VOL. 38 | NO. 2 | Friday, January 10, 2014
REAL ESTATE
Year-end 2013 real estate trends for Davidson, Williamson, Rutherford and Wilson counties, as compiled by Chandler Reports.
Top December 2013 residential real estate transactions for Davidson, Williamson, Rutherford, Wilson and Sumner counties, as compiled by Chandler Reports.
A look at Davidson County’s top lenders based on total number of all loans, commercial and residential. Only loans that have the actual lender name listed on the trust deed filing are included.
TERRY McCORMICK
When the Tennessee Titans and Mike Munchak were unable to come to an agreement, it represented a watershed moment for the franchise.
GUERRILLA MARKETING
Brands leveraging social media as an arrow in their quiver of marketing tools naturally want to know what drives people to engage with their brand.
THE WORLDLY INVESTOR
The thundering herd that carried the equity markets into the record books in 2013 seemed spooked by the first few trading days of 2014. Should we read into this?
NEWSMAKERS
Corizon, a provider of correctional health care solutions, has appointed Calvin B. Johnson, M.D., M.P.H., as its new chief medical officer.
I SWEAR
Early last month, an attorney whose name I’ll spare you was suspended from practice for 12 months by his state’s disciplinary panel. Someone the lawyer had represented in a criminal case presented documentation indicating that he (the client) was the beneficiary of a large bequest. From a long-lost cousin. In Nigeria.
KAY'S COOKING CORNER
When I was younger, I thought I’d never live to see the year 2000 anything. It all seemed so far away. However, I also thought 50 years old was ancient and I’d never live to be that age, either.
MUSIC INDUSTRY
NASHVILLE (AP) — Keith Urban and Rascal Flatts are headlining the Academy of Country Music's Party for a Cause Festival in April, and helping to open a new entertainment district at Caesars Palace at the same time.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Country singer Trace Adkins has entered alcohol rehab.
STATE LEGISLATURE
NASHVILLE (AP) - Gov. Bill Haslam says he will support a school voucher bill this legislative session and that it will be similar to one he proposed last year.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Gov. Bill Haslam is proposing legislation that would require a prescription for more than a 20-day supply of cold medicines that are used to make methamphetamine.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) — Supporters of gay marriage in Tennessee say they are encouraged by recent federal court rulings in Utah and Oklahoma that struck down state limits on same-sex marriage.
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) — Nashville's longtime district attorney general has announced he won't seek re-election to another term in August.
HEALTH CARE
WASHINGTON (AP) — The top cybersecurity officer for the Health and Human Services Department said he was concerned about potential vulnerabilities ahead of the launch of the Obama administration's health care website.
UnitedHealth Group's fourth-quarter earnings jumped 15 percent and topped expectations, as the nation's largest health insurer booked a sizeable gain from a business that doesn't sell insurance.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — The price of flying continues to climb, with the average domestic roundtrip ticket, including tax, reaching $363.42 last year, up more than $7 from the prior year.
U.S. homebuilders lost a little confidence in the housing market this month but remain generally upbeat ahead of the spring home-selling next season.
NEW YORK (AP) — After hitting a record high the day before, stocks were mostly lower Thursday as investors reacted to disappointing results from Best Buy, Citigroup and CSX, a railroad company.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell 2,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 326,000, a sign that layoffs are weighing less on the job market and economic growth.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The number of U.S. homes that got started on the path to foreclosure fell last year to a low not seen since before the high-flying days of the housing boom, the latest evidence that the threat of foreclosures continues to diminish.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell 2,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 326,000, a sign that layoffs are weighing less on the job market and economic growth.
LONDON (AP) — The price of oil edged further above $94 a barrel on Thursday on expectations of improved demand in the U.S.
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Best Buy said Thursday that a key sales barometer fell during the holiday shopping season, stung partly by weakness in the U.S. and a retail environment heavy on promotions.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Drained of much of its vitriol over the budget, Congress is poised to adopt a $1.1 trillion package financing federal agencies this year, a bipartisan compromise that all but banishes the specter of an election-year government shutdown.
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 15
STATE LEGISLATURE
NASHVILLE (AP) - State Republicans have filed legislation to resist implementation of President Barack Obama's health care law in Tennessee.
NASHVILLE (AP) — The state Senate is taking another run at changing the way Tennessee's attorney general gains office.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee has been named the "2013 State of the Year" by a national economic development publication.
NASHVILLE (AP) — The U.S. Agriculture Department says more than 6,900 families used its rural home loan program to buy a house in fiscal year 2013.
NASHVILLE (AP) — A statewide business coalition is showing its support for Tennessee's Common Core standards.
HEALTH CARE
WASHINGTON (AP) — A bipartisan group of lawmakers is proposing a new approach to health care aimed at avoiding hospitalizations for older people, when possible.
AUTO INDUSTRY
DETROIT (AP) — General Motors Co. said Wednesday it expects a modest gain in pretax profits this year as global sales growth slows.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — It was a squeaker, but the Standard & Poor's 500 index closed at its first all-time high of 2014.
NEW YORK (AP) — The price of oil closed above $94 a barrel for the first time in two weeks on a big drop in supplies.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A Federal Reserve survey shows economic growth remained healthy in most U.S. regions in late November and December, helped by gains in consumer spending and factory output.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Apple will refund at least $32.5 million to consumers to settle a federal case involving purchases that kids made without their parents' permission while playing on mobile apps, the government announced Wednesday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. wholesale prices increased in December, pushed up by rising gasoline prices and energy costs. But overall inflation remained mild.
GENEVA (AP) — Conflicts like the war in Syria and getting the world economy back on track will be the focus of next week's annual gathering of world leaders and power brokers in the Swiss ski resort of Davos.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The global economy is slowly picking up steam, led by advanced economies appearing to turn the corner after five years of financial crises and recession and a continued good performance by China, the World Bank said Tuesday.
NEW YORK (AP) — Will broadband providers start charging Internet services such as Netflix to deliver the massive amounts of data that streaming video and other content require?
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — When our Internet-connected gadgets and home appliances all learn to talk to each other, Google wants to be at the center of the conversation.
NEW YORK (AP) — Bank of America Corp. said Wednesday that its fourth-quarter profit jumped from a year earlier, as the loans on the bank's balance sheet continued to improve.
NATIONAL POLITICS
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — President Barack Obama is keeping the heat on lawmakers to renew jobless benefits for the long-term unemployed.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama intends to nominate Maria Contreras-Sweet, the founder of a Latino-owned community bank in Los Angeles and a former California cabinet secretary, to be head of the Small Business Administration, according to a White House official.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Party leaders pushed a massive $1.1 trillion spending bill for this year through the House on Wednesday, shunning the turmoil of recent budget clashes with a compromise financing everything from airports to war costs and brimming with victories and concessions for both parties.
TUESDAY, JANUARY 14
NASHVILLE AREA
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Authorities in Connecticut and Tennessee are investigating a charity that raised money it said would go to those affected by last year's school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut's attorney general confirmed Tuesday.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Genesco said Tuesday that its sales at stores open at least a year were flat for the quarter to date. The retailer also cautioned that its fiscal 2014 adjusted profit is now expected at the lower end of its outlook due to quarter-to-date results and current trends.
STATE LEGISLATURE
NASHVILLE (AP) - State lawmakers on Tuesday reconvened the 108th Tennessee General Assembly in a legislative session that is expected to feature debates over creating a school voucher program and whether to allow supermarkets to sell wine.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee lawmakers will remember state Rep. Lois DeBerry when they reconvene for the legislative session on Tuesday.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) - More than 36,000 Tennesseans have signed up for coverage under the new health insurance exchange established under President Barack Obama's law.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — In a decision that could reshape consumers' access to entertainment, news and other online content, a federal appeals court Tuesday set aside Federal Communications Commission rules designed to ensure that transmission of all Internet content be treated equally.
NASHVILLE (AP) - A Nashville judge ruled on Tuesday that the panel that evaluates Tennessee's appellate judges is invalid because it does not have enough female members.
AUTO INDUSTRY
DETROIT (AP) — General Motors sold 9.71 million cars and trucks last year, probably not enough to beat out Toyota for the global sales crown, but about 200,000 better than Volkswagen.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — The good followed the bad for the stock market on Tuesday.
The price of U.S. oil was up nearly 1 percent Tuesday along with a rising stock market.
NEW YORK (AP) — The Nielsen ratings company says football and a slate of robust comedies and dramas gave CBS a big prime-time win last week.
CHICAGO (AP) — The billionaire creator of Beanie Babies was sentenced to two years of probation, but no prison time, on Tuesday for tax evasion on $25 million in income he had stashed away in Swiss bank accounts.
NEW YORK (AP) — A major retail trade group says holiday sales rose 3.8.percent, just below the group's 3.9 percent forecast.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans bought more clothes in December, shopped more frequently online and ate out more often, providing a boost to economic growth at the end of the year. But sales at most traditional stores declined, as the holiday shopping season ended on a lackluster note.
NEW YORK (AP) — JPMorgan Chase said Tuesday that its profits fell 7 percent in the fourth quarter, hampered by more legal woes.
Wells Fargo says its fourth-quarter profit rose 11 percent as increased interest income helped offset a steep drop in mortgage lending.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — About 20 million DirecTV customers nationwide lost The Weather Channel because of a dispute over fees between the channel and the satellite service.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — A massive $1.1 trillion spending bill to fund the government through October and finally put to rest the bitter budget battles of last year is getting generally positive reviews from House Republicans eager to avoid another shutdown crisis with elections looming in 10 months.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Calling for "all hands on deck" to assist the economy, President Barack Obama is urging his Cabinet to identify ways to keep his administration relevant to people struggling in the up-and-down recovery.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Telephone companies are quietly balking at the idea of changing how they collect and store Americans' phone records to help the National Security Agency's surveillance programs. They're worried about their exposure to lawsuits and the price tag if the U.S. government asks them to hold information about customers for longer than they already do.
MONDAY, JANUARY 13
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) — The Tennessee Titans have wrapped up their coaching search by hiring San Diego offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt as their new head coach and 17th in franchise history.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) - Weston Wamp announced Monday that he is mounting another bid to win his father's old seat in Congress.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Robert O'Connell, the executive director of the Tennessee State Employees Association, has announced he plans to retire in May after four years leading the group.
NASHVILLE (AP) — The campaign manager for a group advocating for supermarket wine sales in Tennessee is leaving to become the CEO of the Greater Nashville Association of Realtors.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Just back from their own long break, Supreme Court justices set out Monday to resolve a politically charged fight over when the Senate's absence gives the president the power to make temporary appointments to high-level positions without senators' approval.
AUTO INDUSTRY
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — Hybrid Technology, led by Hong Kong billionaire Richard Li, has offered $55 million in an auction of Fisker Automotive's assets, just days after a bankruptcy judge in Delaware rejected Hybrid's plan to take over the failed electric-vehicle manufacturer in a private sale.
DETROIT (AP) — The Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, built in Bowling Green, Ky., has been named North American Car of the Year at the North American International Auto Show. The truck of the year is the Chevrolet Silverado.
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Luxury carmaker BMW AG has posted record sales for 2013, keeping its No. 1 spot in the market for high-priced cars against its German competitors Audi and Mercedes.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market is down the most in two months, continuing a weak start to the year.
The price of oil fell below $92 a barrel Monday as Libyan production continued to ramp up and the possibility of increased crude exports from Iran raised the prospects of excess supply on global markets.
NEW YORK (AP) — Google Inc. will pay $3.2 billion to buy Nest Labs, which develops high-tech versions of devices like thermostats and smoke detectors.
DEERFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Beam, the maker of Jim Beam and Maker's Mark bourbons along with other liquor brands, has agreed to be acquired by Japan's Suntory Holdings Ltd. for approximately $13.62 billion.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. government ran a $53.2 billion surplus in December, signaling further improvement in the nation's finances.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A cutoff of benefits for the long-term unemployed has left more than 1.3 million Americans with a stressful decision:
FRIDAY, JANUARY 10
STATE LEGISLATURE
NASHVILLE (AP) - Gov. Bill Haslam won't announce his decision about whether to support school voucher legislation until next week, when state lawmakers return into session.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee business tax collections fell more than $54 million below projections in December, contributing to a more than $175 million shortfall through the first five months of the budget year.
NASHVILLE (AP) - A state law requiring electronic tracking of pseudoephedrine purchases does not appear to have had much effect on the production of methamphetamine in Tennessee.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Knoxville attorney Terry Adams is touting his status as a political outsider in his bid for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate.
MEMPHIS (AP) — Production is heating up at the big Electrolux kitchen oven plant in Memphis, and officials said Thursday they expect to eventually employ 1,200 people and produce 600,000 ovens annually.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Republican U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander is launching a new television ad on Monday that features testimonials from a series of Tennesseans about his accomplishments as governor and in Washington.
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) — The Nashville Predators are hosting a school supply drive to benefit an organization that helps the hearing impaired.
HEALTH CARE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Doctors are warning that if Congress cuts food stamps, the federal government could be socked with bigger health bills. Maybe not immediately, they say, but over time if the poor wind up in doctors' offices or hospitals as a result.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Record-keeping snags could complicate the start of insurance coverage this month as millions of people begin using policies they purchased under President Barack Obama's health care overhaul.
AUTO INDUSTRY
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — A Delaware bankruptcy judge has ordered a competitive auction for the assets of Fisker Automotive, rejecting a proposal by a group led by Hong Kong billionaire Richard Li to assume control of the failed electric-vehicle manufacturer in a private sale.
LAS VEGAS (AP) — The future of driving is right around the corner.
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Automaker Daimler AG says its Mercedes-Benz luxury cars had a record year last year, boosted by new models and stronger sales in its biggest market, the United States.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — Investors shrugged off a report of a sharp slowdown in hiring last month and left major U.S. stock indexes mostly higher.
The price of oil jumped more than $1 a barrel Friday as the U.S. economy added fewer jobs than expected, fueling speculation that the Federal Reserve will reconsider its plans to slow economic stimulus.
WASHINGTON (AP) — It came as a shock: U.S. employers added just 74,000 jobs in December, far fewer than anyone expected. This from an economy that had been adding nearly three times as many for four straight months — a key reason the Federal Reserve decided last month to slow its economic stimulus.
NEW YORK (AP) — Target says that personal information — including phone numbers and email and mailing addresses — was stolen from as many as 70 million customers in its pre-Christmas data breach. That was substantially more customers than Target had previously said were affected.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. wholesale businesses increased their stockpiles in November but at less than half the pace of October when they had jumped by the largest amount in two years.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama intends to nominate Stanley Fischer to be vice chairman of the Federal Reserve.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A new report says personal computer sales slipped even further during the holiday shopping season, capping the worst annual decline in the PC industry's history.
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Hunkering down at home rather than going to work, canceling thousands of flights and repairing burst pipes from the Midwest to the Southeast has its price. By one estimate, about $5 billion.
NEW YORK (AP) — Several major retailers slashed their fiscal fourth-quarter profit forecasts this week in the latest sign that Americans didn't spend briskly during the holiday shopping season.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican leaders have announced that the House will vote to pass a short-term funding bill next week to extend by three days the deadline for wrapping up a massive, $1 trillion-plus catch-all spending bill.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid expressed optimism Thursday about chances for compromise on jobless legislation, and officials said talks were focused on a scaled-back program that is fully paid for and would provide up to 31 weeks of benefits for the long-term unemployed.