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Showing posts from August, 2008

Worker Savings Accounts Proposed

Rep. McHugh (R-NY) introduced the Worker Savings Account Act of 2008 on August 1, 2008. H.R. 6799 would create Unemployment Savings Accounts. These accounts would be treated like IRAs for tax purposes. Workers could contribute to these accounts to protect them during periods of unemployment other than following termination for gross misconduct. Note if passed: This legislation would not lessen the requirement for employers to pay state or federal unemployment taxes, and would not reduce an individual’s unemployment benefits. Employees would be limited to annual contributions of $5,000 (indexed to inflation) and employers could provide matching contributions up to the full amount of the employee’s contribution. The employe could rollover WSA funds into an IRA or 401(k) plan. This Bill was referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means. Because this is an election year, the Bill will most likely die in the Ways and Means Committee.

1 Million Bankruptcies

Nearly 1 million individuals and businesses filed bankruptcy in the 12 months ended June 30, according to U.S. Court data released August 27, 2008. There were 967,831 bankruptcy cases filed since July 1, 2007, up 28.9 percent from the prior 12 months, when cases totaled 751,056. Non-business filings made up 96.5 percent of those cases, but on the business side a total of 33,822 cases were filed in the 12-month period, including 23,372 under Chapter 7.

Housing Prices Fall 15.4%

The Case-Shiller Home Price Index came out today, and it showed that home prices fell 15.4% in the second quarter nationwide, and this just puts more pressure on anyone falling behind in mortgage payments. A homeowner that has a loan worth more than their mortgage often finds it easier to just walk away from a home rather than sell it, so until we can see some price stabilization, the glut of homes on the market is likely to grow. Keep in mind that a lot of the adjustable loans are still set to adjust, so again, the pressure on prices will likely continue. Note: Commercial Building prices seem much steadier. The problem I observe is not the Sales price being too low, but the Listing price of many properties being above market value.