s down from a pace of 5.39 million in August, which was revised lower.

STATEWIDE INITIATIVE IN CALIFORNIA WOULD ALLOW LOCAL GOVERNMENTS TO CUT RETIREMENT BENEFITS

Five California mayors are backing a statewide ballot measure that would let local governments change retirement benefits for current workers, not just future employees, to have more flexibility to avert insolvency. The measure, which will require more than 807,000 petition signers to qualify for the ballot, wouldn’t change pension and health care benefits government workers have already earned, according to the mayors of San Jose, San Bernardino, Santa Ana, Anaheim and Pacific Grove.

McDONALD’S UPDATES DOLLAR MENU

NEW YORK – McDonald’s is introducing some higher-priced options to its Dollar Menu and renaming it “Dollar Menu and More” to spur sales in the U.S. The company announced the changes to its popular low-priced menu on Monday, the same day that the world’s biggest burger chain reported that its third-quarter profit rose 5 per cent as it benefited from a Monopoly promotion in the U.S. and strength in the U.K. and Russia. The menu tweaks come as McDonald’s tries to regain its footing. After outperforming rivals for years, McDonald’s has struggled recently due to heightened competition, shifting eating habits and tough economic conditions around the world.

J.C. PENNEY, MARTHA STEWART SCALE BACK PARTNERSHIP

NEW YORK (AP) — J.C. Penney Co. is scaling back its partnership with Martha Stewart. The department store chain will no longer be selling certain home and bath products designed by Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc., the two companies said Monday. Penney will sell a smaller batch of Martha Stewart products, like window treatments and party supplies. It also will be selling the media and merchandising company back 11 million shares.  Penney and Martha Stewart signed a merchandising deal, including the stock investment, in 2011. That prompted Macy’s Inc. to sue both companies for violating its exclusive agreement with Martha Stewart. A judge has been expected to rule in a court battle between Penney and Macy’s over whether Macy’s has an exclusive right to sell some of her products.

SUPER SMOG HITS NORTH CHINA CITY, FLIGHTS CANCELLED

BEIJING (AP) — Visibility shrank to less than half a football field and small-particle pollution soared to a record 40 times higher than an international safety standard in one northern Chinese city as the region entered its high-smog season. Winter typically brings the worst air pollution to northern China because of a combination of weather conditions and an increase in the burning of coal for homes and municipal heating systems, which usually starts on a specific date. For the large northern city of Harbin, the city’s heating systems kicked in on Sunday, and on Monday visibility there was less than 50 yards, according to state media. The pollution has led to cancelled flights, bus routes, school days and concerts.

NETFLIX’S 3Q EARNING QUADRUPLE, STOCK SOARS

SAN JOSE, Calif. – Netflix’s earnings quadrupled as its line-up of original programming helped the Internet video subscription service attract 1.3 million more U.S. subscribers during its latest quarter. The third-quarter results announced Monday are the latest evidence of Netflix’s increasing popularity. The Los Gatos, Calif. company ended September with 31.1 million U.S. subscribers, eclipsing the estimated 29 million subscribers that HBO’s 41-year-old pay-TV channel is believed to have in the country.  HBO, which is owned by Time Warner Inc., still has a commanding lead globally with 114 million subscribers around the world.

Business Matters 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 stock market to save you time. You might find anything here for a quick read and tidbit of knowledge. We also call it the reading candy store.

The Dow Jones industrial average added 64.15 points, or 0.4%, to close at 15,301.26. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 6.94 points, or 0.4%, to 1,710.14. The NASDAQ composite rose 23.40 points, or 0.6%, to 3,815.27. Benchmark crude for November delivery rose 39 cents to close at $102.41 a barrel in New York.

US DEFAULT NEARS, INVESTORS SHRUG
NEW YORK – Warren Buffett likens it to a nuclear attack. Economists warn that government spending on programs like Social Security would plunge. The Treasury says the economy would slide into a recession worse than the last. Yet you wouldn’t know that a U.S. debt default could amount to a nightmare from the way many companies and investors are preparing for it: They aren’t. The assumption seems to be that in the end, Washington will find a way to avert a default. Brian Doe, a wealth adviser at Gratus Capital Management in Atlanta, has 35 clients who’ve entrusted him with $50 million for safekeeping. He isn’t losing sleep over a potential default. Neither are his clients, apparently. Not one has called him about the issue, he said.

PIMA COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR: PHOTO RADAR NOT SO EFFECTIVE AFTER ALL
A study of the effectiveness of the 11 speed cameras installed on county roads states they have had mixed results in terms of safety. County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry said the accident rate for the entire Pima County road system has declined by 19 percent since the inception of speed-photo enforcement, but only by 13 percent in the areas where the cameras are in place. He said drivers have become aware of the cameras and have largely adjusted their driving behavior for the immediate area, but not for the length of their commute. The use of fixed, stand-alone cameras generally has not been as effective as hoped in reducing speeds and crashes because drivers tend to rapidly decrease their speed before reaching the camera and then speed up quickly after passing the camera, Huckelberry wrote in a memo to the county Board of Supervisors. The five-year contract has generated more than 100,000 tickets, but the number peaked in 2010 as drivers learned to slow down in the busy traffic corridors. The county gets about $47 per ticket issued by the photo enforcement system.

#1 RETAILER CHALLENGING MERGER BETWEEN #2 & #3
The merger of Office Depot and OfficeMax could hinge on the companies’ ability to show the FTC that their combination favors consumers. The office-supply retailers, which hope to complete their $1.2 billion merger by year-end, confirmed Friday they both have completed answers to a second set of questions from the FTC about the pending merger. But a move to boost holiday sales last week by No. 1 competitor Staples could present new challenges for Office Depot and OfficeMax, the No. 2 and 3 retailers, with both the FTC and holiday sales. Staples announced Thursday it would match prices of Amazon, its top online competitor, beginning Nov. 3 both in stores and online. Many of the FTC’s questions to Office Depot have concerned pricing. Office Depot and OfficeMax argue their merger will help them better compete with Staples, Amazon and discount retailers Costco, Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club and Target. But if Office Depot doesn’t respond to Staples’ holiday offer, it could lose sales to its competitors. Meanwhile, Office Depot is facing other challenges to complete its merger by year-end. The combined companies have yet to name a CEO, although the boards had set a September goal.

J.C. PENNEY STILL TO FACE HOLIDAY DISCOUNT COMPETITION
Now that J.C. Penney Co. (NYSE:JCP) Chief Executive Officer Mike Ullman has slowed the sales decline and amassed enough cash to fund two years of operations, he faces his biggest challenge since returning as CEO: a holiday season marked by price wars and penny-pinching consumers. Analysts predict that U.S. retailers will discount heavily as they compete for shoppers concerned by joblessness and budget battles in Washington. While J.C. Penney has shored up its operations and finances, Macy’s Inc. (M) and Kohl’s Corp. (KSS) can better afford to cut prices to drive traffic. If Ullman is forced to join the price war, he risks hurting profitability and burning cash at a faster than projected rate. At the same time, Americans are buying less apparel, which makes up more than half of J.C. Penney’s sales, as they shift their dollars into such consumer durables as cars and appliances. If that trend persists, retailers will really pour on the discounts, making Ullman’s task even more challenging.

3 US ECONOMISTS WIN NOBEL ON ASSET PRICES
Ordinary investors don’t stand much chance of beating the market. It moves way too fast and efficiently. Or it behaves in ways that make no sense at all. Three Americans won the Nobel prize in economics Monday for their sometimes-contradictory insights into the complexities of investing. Eugene Fama and Lars Peter Hansen of the University of Chicago and Robert Shiller of Yale University were honored for shedding light on the forces that move stock, bond and home prices — findings that have transformed how people invest.

TINY SOCIAL SECURITY HIKE SQUEEZES SENIORS, VETS
WASHINGTON – Another year, another small raise for millions of people who rely on Social Security, veterans’ benefits and federal pensions. Preliminary figures suggest next year’s benefit increase will be roughly 1.5%, according to an analysis by The Associated Press. The increase will be small because consumer prices, as measured by the government, haven’t gone up much in the past year. For the second year in a row, it would be one of the lowest raises since automatic adjustments were adopted in 1975.

BROKERS SIMPLIFY, CONFUSION ON HEALTH EXCHANGE SHOPPING
This month’s glitch-filled rollout of the health insurance marketplaces created by federal law is a business opportunity for insurance brokers and agents, but regulators warn that it also opened the door for those who would seek to line their pockets by misleading consumers. New Hampshire’s insurance commissioner sent a cease-and-desist letter last week to an Arizona company he accused of building a website to mislead health care shoppers into thinking it was the official marketplace. The site was taken down Friday. Regulators in Washington state and Pennsylvania also have told agents to change websites that seemed likely to convince consumers they were connecting to government-run sites. Connecticut’s insurance department warned agents and brokers this summer that it will take action against agents who mislead consumers or design sites to replicate the state-run exchange.

FORD & UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN OPEN NEW BATTERY LAB
Ann Arbour, Mich. – The Ford Motor Company and the University of Michigan are opening a new battery research and manufacturing lab that they hope will speed the development of batteries for electric and hybrid cars. The center, on the university’s campus in Ann Arbor, will bring together battery makers, car companies and researchers who will test new batteries for prototype vehicles. Ted Miller, who manages battery research at Ford, said the lab will be unique in the U.S. He said that labs currently testing new battery chemistries can’t produce them in the amounts or formats needed for automotive research. And battery companies aren’t always sure that what they’re developing could be useful to the automotive industry.

MICROSOFT’S PHONE UPDATE TO FEATURE DRIVING MODE
NEW YORK – Microsoft is updating its Windows software for cellphones to accommodate larger devices and make it easier for motorists to reduce distractions while driving. It’s the third update to Windows Phone 8 software since the system’s release a year ago. Devices with this update will start appearing in the coming weeks, and older phones will be eligible for a free upgrade, too. Something that may appeal to motorists: a new Driving Mode will automatically silence incoming calls and texts so that you can focus on the road. You also can configure the feature to automatically send out a reply to say that you’re driving.

MACY’S OPEN ON THANKSGIVING FOR FIRST TIME EVER
NEW YORK – Macy’s Inc. says it will open most of its stores for the first time on Thanksgiving, breaking a long-standing tradition for the venerable retailer. In a release issued late Monday, the Cincinnati-based chain said it will open its doors at 8 p.m. on that day and will remain open for 24 hours straight until the close of business on Friday, which is usually about 10 p.m. Last year, the chain opened its doors at midnight right after the holiday. The department store chain cited increasing demand from shoppers for the earlier opening.The move comes as Macy’s faces growing pressure from rival stores and online merchants who are pushing deals on the holiday. Over the years, stores have been expanding their hours on the day after Thanksgiving to get ahead of the competition, but the kickoff is increasingly happening right after shoppers finish their turkey feast.