Hard Money Loans

Toronto, Ontario, Canada (AHN) – The province of Ontario will relax its liquor laws by summer because of the strong public clamor for easing of the regulations, Ontario Attorney General Chris Bentley said on Monday.

Under the relaxed laws, adults could legally posses open containers at festivals, Bentley said. The change will be made following the end of public comments on May 1 of the proposed amendments. The attorney general said most of the residents favored a relaxation of current laws on liquor control.

Under existing rules, beer tents are required at festivals and other public events. With the planned changes, adult Ontarians could also shop at retail stalls while brandishing an open container. Ontario also plans to extend liquor hours for weddings and other charity events until 2 a.m.

There are proposals that Ontario also review restrictions on serving of liquor at boat cruises and patios. Although tour operators could serve hard drinks 30 minutes before the boat sails, if the vessel’s departure is delayed because of bad weather, current rules mandate the drinks to be taken away.

Meanwhile, a British Columbia radio broadcaster sought the update to Canada’s Liquor Act of 1928, which requires customers to seek permit form a liquor licensing branch to purchase wine from another Canadian province. The law was passed during the Prohibition era to stop bootlegging.

Terry David Mulligan said enforcement of the law until now could cause the $35 price tag on a BC wine to triple by the time it reaches another Canadian province.

To test if authorities still enforce that law, Mulligan crossed by foot the border on Friday, bringing along dozens of wine from BC, Ontario and Washington state. He said the Royal Canadian Mounted Police did not bother him about the liquor he was lugging. Mulligan pushed for the act’s amendment so bringing liquor across other provinces would no longer be a criminal act.

View full post on Economy, Business And Finance Stories

Ottawa, Ontario, Canada (AHN) – A study by Environment Canada found that policies under the Conservative-led government are not doing enough to prevent dangerous climate changes, which could cause the loss of thousands of species, melt Arctic ice and lead to a rise of sea level by several meters.

To prevent a grim environmental scenario, global greenhouse gas emissions would have to be cut to zero immediately to avoid a 2-degree Celsius increase in planetary temperature this century. Although Canada agreed to the 2009 Copenhagen Accord which agreed to the target, the Tory policies run contrary to the Accord.

The report, which used a sophisticated computer models, pointed out that Ottawa continues to promote wider use and export of Canadian oil sands and coal. The model included carbon dioxide and other GHG emissions, aerosols, land use change, and the flow of carbon between the atmosphere, oceans and land surfaces.

However, Canada’s further export of oil sands may be curbed following a pronouncement on Wednesday by U.S. President Barack Obama that the American concern over the potentially destructive nature of Canada’s oil sands must be addressed before Washington approves the proposed TransCanada Keystone XL 3,200-kilometer pipeline project.

In March, The U.S. State Department ordered a new study on the $7-billion Keystone project and provided a public comment period until spring. Previously, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency asked the State Department to make a supplemental environmental impact study over safety concerns and impact of the oil sands on climate change.

Canada supplies about 23 percent of the yearly U.S. imports of crude every year.

Harper, in a campaign trip to Quebec, promised to pursue more clean energy projects to reduce Canada’s dependence on fossil fuels and cut GHG. He promised to provide a $4.2-billion loan guarantee for Newfoundland and Labrador’s Lower Churchill hydro project, which will transmit electricity directly into Atlantic Canada and New England customers through two subsea cables.

View full post on Economy, Business And Finance Stories

Third-quarter mortgage delinquency of at least 60 days was down 27 basis points from the second quarter, TransUnion reported. It was the third consecutive quarterly improvement, according to the report. In addition, TransUnion said the change was “the largest quarterly decline since the fourth quarter of 2006.”

View full post on Mortgage Stories

Los Angeles, CA, United States (AHN) – Universal is changing the trailer for their Vince Vaughn-Kevin James comedy “Dilemma” after it received severe criticism over the use of the word “gay.”

In the teaser trailer for the upcoming Ron Howard-directed comedy, Vaughn is speaking to a packed conference room when he hurls the term as an insult, saying, “Ladies and gentlemen, electric cars are so gay.”

The trailer got so much buzz that even Anderson Cooper complained to Ellen DeGeneres on her talk show that the film influences people in thinking the term is acceptable.

He told the host via satellite, “I was sitting in a movie theater over the weekend and there was a preview of a movie, and in it, the actor said, ‘That’s so gay,’ and I was shocked that not only that they put it in the movie, but that they put that in the preview.”

“They thought it was okay to put that in a preview for the movie to get people to go and see it… We’ve got to do something to make those words unacceptable cause those words are hurting kids.”

Cooper never identified the name of the film.

GLAAD is also speaking out, saying the use of the word “gay” in the film’s teaser was “unnecessary and does nothing more than send a message of intolerance about our community to viewers.”

Universal now promises to change the trailer for the film, saying in a statement obtained by Deadline: “The teaser trailer for The Dilemma was not intended to cause anyone discomfort. In light of growing claims that the introduction to the trailer is insensitive, it is being replaced.”

View full post on Economy, Business And Finance Stories

Report suggests little change in economic outlook.

View full post on Finance Stories

Central San Diego Real Estate Market – Mid Year Snapshot of Median Prices (2006) – Single Family Homes

As of this writing, the San Diego real estate markets appears to have shifted from one that favors sellers to one that favors buyers. However, this premise may not hold true for all communities within San Diego, as median prices for some communities continue to rise while others fall.

While there are many metrics to evaluate the real estate pricing trends of a community, one commonly used parameter is to evaluate the median price of homes from one point in time against a prior point of time. The median price reflects the point at which half the homes are above a particular price point, and half the homes are below a particular price point. The median price metric provides one method to analyze the direction of home prices, but should not be used as the sole source of data from which to form conclusions.

The data below is a comparison of median prices for various communities in central San Diego County, comparing data from June 2005 against data for June 2006. This information is only one metric at a particular point in time, and other metrics or data from future months may support or dispute the pricing trends noted below. For some of the San Diego communities presented below, very few homes sold during June 2006, which diminishes the usefulness of the median price metric.

COMMUNITIES WITH INCREASES IN MEDIAN PRICE – SINGLE FAMILY HOMES – JUNE 2006

The data below pertains only to the sales of single-family homes, and does not include condominiums or townhomes. The data is organized by the magnitude of change in median price, with the highest change in median price presented first.

For the Coronado real estate market, the median price was $1,775,000, which represents a 14.7% increase from the same time last year. Approximately 15 homes sold in June 2006 (21 homes sold in June 2005).

For the Point Loma real estate market, the median price was $1,024,068, which represents an 11.4% increase from the same time last year. Approximately 20 homes sold in June 2006 (14 homes sold in June 2005).

For the University City (UTC) real estate market, the median price was $780,000, which represents a 10.6% increase from the same time last year. Approximately 5 homes sold in June 2006 (19 homes sold in June 2005).

For the La Jolla real estate market, the median price was $1,692,500, which represents a 10.3% increase from the same time last year. Approximately 28 homes sold in June 2006 (38 homes sold in June 2005).

For the Logan Heights real estate market, the median price was $425,000, which represents a 7.6% increase from the same time last year. Approximately 13 homes sold in June 2006 (14 homes sold in June 2005).

For the Paradise Hills real estate market, the median price was $507,500, which represents a 5.7% increase from the same time last year. Approximately 8 homes sold in June 2006 (16 homes sold in June 2005).

For the Mission Hills real estate market, the median price was $927,500, which represents a 3.1% increase from the same time last year. Approximately 11 homes sold in June 2006 (12 homes sold in June 2005).

For the Scripps Ranch (Scripps Miramar) real estate market, the median price was $759,250, which represents a 2.8% increase from the same time last year. Approximately 34 homes sold this month (43 homes sold in June 2005).

For the San Carlos real estate market, the median price was $563,000, which represents a 2.4% increase from the same time last year. Approximately 12 homes sold in June 2006 (16 homes sold in June 2005).

For the Del Cerro real estate market, the median price was $557,500, which represents a 2.1% increase from the same time last year. Approximately 13 homes sold in June 2006 (30 homes sold in June 2005).

For the Normal Heights real estate market, the median price was $676,250, which represents a 1.7% increase from the same time last year. Approximately 20 homes sold in June 2006 (19 homes sold in June 2005).

COMMUNITIES WITH DECREASES IN MEDIAN PRICE – SINGLE FAMILY HOMES – JUNE 2006

The data below pertains only to the sales of single-family homes, and does not include condominiums or townhomes. The data is organized by the magnitude of change in median price, with the highest change in median price presented first.

For the Old Town real estate market, the median price was $580,000, which was a 19.1% decline from the same time last year. Approximately 5 homes sold in June 2006 (14 homes sold in June 2005).

For the Golden Hill real estate market, the median price was $451,000, which was a 16.4% decline from the same time last year. Approximately 10 homes sold in June 2006 (13 homes sold in June 2005).

For the Pacific Beach real estate market, the median price was $851,960, which represents a 14.8% decline from the same time last year. Approximately 15 homes sold in June 2006 (19 homes sold in June 2005).

For the Tierrasanta real estate market, the median price was $570,000, which represents a 12.6% decline from the same time last year. Approximately 9 homes sold in June 2006 (17 homes sold in June 2005).

For the North Park real estate market, the median price was $560,000, which represents a 9.7% decline from the same time last year. Approximately 31 homes sold in June 2006 (16 homes sold in June 2005).

For the College Grove real estate market, the median price was $475,000, which represents a 5.9% decline from the same time last year. Approximately 38 homes sold in June 2006 (40 homes sold in June 2005).

For the City Heights real estate market, the median price was $390,00, which represents a 5.3% decline from the same time last year. Approximately 17 homes sold in June 2006 (30 homes sold in June 2005).

For the Mira Mesa real estate market, the median price was $510,000, which represents a 4.7% decline from the same time last year. Approximately 45 homes sold in June 2006 (47 homes sold in June 2005).

For the Linda Vista real estate market, the median price was $510,000, which represents a 4.2% decline from the same time last year. Approximately 16 homes sold in June 2006 (17 homes sold in June 2005).

For the Mission Valley real estate market, the median price was $510,000, which represents a 3.8% decline from the same time last year. Approximately 7 homes sold in June 2006 (18 homes sold in June 2005).

For the Encanto real estate market, the median price was $435,000, which represents a 3.3% decline from the same time last year. Approximately 36 homes sold in June 2006 (47 homes sold in June 2005).

For the Clairemont real estate market, the median price was $555,000, which represents a 2.6% decline from the same time last year. Approximately 30 homes sold in June 2006 (34 homes sold in June 2005).

For the Sorrento Valley real estate market, the median price was $861,000, which represents a 1% decline from the same time last year. Approximately 6 homes sold in June 2006 (5 homes sold in June 2005).

ADVISORY

Homebuyers and home sellers should keep in mind that the data above is simply a snapshot in time, and is not conclusive of the pricing trends for any community. For some communities presented above, very few homes were sold during June 2006, which makes the use of the median price metric of limited value. The data must be evaluated over a longer duration, and involve multiple metrics to fully understand enduring market trends. Contact your Realtor to obtain information about enduring market trends for any given community.