HBA Newswatch
April 24, 2008
REFERENDUM ASSIGNS FUNDING TO OPEN SPACE
IN CHARLESTOWN
By G.E. LAWRENCE, Special to the Local News
CHARLESTOWN — Township voters agreed to dedicate one-half of 1 percent of their earned income tax for open space conservation Tuesday by a 3-1 margin.
Since 2003, Charlestown has utilized portions of the township’s earned income tax to preserve some 820 acres of open space and farmland.
As of Wednesday, 1,188 votes had been cast in favor of the measure, or 76.7 percent, and 359 votes cast against it.
All results are unofficial until certified by the county’s Board of Elections.
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NEW HOME SALES PLUNGE TO LOWEST LEVEL IN 16½ YEARS
WASHINGTON (AP) --- Sales of new homes plunged in March to the lowest level in 16½ years as housing slumped further at the start of the spring sales season. The median price of a new home in March compared to a year ago fell by the largest amount in nearly four decades.
The Commerce Department reported Thursday that sales of new homes dropped by 8.5 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 526,000 units, the slowest sales pace since October 1991.
The median price of a home sold in March dropped by 13.3 percent compared to March 2007, the biggest year-over-year price decline since a 14.6 percent plunge in July 1970.
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BUILDERS LEAD THE WAY IN ENERGY EFFICIENT HOUSING, CONGRESS TOLD
WASHINGTON, April 24 - Calling green building "the next evolution in residential construction," the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) told Congress today that the best way to help small home builders promote residential energy efficiency and sustainability technology in home construction is by extending tax incentives for new energy-efficient homes.
Testifying before the House Small Business Committee, Michael Hodgson, president of the Stockton, Calif.-based energy consulting firm ConSol, said these incentives dovetail with the normal supply and demand for home construction. "A tax credit program leaves important production decisions in the hands of builders, buyers and home owners and does not require expensive administrative oversight that is usually associated with a mandate," he said.
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