| Some tax changes on tap for 2008
The rest of the long-term gains, $14,900, would be taxed at 15 percent.
Retirees living solely on investment income could reap huge rewards, too, says John W. Roth, a senior tax analyst with CCH, an Illinois provider of tax information.
Take a couple whose $80,000 income comes from qualified dividends and the sale of long-held stocks, he says. After the standard deduction and personal exemptions, the couple's taxable income could be below $65,100, he says. In other words, they pay no tax.
• Kiddie tax changes. Congress raised the age of children subject to the so-called kiddie tax. This throws a wrench into plans of wealthy parents wanting to take advantage of tax-free capital gains by shifting securities to youngsters to sell.
For many years, the kiddie tax disappeared once a child turned 14.
America`s Ultimatum
You are now working with the West exactly like our visionary leader Gen. Ayub Khan. You provide services to the West and earn $$. But watch out for the Marxists, socialists and other cists amongst you Indians. They'll come get you. And don't worry about nut-job Mullah terrorists and their supporters in Canada. These terrorists have tried to destroy every country that gave them refuge. We'll deal with them in Pakistan too. We have already kicked out most of the Arab Qaida members who are now “official guests" in Gitmo. And Mr. Wazir, your “allegiance to the American constitution" is something in your heart so I won't comment on it. But be careful about supporting Iranian Mullahs. These Mullahs will make you hostage unless you follow their deranged “nuke'em" slogans. And even if you don't like to be reminded of your duties to your adopted country, just don't get roped by this character from Canada.
New Orleans Remains Problematic for Army Corps of Engineers
Gulf Coast, leaving behind extensive damage to several states and the city of New Orleans, most would think that recovery is well underway. While Mississippi has faired far better than Louisiana, with less residents impacted, New Orleans remains troubled. Suffering flood damage in 80% of the area from the ravages of Hurricane Katrina, compounded weeks later by Hurricane Rita, New Orleans has far greater obstacles to overcome than most had ever expected.
New Orleans is not in a rebuilding mode, but rather in a reconstruction mode. It has not only been victim of hurricanes raging out of control but a government out of control, thus the creation of a perfect storm. With a city history steeped in political corruption, a high crime rate, a high poverty rate, in educational decline, the hurricanes of 2005 allowed Americans a peek behind New Orleans proverbial curtain.
Bad appraisals contribute to housing mess
Home buyers, sellers, real-estate agents and lenders all rely on comparable prices as the benchmark for an area's home values. But in many Valley neighborhoods, those comps can't always be trusted. Bad appraisals are often to blame. As the housing market corrects and prices return to normal levels, it's becoming apparent that inflated appraisals are behind many problems plaguing the Valley, say regulators, market watchers and many appraisers. .
Colcord Hotel to Celebrate Opening on Oct. 26
Coury Collection's newest addition brings signature, boutique style to downtown Oklahoma City. Oklahoma City, OK (PRWEB) October 16, 2006 -- With little more than two weeks remaining before the Oct. 26 grand opening of downtown Oklahoma City's first upscale boutique hotel, construction crews are working around the clock to ensure a fully-functioning, top-tier facility awaits the first official guests. "We're in soft-opening mode right now, working out the kinks with a few trial overnight stays while we make final preparations," said Paul Coury, Oklahoma real estate developer and president of the Coury Collection. "There is much to do before we roll out the red carpet, but we are ahead of schedule. We look forward to showing off our wares at our invitation-only kick-off celebration." The Colcord Hotel became Oklahoma City's first skyscraper when it was built in 1910 by Charles Francis Colcord.
Several banks report earnings declines
For the full year, Wachovia earned $6.31 billion or $3.31 per share, down 19 percent from the $7.79 billion or $4.72 per share earned during 2006. Full-year revenues were $31.5 billion, compared with $30.0 billion. Total assets were $782.9 billion, deposits were $449.1 billion and loans were $462.0 billion. Wachovia shares closed at $31.91 on the New York Stock Exchange, up $1.11. l l l Bank of America Corp.'s fourth-quarter earnings fell 95 percent to $268 million or 5 cents per share, compared with $5.26 billion or $1.16 per share a year ago. Fourth-quarter revenue was $12.67 billion, compared with $18.49 billion last year. Bank of America's results included $5.44 billion of trading losses, compared with profits of $460 million a year earlier. This reflected a $5.28 billion write-down related to collateralized debt obligations, which the bank said reduced trading profit by $4.5 billion and other income by about $750 million.
Miami leads the way as home prices plunge
Only Charlotte, N.C.; Portland, Ore.; and Seattle posted positive annual growth rates. However, Blitzer believes these cities will fall into negative territory in the next few months. The decline in the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller 10-city composite home price index was the biggest year-to-year drop since a 6.7 percent decrease in October. The November performance was the 11th straight monthly decline. The index tracks prices of existing single-family homes in 10 metropolitan areas. ''Nothing in these numbers suggest a bottoming out. The numbers universally are disappointing,'' said David Blitzer, S&P's managing director and chairman of the index committee. ``Maybe when we get into the spring/summer home-buying season and with lower interest rates, maybe it will all come together.'' .
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