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Amazon.com Inc. said Thursday that after the success of its Prime Day sales event, in which it sold more items than on any other Black Friday, it will make Prime Day an annual event. The e-commerce giant said it sold 398 items per second on Wednesday, or 34.4 million items across Prime-eligible countries, which was 18% more than on Black Friday 2014. “Going into this, we weren’t sure whether Prime Day would be a one-time thing or if it would become an annual event,” said Greg Greeley, vice president of Amazon Prime. “After yesterday’s results, we’ll definitely be doing this again.” He said “hundreds of thousands” of new members signed up for Amazon Prime, a $99-a-year membership program that offers unlimited free two-day shipping on more than 20 million items, on Wednesday, more than any single day in Amazon history. Among some of the more popular items sold Wednesday were 56,000 “Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy” sets; 47,000 TVs and 51,000 Bose headphones. Amazon’s stock climbed 2% in midday trade, putting it on track for a record close. It has run up 22% over the past three months, while the S&P 500 has gained 0.8%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

Analysts at Barclays on Thursday downgraded General Motors Co. stock to equalweight, citing concerns about “deteriorating China conditions” for the U.S. car maker. “We struggle to see meaningful upside for GM stock through at least the remainder of the year,” the analysts said. GM’s downgrade was part of a large shuffle to negative sentiment on the car industry for Barclays; the investment bank downgraded the sector to negative from neutral. The sector’s underperformance is likely to continue as China car sales will disappoint, the analysts said. The analysts also downgraded car-parts suppliers BorgWarner Inc. , Delphi Automotive Plc. , and Lear Corp. to equalweight. They highlighted Mobileye NV , however, saying that the maker of driver-assistance products would not be affected by the challenges in China and stands to gain more market share. The analysts rose their price target on Mobileye to $76 from $66 a share.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

By Brian Bandell

Grand Bank & Trust of Florida sold two repossessed properties in Palm Beach County at a discount.

The bigger loss came from the 5-acre site at 3145, 3197 and 3229 South Jog Road in Greenacres. The West Palm Beach-based seized it in 2012 after foreclosing on the $2.2 million mortgage of Haldick Enterprises.

The bank sold it for $950,000 to Greenacres Construction & Development, representing a 57 percent discount. Grand Bank gave the buyer, a West Palm Beach company managed by John P. Reichard III,… …read more

From:: biz journal foreclosures

By Brian Bandell

At a time when mansion prices in wealthy Palm Beach are soaring to new heights, one beachfront home has been hit with a foreclosure lawsuit.

DB Private Wealth Mortgage filed a foreclosure lawsuit June 3 against Robert V. Matthews and Maria Sneden Matthews over their 15,849-square-foot mansion at 101 Casa Bendita. It concerns a mortgage issued for $24 million in 2008 with a rate of LIBOR plus 1.5 percentage points.

He is the head of real estate investment firm Matthews Ventures Holdings, which previously… …read more

From:: biz journal foreclosures

By Mary Girsch-Bock

If you’ve considered offering corporate or short-term housing, you’re not alone. With property management costs steadily rising, property managers across the U.S. are looking for a reliable funding stream. With a significant increase in business travel and employee relocation, corporate housing is often suggested as a viable way to increase revenue. It’s no secret that corporate housing can be quite profitable. But before you make the leap into the corporate housing world, there are a few things you may want to take into consideration:

• If you’re looking to cater to an exclusive clientele, you’ll have to furnish the unit accordingly. That can mean spending thousands of dollars in furniture, appliances, and general décor, including subsequent upkeep between tenants.
• Marketing costs will likely increase as well, as you will be looking to reach a difference target audience than your standard property marketing currently reaches.
• You’ll be responsible for the utility costs for all corporate housing units. While the final cost can be estimated and included in the monthly rental rate, those that estimate too low, or don’t account for usage spikes such as increased electric costs from air conditioning or increased gas costs for heating, will likely find themselves losing money.
• An increase in staffing levels will likely be necessary. Remember that your office will be the main point of contact should something go wrong. Corporate renters are paying a premium to have someone available to handle problems and requests 24/7. Experts agree that it’s best to have a staff member dedicated solely to handling corporate housing, including everything from being the liaison between the corporate renter and your property management company. Does your budget have room for another employee?
• Increased cleaning, increased inspections, increased paperwork, and increased management responsibilities are part of the corporate housing world. Every time a new resident arrives or departs, property managers must go through the cycle of cleaning, inspecting, processing paperwork, and moving a tenant in or out. The work itself is nothing unusual; property managers do it all the time. But they typically do not have to do it upwards of a half dozen times (or more) for a single unit.

If you’re serious about offering corporate housing, test the waters slowly by offering a single unit in your apartment community. This experiment will help you determine accurate costs, both in terms of utility usage and in employee time. At that point, you’ll be ready to decide if corporate housing is in your future.

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From:: Property Management

Ollie’s Bargain Outlet Holdings Inc.’s stock got a warm reception from Wall Street on Thursday, as it debuted at $22.68 in morning trade, or 42% above its $16 initial public offering price. The self hailed “extreme value retailer” raised $142.8 million by selling 8,925,000 shares at $16 each, which was above the previously-expected IPO price range of $13 to $15. The stock has traded as high as $22.99 minutes after its debut, before pulling back to a low of $20.75, before bouncing slightly. About 6 million shares traded within the first 10 minutes.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

Natural-gas futures on Thursday extended their losses after the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported that supplies of natural gas rose by 99 billion cubic feet for the week ended July 10. Analysts polled by Platts forecast a climb of 93 billion cubic feet to 97 billion cubic feet. Total stocks now stand at 2.767 trillion cubic feet, up 653 billion cubic feet from a year ago and 73 billion cubic feet above the five-year average, the government said. August natural gas was at $2.884 per million British thermal units, down 3.4 cents, or 1.2%. It was trading at $2.90 before the data.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

​WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) – Business among manufacturers in the Philadelphia region grew in July​ at a much slower pace than expected, a sign that companies are still grappling with the effects of a strong dollar that’s curbed exports. Some of the decline may also reflect seasonal patterns in midsummer, when some companies such as auto makers shut down production temporarily to retool plants. Th​e ​Philadelphia Federal Reserve’s business-conditions index fell to 5.7 this month from 15.2 in June. Economists polled by MarketWatch​ ​had​ ​expected the index to​ ​drop to 12.5​. Still, any number above zero means more companies are expanding instead of contracting. ​The Philadelphia Fed reported its index for new orders declined to 7.1 from 15.2 in​ ​June. The index for employment slid to -0.4 from 3.8.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

By Farima Alavi

We are all about clever small-space solutions, so it’s no wonder we’re in love with the ever-growing tiny homes movement. You can live in a tiny home no matter your location, so we’d like to know — would you rather live in a tiny home in a bustling urban setting or a secluded, peaceful one?

Vote in our poll below, then tell us which design you chose and why in the comments section below.

Take Our Poll

Check back next week to see the final tally.

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From:: HGTV

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — The average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage climbed to 4.09% in the week that ended July 16, reaching the highest rate since October, from the prior week’s reading of 4.04%, according to a Thursday report from federally controlled mortgage buyer Freddie Mac. “The crisis in Greece continues to generate volatility in U.S. Treasury yields,” said Sean Becketti, Freddie’s chief economist. A year ago, the 30-year rate was at 4.13%. A record low of 3.31% for the 30-year mortgage was reached in November 2012. The average rate for the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage rose to 3.25% in the latest week from 3.20% in the prior week. Meanwhile, the rate for a 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage increased to 2.96% from 2.93%. The rate for a 1-year Treasury-indexed ARM remained at 2.50%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News