South Florida Bankruptcies Up

South Florida Bankruptcies Up 

South Florida experienced a sharp increase in personal bankruptcies in October, a sign that banks are resuming efforts to foreclose on delinquent mortgages, local attorneys say. Filings jumped nearly 19% in a month in Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties after they declined in September by 11.5%. There were more filings in October than even in August, when bankruptcies increased by 7%, according to records released Thursday by the US Bankruptcy Court in Miami. Overall, personal bankruptcy filings were down 6% in South Florida from a year ago -- which shows that the local economy continues to rebound from the worst economic times since the Great Depression. In the months ahead the improving economy may also further lower the number of bankruptcies -- even more than October's 6% drop from last year, suggested South Florida attorney Tim Kingcade. But the recovery hasn't been strong enough to save some strapped families. The struggling include contractors, doctors and o ther affluent South Floridians who never thought they would be unable to pay all their bills, said Plantation attorney Langley. "They've just been crushed by this economy," he said. Like other South Floridians many have been forced to take pay cuts and now can't afford their hefty mortgages and other bills, Langley said.

Service sector down

The Institute for Supply Management said its services index eased to 54.2 last month from 55.1 in September, shy of economists' forecasts for 54.5, according to a Reuters survey. A reading above 50 indicates expansion in the sector. The forward-looking new orders gauge fell to 54.8 from 57.7, but the measure of employment gained to 54.9 from 51.1. The vast services sector has fared better than its manufacturing counterpart, which contracted during the summer. Still, this was the first time since June that the rate of growth in services firms has cooled.

Housing crisis from Sandy

A housing crisis loomed in New York City as victims of superstorm Sandy struggled on Sunday without heat in near-freezing temperatures, and officials fretted displaced residents would not be able to vote in Tuesday's presidential election. Fuel shortages and power outages lingered nearly a week after one of the worst storms in US history flooded homes in coastal neighborhoods, leaving many without heat and in need of shelter in New York and New Jersey. Mayor Michael Bloomberg said 30,000 to 40,000 people in New York City alone would need housing, including around 20,000 from public housing. "We don't have a lot of empty housing in this city. It's a problem to find housing. We're not going to let anybody go sleeping in the street," Bloomberg said. "But it's a challenge and we're working on this as fast as we can." US Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said on Sunday federal agencies are looking for apartments and hotel rooms for people displaced by S andy. "Our goal is to try to get people out of the shelters," Napolitano said at a news conference in New Jersey with Governor Chris Christie. Overnight, at least two more bodies were found in New Jersey - one dead of hypothermia - as the overall North American death toll from Sandy climbed to at least 111. "People are in homes that are uninhabitable," New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said at a news conference.

US firms flock to 3rd world - Europe

US corporations have been flocking to Asia in search of lower wages for quite some time. The toll taken on middle-class Americans is not to be underestimated, as documented by GlobalPost's "America the Gutted" series. But Asia isn't the only locale with low-cost conditions — especially with aeuro zone debt crisis sweeping the continent. That's right folks. Widen that belt around the developing world, cuz its belly is getting bigger. Ireland and Poland are among the locales gaining popularity among potential outsourcers, notably legal outsourcers. White & Case, a major US law firm, recently announced that it would like to open a business and legal support center in either Belfast or Poland. "We have a support hub in Manila and now we're looking at building another one in Europe, which may provide legal services support as well as back office," White & Case chair man Hugh Verrier told legalweek.com. Two other law firms, Allen & Overy and Herbert Smith, have also recently set up shop in Northern Ireland. Also important to note is that at this stage in the outsourcing game, it's not just money that is calling the shots. Major US law firms have started outsourcing domestically, or "Amerisourcing," in lower cost US cities like Nashville and Wheeling, W. Va. No matter how much money can be saved in New Delhi, many firms find that they are simply more comfortable being able to keep a closer eye on what's going on. In Europe, especially in Eastern Europe and parts of the hard-hit euro zone, outsourcers find skilled workers and flexibility in addition to low labor costs and tax breaks. That's a pretty good deal. Ireland isn't new to outsourcing, either. Indeed, an influx of global companies helped earn the country its title "Celtic Tiger" during the 1990s, when Ireland's growth rate was between 8 and 9%.

Olick - what Friday's job report says about the housing market

Any jump in jobs is good for housing, and October's gain of 171,000 is no different. One of the biggest barriers to entry for potential home buyers, new and move-up, has been uncertainty in employment. So this positive report can only add to rising consumer confidence and wealth. When you dig down into the numbers, however, you can see where the numbers are not quite as rosy as some would hope for both home buyers and builders. While overall construction added 17,000 jobs in October, residential-building construction employment fell by 2,000. Residential specialty contractor jobs increased by 6,700, which speaks to the real root of today's housing recovery. All-cash investors are leading the gains; they buy distressed properties and then repair and remodel them to turn them into rentals. It's no wonder remodelers are seeing greater gains than the home builders. An industry index of remodeling finally climbed into the positive in October, making a significant jump to its highe st level since the end of 2005. Both current conditions and future expectations saw gains on the National Association of Home Builders' remodeling index (RMI). The builders claim it is not just investors, but a result of rising home equity. “The strength of the RMI, especially in owner-occupied properties, shows that home owners are investing in remodels as home prices stabilize,” said NAHB Remodelers Chairman George Moore Jr., a remodeler from Elm Grove, La. “As owners become more confident that investments in housing will hold their value, they are beginning to undertake projects to improve their comfort that they had been putting off.” While any construction is better than no construction, housing analysts focus more on home building than remodeling, as the nation's home builders contribute more to the overall economy, with more jobs and materials. Home builders have ramped up production dramatically, as they rise from the ashes of the housing bust . Housing starts and permits are up significantly from the bottom, and the public builders are all reporting at least double-digit gains in new orders. They still, however, need to see more demand from their historically strong cohort, the first-time home buyer. Those younger Americans are seeing employment gains, but are still proportionally harder-hit than the rest of the work force. "Among 25-34 year-olds, the prime age group for housing demand, 75.1% were employed in October, up from 74.9% in September and from 73.6% in October 2011,"" notes Jed Kolko of Trulia.com, a real estate sales and information website. "For this age group, the unemployment rate was 8.3% in October, down from 9.7% one year ago – an even bigger drop than for the economy overall. Labor force participation increased for this key group." The downside in October's jobs report, however is that job growth in what Kolko calls “clobbered metros” was just 0.5% (annualized rate) through Sep tember – behind the national average of 1.6% for the same period. (These figures are annualized 3-month growth rates to September, the latest data released for metros.) Kolko defines clobbered metros as the areas with the biggest price declines during the bust and the highest vacancy rates now: "Job growth there is especially important for housing demand," he notes.