Fantasy Inside the Beltway vs American Reality

Posted on 01/26/2012 | Leave a comment

It’s likely the Federal Government will increase its debt to over $16 trillion very soon. Probably like most Americans, I can’t fathom what a “trillion” equates to. Heck, I can barely imagine what it would be like to win the lottery and have a million dollars to spend. I think it would be fun, though.

I received an email this week that is probably making the rounds. Maybe you’ve seen it, maybe you haven’t. It helps put the Government spending at a level that we “little folks” can understand.

Here are the numbers in government speak:

  • U.S. Tax Revenue: $2,170,000,000,000
  • Fed Budget: $3,820,000,000,000
  • New Debt: $1,650,000,000,000
  • National Debt: $14,271,000,000,000 (will soon go to $16 trillion)
  • Recent Budget Cuts: $38,500,000,000

Here’s what WE understand:

  • Annual family income : $21,700
  • Money the family spent: $38,200
  • New Debt on the Credit Card: $16,500
  • Outstanding balance on the credit card: $142,710 (will soon go to over $160,000)
  • Total Budget Cuts: $385

Now, what family is going to sit around their kitchen table and casually increase their credit card debt by another $18,000 as the politicians are doing?

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Posted in Central Ohio

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Columbus Makes the “Easiest & Hardest Cities to Find a Job” List

Posted on 01/24/2012 | Leave a comment

Yesterday Forbes.com released a report of the Easiest & Hardest Cities to find a job. Columbus made one of the lists … can you guess which one?

The report considers 4th Qtr job listings for salaries over $50,000. The cities were ranked per the number of jobs per 1000 population. The parenthesis below represents the (jobs/1M).

Easiest Places: San Jose (130); Washington DC (89); San Francisco (54); Boston (53); Baltimore (52); Raleigh (50); Seattle (42); Columbus (38); Atlanta (36); Minneapolis/St Paul (35).

Hardest Places: Riverside, CA; Miami; Louisville, KY; Orlando; Las Vegas; San Antonio; Los Angeles; Virginia Beach; Salt Lake.

Read the entire Forbes article

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Posted in Central Ohio, Columbus Ohio, Franklin County

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Ohio Unemployment Rate Continues to Drop

Posted on 01/22/2012 | Leave a comment

Ohio’s unemployment rate dropped again for December, going from 8.5 to 8.1. That compares quite favorably to the 9.5 rate in December 2010 before the new governor, John Kasich, took office.

A year ago 560,000 people were unemployed. In November 2011, 496,000 were unemployed, and it further dropped to 469,000 in December 2012.

Per the report, the rate decline from 8.5 to 8.1 was the largest one-month decline in almost 30 years. Let’s hope the Governor continues his successes to bring or keep businesses here in Ohio which will certainly help our housing market.

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Posted in Central Ohio

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Delaware County Property Tax Bills Arrive

Posted on 01/17/2012 | Leave a comment

Did you receive your 2012 Delaware County property tax bill yet? I received mine today. Oh, yay!

Along with the invoice was a post card explaining that although the assessed value of our properties had decreased, our taxes may not decrease due to various levies being passed.

The assessed value of my property went down 9½%. The Auditors are notorious for referring to the “value” as market value. Market value is what a buyer will pay for your home. The Auditor’s don’t know what that price is because they’ve never been inside your home to know whether it’s in top condition or not. It’s merely an assessed value which they use to calculate what tax amount you’ll pay. Since I’m not planning to sell, I’m OK with a reduced amount for calculating the taxes.

Even though my assessed value declined, the amount of taxes I owe increased 7%. The lion’s share of my taxes go to the schools – to the tune of 79%! A huge school district tax levy was passed last fall, so that isn’t surprising.

Knowing what the school district pays-per-student, I seem to be funding the cost of one child even though I don’t have any school age children. Thus, to whoever’s kid I’m supporting … you’re welcome!

BTW, the bill is to be paid to the County by Feb 10.

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Posted in Central Ohio, Delaware County, Home prices, Homes, Schools

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Is Columbus in the “Technosphere”?

Posted on 01/09/2012 | Leave a comment

It is according to Forbes. Columbus has come a long way from being called a cow town – thanks to that OSU farm photo years ago – to now being suggested as one of the regions to watch in 2012 for technology growth.

Read the complete Forbes article

Here’s what Forbes said about Columbus (#4 heading, under Technosphere):

Unfortunately for the rest of California, and even more blue-collar Bay Area communities like San Jose and Oakland, high costs and an unfavorable regulatory environment will keep this bubble geographically constrained. Historic patterns, particularly over the past decade, suggest that as the core tech companies expand, they are likely to head  to business-friendly places such as  Salt Lake City, Raleigh and Columbus, Ohio, which have picked up both tech companies and educated migrants from California.

Recently Jerry Brown, the California Governor, appealed for more tax increases to assist their ailing economy. Governor Kasich tweeted that he welcomed California companies to come to Ohio where our business climate was now friendlier.

Having lived in central Ohio most of my life, and enduring the years that some media have made fun of us, I’m really proud to have this new designation from Forbes. How about you?

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Posted in Central Ohio, Columbus Ohio, Franklin County, Technology

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Luxury Home Sales Were Down in 2011

Posted on 01/04/2012 | Leave a comment

With so much discussion on the “have & have-nots”, I’ve updated my report on the Luxury homes that were sold in 2011. Bottom line, fewer such homes ($1 million plus) were sold this past year and the prices were lower of those that did sell.

million $ homes sold in 2011 in central ohio
Click to enlarge, then click again

If you missed your opportunity to buy one of these stellar homes, there are plenty still available for sale:

  • New Albany SD: 14 homes for sale with an average price of $1,656,271. Most expensive home is priced at $4,300,000.
  • Dublin SD: 14 homes for sale with an average price of $1,753,355. Most expensive home is priced at $3,200,000.
  • Olentangy SD: 13 homes for sale with an average price of $2,124,900. Most expensive home is priced at $6,899,700 and it’s been on the market for 681 days!
  • Big Walnut SD: 5 homes for sale with an average price of $2,362,960. Most expensive home is priced at $3,995,000.
  • Arlington SD: 6 homes for sale with an average price of $1,533,166. Most expensive home is priced at $2,200,000.

Read 2010 luxury homes results.

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Posted in Buyers, Central Ohio, Delaware County, Franklin County, Home prices, Homes, Housing stats

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