Month: May 2014

According to Fannie Mae’s National Housing Survey, younger renters between ages 18 and 39 dream to be homeowners in their relatively near futures, but economic realties are getting in the way--a situation that's noticeably impeding the housing market's recovery process. According to U.S. Census statistics, the demographic's new home purchasing fell from 65.2% in 2013's fourth quarter to 64.8% in 2014's first quarter. According to Sarah Shahdad, a Fannie Mae strategic planning analyst, obstacles like staggering student loan debt, lack of savings, and less-than-perfect credit are holding Millennials back from being able to enter the housing market. Additionally, Millennials are waiting longer to get married or have kids, which means they're essentially delaying life events that would moti...

Not all experiments end well, as the auto industry has been finding out after offering gas saving hybrid models for vehicles that are known for having low fuel economy. So few of these vehicles were sold that automakers are now wondering whether they’re even worth engineering. General Motors, after offering hybrid versions of its new generations of Cadillac Escalade, GMC Yukon, and Chevrolet Tahoe SUVs, has decided to pull the plug. Even though the Escalade hybrid delivered 21 miles per gallon (combined driving conditions), up 31% from the non-hybrid’s 16 combined, “No one bought them,” says David Schiavone, marketing manager for the Escalade. “And they were great.” Mercedes-Benz and Lexus have also been pulling back on their offerings. One of the issues with selling the hybrid cars,...

A Texas couple is suing the construction company that built their home over claims of negligent construction after the home's foundations began to crack "excessively," an April 24 article in the Southeast Texas Record reported. On April 14, John and Donna English filed a lawsuit against Ronald Allen Hansen of Sandcastle Construction in the Galveston County District Court, citing breach of contract and negligence. According to the Southeast Texas Record, the complaint stated that the plaintiffs hired Sandcastle Construction to construct a house on their property in Galveston and paid Hansen in full. In the complaint, the plaintiffs also alleged that their house's foundation was now cracking excessively. The couple is seeking attorney's fees and damages to cover the repairs needed to r...