VOL. 36 | NO. 6 | Friday, February 10, 2012
Top residential sales for Davidson, Williamson, Rutherford and Wilson counties as compiled by Chandler Reports.
REALTY CHECK
Commercial real estate agents serve as the Punxsutawney Phils for those Realtors that practice on the residential side. When commercial real estate enjoys more activity, residential is soon to follow.
TERRY McCORMICK
Another football season is in the books with the New York Giants’ 21-17 victory over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI.
NEWSMAKERS
Ronn Stewart and Burgin Dossett have formed Stewart + Dossett, LLC, a development, construction and real estate services firm. A minority-owned and operated business enterprise, the company offers a wide range of project experience in the commercial, hospitality, mixed-use and residential sectors.
GUERILLA MARKETING
Would you write a check for $116,000 for one second of TV airtime?
I SWEAR
In a recent Under Analysis column, Mark Levison wrote that he finds lawyers “interesting, entertaining and quite often a bit quirky.” He then describes some of the quirky lawyers around him.
KAY'S COOKING CORNER
There have been many commercials lately about the health benefits of yogurt. And I agree that it is very healthy for several different digestive ailments.
MUSIC INDUSTRY
NASHVILLE (AP) - Dierks Bentley has rarely worked this hard on an album.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) - State safety and transportation officials have unveiled new protocols aimed at getting major highways reopened more quickly after crashes.
STATE LEGISLATURE
NASHVILLE (AP) — Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey says ownership records of companies seeking economic development grants should be available to the public.
NASHVILLE (AP) - A proposal that seeks to ban Tennessee public schools from teaching about gay issues advanced in the House on Wednesday despite opponents who say the measure could be harmful to gays.
NASHVILLE (AP) — A Republican-backed proposal aimed at stopping Occupy Nashville protesters from staying overnight on the Capitol complex passed the House on Thursday despite opposition from Democrats who say the legislation's penalty is excessive.
NASHVILLE (AP) - A legislative impasse that threatened existence of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Commission may have been eliminated.
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) - The guitar, an iconic symbol of Nashville's music scene, is beginning to play second fiddle as a visual icon for the city.
NASHVILLE (AP) - The Nashville City Paper has sued the Tennessee Secondary Schools Athletic Association demanding access to files that were part of an investigation that led to sanctions against an elite private school in Nashville.
SPRING HILL (AP) - Workshops beginning Thursday across Tennessee are designed to help farmers with harvesting, storage, direct marketing and merchandising.
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky Downs has won approval to boost its stakes in a game that offers wagering on past horse races.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market built a big rally on the strength of the American job market Thursday and barreled toward its highest levels of the year. The Dow Jones industrial average pushed to within 100 points of 13,000.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Construction of single-family homes in the U.S. cooled off slightly in January after surging in the final month last year. But a rise in permits suggests builders are growing more confident that more buyers are ready to come off the sidelines.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of people seeking unemployment benefits in the U.S. fell to the lowest point in almost four years last week, the latest signal that the job market is steadily improving.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Wholesale prices moved up slightly last month, held back by cheaper energy and food costs. The modest increase signals that inflation is largely in check.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke says the health of the nation's community banks has strengthened, despite what he calls a frustratingly slow economic recovery.
DETROIT (AP) — General Motors earned its largest profit ever in 2011, two years after it nearly collapsed.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Banks took back more U.S. homes in January than in the previous month, the latest sign that foreclosures are accelerating after slowing sharply last year while lenders sorted out foreclosure-abuse claims.
NEW YORK (AP) — Moody's Investors Service may lower the ratings of some of the world's largest banks as well as those of some securities firms because their long-term prospects for profitability and growth are shrinking.
BEIJING (AP) — Authorities have seized iPads from retailers in more Chinese cities in an escalating dispute between Apple Inc. and a struggling local company over the trademark for the popular tablet computer, news reports said Thursday.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Relieved congressional bargainers say they've reached agreement on compromise legislation extending payroll tax cuts and benefits for the long-term unemployed through 2012, edging a white-hot political battle a major step closer to finally being resolved.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum released four years of federal income tax returns on Wednesday night, showing a sharp rise in his personal wealth spurred by his growing work as Washington-based corporate consultant and media commentator.
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 15
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) - Gov. Bill Haslam said Wednesday that he's abandoning his proposal to do away with average class size restrictions in Tennessee.
NASHVILLE (AP) — A federal judge on Tuesday dismissed a long-running lawsuit over medical and dental treatment for the 750,000 children on TennCare, more than a third of all children in the state.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Early voting for Tennessee's Super Tuesday presidential primary is under way, with Republican leaders lining up behind their respective choices for the nomination.
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) - About half of the Occupy Nashville protesters that were encamped on the Capitol complex for nearly five months have removed their tents.
STATE LEGISLATURE
NASHVILLE (AP) - State Rep. Janis Sontany said Wednesday that she will not seek re-election in 2012.
NASHVILLE (AP) - A proposal to crackdown on domestic violence is advancing in the Senate despite its financial impact on local governments.
NASHVILLE (AP) - The sponsor of a bill seeking to guarantee workers' rights to store firearms in vehicles parked on company lots has delayed a committee vote on the measure until next month.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
DETROIT (AP) — General Motors Co. says it plans to freeze its U.S. pension plan for longtime white-collar workers and give all salaried employees annual bonuses instead of pay raises in an effort to hold down expenses.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve isn't about to launch another bond-buying program to boost the economy — at least not anytime soon.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The president of the World Bank says he is stepping down.
DETROIT (AP) — Lexus is the top performer in a survey of vehicle dependability released Wednesday, but most other brands also showed improvement in an industry that has reached historically high dependability levels.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. factories boosted output last month and December ended up being their best month of growth in five years.
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks slumped Wednesday in one of their worst showings this year as Greece, slogging through negotiations with other countries over a bailout, once again cast a long shadow over the financial markets.
NEW YORK (AP) — It's become the routine in the cable industry that subscribers stream out the door every quarter, hanging up on cable in favor of service from satellite or phone companies. But in the October to December quarter, Comcast Corp. nearly managed to stop that flow.
NEW YORK (AP) — Kellogg has popped up to buy the Pringles chip brand from Procter & Gamble for $2.7 billion after a similar deal with Diamond Foods was derailed by accounting problems and an executive shakeup at Diamond.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Promoting farm subsidies was once a no-brainer for rural members of Congress seeking re-election. This year, it's a bit trickier.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Congressional leaders of both parties praised an emerging deal Wednesday to extend a payroll tax cut and extra jobless benefits through 2012, but cautioned that bargainers still had to nail down final details.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14
MUSIC INDUSTRY
NASHVILLE (AP) - The reunited Beach Boys will celebrate sunshine and summer at the 2012 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival with Radiohead, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Phish and Bon Iver.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Kenny Rogers is suing Capitol Records, claiming the company has not properly paid him for digital downloads, ringtones and other uses of his songs.
STATE LEGISLATURE
NASHVILLE (AP) - The Tennessee State Employees Association said Tuesday it has ended discussions with Gov. Bill Haslam's administration about legislation that would eliminate most civil service protections for state workers.
NASHVILLE (AP) - A bill that would require working carbon monoxide detectors in leased recreational vehicles has been named after five people who died from carbon monoxide poisoning last year at a bike rally in Clarksville.
NASHVILLE (AP) - An attempt to move the Occupy Nashville protest from the state Capitol to the city's Public Square was short-lived.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Some Occupy Nashville protesters are vowing to stay camped out on the grounds of the Capitol complex and face arrest if a law is passed that makes it illegal for them to sleep on the grounds in protest.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Democratic state Rep. Eddie Bass may be considering a party switch before the candidate filing deadline in April, but Republicans don't appear overly eager to have him
NASHVILLE (AP) - Gov. Bill Haslam's proposals to crack down on the sale or manufacture of certain drugs are advancing in the Senate.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Republicans have backed off - at least temporarily - of Gov. Bill Haslam's proposal to seal off information about companies seeking economic development grants after an impassioned debate between supporters and Democratic Sen. Roy Herron, who demanded to know why ownership records would not be made available to the public.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) - Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has named Gov. Bill Haslam his campaign chairman in Tennessee.
NASHVILLE (AP) - A leadership shakeup at the state Department of Environment and Conservation doesn't indicate the agency is downgrading pollution enforcement efforts, Commissioner Robert Martineau said Monday.
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) - An employment assistance workshop will be Tuesday through Thursday in Nashville for National Guard members, reservists and all veterans and their spouses.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans rebounded from a weak holiday season and stepped up spending on retail goods in January. The latest government report on retail sales pointed to a slowly improving economy.
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are finishing roughly flat after a rally at the end of trading.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Companies restocked at a faster pace in December, a positive sign that they expect consumers to step up spending.
BEIJING (AP) — A Chinese company said Tuesday it will ask customs officials to ban imports and exports of Apple's iPads due to a dispute over ownership of the trademark.
AKRON, Ohio (AP) — Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. returned to profitability in its fourth quarter partly due to higher tire prices after reporting a loss a year ago that included hefty costs tied to a plant closing.
NEW YORK (AP) — Avon Products Inc. posted a fourth-quarter net loss as sales slumped and costs rose.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — House lawmakers are returning to Capitol Hill to weigh a proposal by GOP leaders to extend the 2-percentage-point cut in the payroll tax through the end of the year and add the approximately $100 billion cost to the nation's $15 trillion-plus debt instead of scrounging around the budget for ways to pay for it.
WASHINGTON (AP) — After years of procrastination, the White House and Congress have suddenly boosted a long-term plan to improve the nation's roads, bridges and transit systems to the top of the political agenda.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is defending his department's slimmed-down, $614 billion budget plan, telling senators it's time to step up and show they are serious about reducing the deficit.
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 13
STATE LEGISLATURE
NASHVILLE (AP) - Occupy Nashville protesters are demanding an apology from the sponsor of legislation aimed at stopping them from staying overnight on the Capitol complex. The demand comes as some protesters are vowing to remain camped out and bracing to be arrested if the proposed legislation passes.
MUSIC INDUSTRY
NASHVILLE (AP) - The family of Waylon Jennings will soon release songs the country music icon recorded shortly before his death 10 years ago.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — Apple's stock broke above $500 for the first time Monday. It was the latest step in a rally that began more than two weeks ago, when the company reported staggering sales and profits for the holiday quarter.
NEW YORK (AP) — Apple said Monday that an independent group, the Fair Labor Association, has started inspecting the working conditions in the Chinese factories where its iPads and iPhones are assembled.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Google says European regulators have approved its $12.5 billion acquisition of cellphone maker Motorola Mobility Holdings.
U.S. stocks rose Monday after Greece's parliament voted for spending cuts so it can get a bailout to save the country from bankruptcy.
WASHINGTON (AP) — General Electric Co. plans to hire 5,000 veterans over the next five years and invest $580 million to expand its aviation business.
NEW YORK (AP) — Mike Trang likes to use his iPhone 4 as a GPS device, helping him get around in his job. Now and then, his younger cousins get ahold of it, and play some YouTube videos and games.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Movie super spies James Bond and Jason Bourne use them. So do real-life presidential candidate Mitt Romney, who says he pays his taxes, and untold numbers of Americans who don't. Swiss banks and their secretive counterparts around the globe may sound like the exclusive province of the wealthy, the mysterious or the shady, but anybody can legally open an offshore account.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama on Monday was selling a a $3.8 trillion election-year budget — a spending outline designed to cut $4 trillion from the deficit in 10 years through spending restraints and higher taxes on the wealthy. Republicans said the plan fails to tackle the nation's deep fiscal problems.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama wants community colleges and businesses to work together to train 2 million workers in high-growth industries, and on Monday will request $8 billion to create a fund to encourage the effort.
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10
MUSIC INDUSTRY
NASHVILLE (AP) - Lady Antebellum landed an unexpected knockout of Eminem and took the night with five Grammys last year, including record and song of the year for "Need You Now." Taylor Swift and Zac Brown Band broke through in the general categories the year before.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Losing has never felt better to The Band Perry.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Jason Aldean usually maintains a fairly steely demeanor, yet country music's hottest new male star admits to being more than a little excited about his three Grammy nominations.
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Bret Michaels isn't above stealing a Grammy.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) - Tennessee's January revenue collections were $37.1 million more than budgeted.
NASHVILLE (AP) — There's reason for optimism at beef cattle operations in Tennessee or Kentucky.
NASHVILLE (AP) - The Department of Environment and Conservation is accepting nominations for the Governor's 2012 Environmental Stewardship Awards.
The state of Tennessee is participating in a $25 billion settlement announced Thursday, Feb. 9, between 49 states – all but Oklahoma – over foreclosure abuses from some of the nation’s biggest lenders.
Tennessee made another cut in the changing federal education reform scene: The state is one of 10 granted a waiver from No Child Left Behind standards.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Gov. Bill Haslam said Thursday that he hopes Tennessee's waiver from the No Child Left Behind education law boosts the morale of teachers and other educators frustrated by the federal measure's strict and sweeping requirements.
NASHVILLE (AP) - Gov. Bill Haslam acknowledged Thursday that his class size proposal has received with "mixed reviews," but vowed to press ahead with the measure intended to help schools fill high-priority teaching positions.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Ben Bernanke said declines in home prices have forced many Americans to cut back sharply on spending and warned that the trend could continue to weigh on the U.S. economy for years.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Monthly U.S. exports to Europe grew in December, a hopeful sign after a steep decline the previous month. But, some economists remain concerned that the region's debt crisis will still weigh on the U.S. economy this year.
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are having their worst day this year Friday after Greece hit a roadblock on its way to a critical international bailout.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is making a strong election-year push for an economic revival "built on American manufacturing." But he faces an uphill slog, with little consensus even within his own party on how to do it.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A landmark $25 billion settlement with the nation's top mortgage lenders was hailed by government officials Thursday as long-overdue relief for victims of foreclosure abuses. But consumer advocates countered that far too few people will benefit.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — LinkedIn reported a strong fourth quarter as the online professional-networking service added 14 million members. Its net income and revenue beat Wall Street's expectations.
DETROIT (AP) — Two key leaders in Ford's remarkable turnaround are retiring.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal budget deficit fell sharply in January compared to a year earlier, as an improving economy lifts income tax revenue.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama declared Friday he's found a solution to a birth-control uproar that will protect religious liberty but also ensure that women have access to free contraception, as he rushed to defuse an election-year issue that threatened to overtake his administration.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House has support from a key Catholic health group on its compromise birth control policy.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Money pouring into the presidential election from super political action committees and nonprofit campaign groups appears so far to be strictly American in origin, donated by U.S. companies, unions and millionaires. But it's easier than ever to conceal the source of money and the identities of contributors, making conditions ripe for illegal donations from foreigners, overseas companies or governments attempting to help a favored candidate for the White House.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Eager for Europe to contain its economic troubles, President Barack Obama praised Italian Premier Mario Monti on Thursday for his efforts to lead Italy out of its fiscal quagmire. The president said Monti has boosted confidence in Italy throughout Europe and in the marketplace.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House on Thursday joined the Senate in voting to explicitly prohibit members of Congress and other top officials from making investments on insider information. But an effort to bridle purveyors of Capitol Hill political intelligence could delay the bill's enactment.
WASHINGTON (AP) — If Mitt Romney needs some good news in an otherwise lousy week, he might find it in an improbable place: the packed hallways of the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington.