The general aviation fleet is put at risk by the loss of a major parts supplier. The reason? Product liability concerns. Read more →
Category: Economy/Finance
Real Estate Market Finally Gets Real
I hate to say “I told you so”, but I did. Again and again. And again. And… well, you get the idea. 2006 may well go down as the year Pluto was suddenly just another big rock, Brad and Angelina had a baby and the real estate market slid from great to miserable in a few short months. In data released… Read more →
Avgas Prices
Think it’s expensive to fill up your car? According to AirNav, aviation fuel is now running as high as $6.79 a gallon. Yes, you read that right. We’re pushing seven dollars per gallon. Anyone want to take a guess about how high it will go? Eight dollars? Ten? Assuming a fuel flow of 30 gallons per hour on takeoff, an SR22 would… Read more →
The Unstoppable O.C.
NEW YORK (FORTUNE) – If you want to know where real estate prices are headed in California’s Orange County, the man to talk to is Gary Watts. The Mission Viejo broker has 35 years of experience and doubles as a spokesman for the O.C.’s Association of Realtors. But it’s his track record more than his resume that has won him… Read more →
Fuel for the Fire
Sometimes I wonder if I’m the only one that sees the “big picture” the way I do. Recently, a fellow pilot in Arizona took the time to write about the escalating fuel prices and what this rise in energy costs is doing to the economy Groceries are already going up in price here, it’s in small increments but if you… Read more →
Can America Compete?
The July 25th edition of Fortune magazine features a pretty good analysis of the emerging challenges America faces from the likes of India and China. And, frankly, from our own affluence. The article is particularly noteworthy because globalization is making it harder to seperate the wheat from the chaff when attempting to define causes and solutions. It’s not an “us… Read more →
No Inflation?
Talking heads in the financial sector seem quite fond of crowing about how well the economy is doing. One metric they never fail to point to is the Consumer Price Index, a primary indicator of inflation. It invariably shows that we’ve got the perfect amount: approximately 3% per year. Does that make sense to you? Now keep in mind I’m… Read more →
Lifetime Savings Accounts
I stumbled upon something interesting on the web the other day, the Lifetime Savings Account. The LSA is a Bush administration proposal for a new kind of retirement account that might best be described as a Roth IRA on steroids. The discovery of the LSA proposal was exciting to me, because as a sole-proprietor with “variable” income, my only regular… Read more →
eBay Goes Political
I had no idea that eBay was a topic on the presidential campaign trail. Earlier this month, Vice President Dick Cheney was stumping in Cincinnati when he brought up eBay as an example of why economic data isn’t fully factoring in a robust recovery. “That’s a source that didn’t even exist 10 years ago,” he said, pointing out that the… Read more →
Top Housing Markets
CNN/Money has published a list of the nation’s top housing markets for the second quarter of 2004. The list is… interesting. For one thing, they’re apparently referring to Orange County as “Anaheim-Santa Ana”. An odd choice to say the least. I’ve got nothing against either town, but it’s beyond the pale to suggest that Anaheim or Santa Ana is representative… Read more →