Into Antiques?

On ebay you'll find over 100 categories covering the Medieval and Renaissance periods, through Georgian, Regency and Victorian, to Edwardian, Art Nouveau and Art Deco.

Antique Dealers in California

Linda Stamberger

Linda Stamberger, author of "Antiquing In Florida", is a Florida expert and freelance writer of many genres. Visit this site to read her articles - some of which are available for purchase - as is her book.


Brooks Novelty Antiques and Records

Brooks Novelty is an all-vinyl record store. We specialize in: jukeboxes, vintage soda machines, antique slot machines, pin balls, arcade games, neon clocks and signs, rare concert posters, old advertising signs and much more!


The Antique Company

Established in the late 1900's, we occupy a huge corner building with a small garden area that leads to another 1000 sq foot store (called TAC) that contains our Mid Century collection.


Vintage Westclox

Westclox photo identification gallery and history and information of clocks, watches and other timepieces. This site primarily displays American clocks made by Westclox that were made from the early 1900's up to about the 1960's.


Antique Appraisals On-Line

We are one of the country's largest, oldest, most qualified and respected appraisal services. The majority of our appraisals are estate and personal property evaluations for valuation documentation purposes. However, we have evaluated goods and personal property for natural disaster losses (hurricanes), theft, fire, freight and shipping damage after the loss has occurred.


Connoisseur Antiques

Featuring fine antique furniture, Connoisseur Antiques is a Los Angeles Antique Furniture Showroom specializing in antique clocks and mirrors, European and French antiques, Antique Lighting, Chandeliers, Sconces, Armoires and much more.


Liz's Antique Hardware

Antique Hardware is the backbone of our business. We offer a complete selection of door, window and furniture hardware, lighting and accessories circa 1890 to 1970.


San Francisco Antique and Design Mall

San Francisco Antique and Design Mall is the largest antique mall in northern California. We opened our doors in October 1997 with 75 dealers and today we have over 200 of San Francisco's most professional antique specialists.


Ambiance Antiques

Importer of 18th and 19th Century French Antiques


C'est La Vie Antiques

European Antique and Accessories in San Diego, CA.


Lang Antiques

We carry a large selection of fine antique jewelry, antique rings & antique engagement rings. We also have vintage estate jewelry, vintage estate rings & vintage estate engagement rings from the Victorian, Art Nouveau, Edwardian & Art Deco style periods.


Once in a Blue Moon Online Thrift Store

We are an online thrift store featuring new, used, and unusual items.


Monday, June 18, 2012

California, Sacramento See Job Numbers Slowly Improving - Hispanic Business

California, Sacramento See Job Numbers Slowly Improving - Hispanic Business

California's job market is defying the slowdown in the national economy. The job numbers are even turning positive in Sacramento, for the first time since the start of the recession.

Unemployment in California fell a tenth of a percent last month, to 10.8 percent, the Employment Development Department reported Friday. About 33,900 jobs were added to payrolls across the state.

Economists said the numbers suggest the state is continuing to make steady but not spectacular progress.

The Sacramento region is also slowly recovering, despite weaknesses in construction and the public sector. Unemployment dipped to 10.4 percent in May, down a tenth of a percent. That's the lowest unemployment rate in the area in three years.

Until recently, the falling jobless rate has mostly been a function of people pulling out of the job market, so they're no longer counted as unemployed.

But now payrolls are starting to grow -- 4,400 jobs were added in May.

Also, 2,600 more Sacramentans held jobs last month compared with a year ago. It was the second straight month of year-over-year job growth, an indicator of economic health.

"That hasn't happened in 4 1/2 years," said EDD consultant Justin Wehner. "To see us kind of emerge ... into positive territory is a positive sign."

The monthly jobs report was a relief. Just two weeks ago, experts were fretting that California would get dragged down by the national slowdown, which has driven the U.S. unemployment rate back up to 8.2 percent. So far, that hasn't happened.

Economist Stephen Levy said many of the state's bedrock industries -- including technology, tourism and international trade -- remain resilient. The tech sector is a big reason for California's strength.

"The Bay Area is surging and that's enough to push the state above the national average," said Levy, of Palo Alto's Center for Continuing Study of the California Economy.

Still, it's not as if the economy is roaring in California. The addition of 33,900 jobs in May followed an April that saw only 1,300 jobs created.

"We're getting this saw-toothed pattern, a good month and a bad month," said Dennis Meyers, principal economist with the state Department of Finance. On average, California is adding about 19,000 jobs a month, he said.

"It's not 'jump up and down time,' but we're making slow and steady progress," he said.

Tourism, in particular, is making a comeback, as evidenced by the throngs that descended on Disney's California Adventure in Anaheim on Friday for the debut of the Cars Land attraction. The leisure and hospitality industry added 13,200 jobs last month, more than any other industry.

In Sacramento, one of the major job generators continues to be the health care industry, which largely ignored the recession. But other sectors are hiring, too.

"We don't have a broad-based recovery (but) we're starting to see growth in more areas than just health care. We're seeing growth in finance, in retail," said economist Jeff Michael of the University of the Pacific.

The public sector will continue to be a trouble spot. State workers face the prospect of reduced hours, and considerable uncertainty remains about budget cuts. Even with the Legislature passing a main budget bill Friday, lawmakers still hadn't worked out key details on spending with Gov. Jerry Brown.

"Nobody knows what the budget means," Levy said.

Construction is another drag on the Sacramento economy. Payrolls in the building trades actually fell by 500 in May, a month that usually sees hiring. There were 3,300 fewer construction workers on the job than a year ago.

Michael said a key reason is that some big public-works projects have ended.

"We were still putting up a $1 billion airport terminal this time last year, and rebuilding highways in Roseville," he said. "We're a little bit in the shadow of that stuff."

Real estate agents say the housing market has stabilized, with prices firming up. But area home building hasn't taken off to the point that a hiring binge is justified.

Still, things are starting to stir. The New Home Company, a fledgling Southern California builder founded by executives from bankrupt John Laing Homes, said Friday it will open up 79 new houses for sale in Folsom next month. The homes are expected to sell in the low $300,000 range.

At the company's other Sacramento area projects, in Elk Grove, Granite Bay and Lincoln, sales activity has picked up. The company sold six homes in Lincoln in the past two months -- compared with two all of last year.

Kevin Carson, president of the company's Northern California division, said much of the demand for new homes comes from the growing medical field.

"With the expansions of Mercy and Sutter, with this region becoming the (medical) hub for the whole Valley, there are lots of nurses, administrators (buying homes)," Carson said. "Not just the doctors."


Source: www.hispanicbusiness.com

California Public Employees Win Concessions in New Budget - Bloomberg

The budget California’s Democratic- controlled Legislature sent to Governor Jerry Brown last week granted concessions to public employee unions even as talks continue on cutting programs for the poor.

Democrats removed language that would have authorized the governor to furlough workers if unions balked at a proposed one- year, 5 percent payroll reduction. The $92 billion spending plan, which counts on higher taxes and cuts in health and welfare to close a $15.7 billion deficit, also prevents expanded use of private contractors for some government jobs.

Unions contributed $76.7 million to California politicians and ballot measures in 2010, when Brown and lawmakers were running, according to data compiled by the National Institute on Money in State Politics, a nonpartisan group based in Helena, Montana. Labor represented the single largest interest group in terms of contributions that year.

“It’s pretty clear who the winners in this budget plan are,” Senate Republican Caucus Leader Tom Harman of Orange County said during a floor debate June 15. “It’s the public employee unions and not students, beneficiaries of state services or taxpayers.”

State workers were furloughed three days a month beginning in 2009, in what amounted to a 14 percent pay cut, as California faced annual deficits of as much as $42 billion. The unions agreed to pay more toward pension and retiree health-care costs and gave up some paid holidays. Their leaders have said any new concessions must come through negotiations.

Sign or Veto

Brown, a Democrat, hasn’t said if he’ll sign the budget or veto it over welfare spending sought by legislators.

The budget adopted last week includes a $400 million general-fund savings in state personnel costs. Brown has proposed achieving that by having employees work 9.5 hours on four days instead of 8 hours in five days.

The largest union representing state workers, Service Employees International Union Local 1000, opposes use of furloughs to get that savings. Yvonne Walker, president of the 95,000-member union, wrote May 23 that furloughs “are not on the table.”

The SEIU wants any pay reduction to be linked to time off, according to a June 14 update on its website. The union wants to reduce the number of state contracts with private vendors and limit the number of retirees and student assistants the state hires to save money.

Talks Continue

“The negotiations are still ongoing and we know there is more work to do and we wanted to give some time for the governor and the unions to finish their negotiations,” Senate President Darrell Steinberg, a Democrat from Sacramento said when asked why he took the furlough language out of the budget.

Jim Zamora, a spokesman for Local 1000, declined to comment on whether union leaders are satisfied with the budget, noting that labor terms remain under negotiation.

Because some agencies must operate around the clock and can’t shut down for a day, unions for those workers are in talks to find the savings in other ways. Prison guards, forestry firefighters, mental-health hospital staff and the California Highway Patrol have already agreed to have their pay reduced by the equivalent of eight hours a month, the Sacramento Bee reported.

Leaders of the Professional Engineers in California Government, a union of 13,000 workers, said they wouldn’t agree to a 5 percent pay cut unless the state dropped a proposal for a 1-percentage-point increase in the number of private contractors that can be hired by the Transportation Department.

Contractors

While contractors can cost more per hour, they are only paid when needed. State workers continue to draw pay even when not on a project and also collect pensions and benefits.

“One of the things we talked to the administration about initially was that outsourcing our jobs costs twice as much,” Bruce Blanning, the union’s executive director, said in a telephone interview. “We told them that if they would stop wasting money on outsourcing, then we would talk about saving some money through our members as well. Outsourcing costs money and they should get rid of that first.”

Democrats during budget committee hearings approved Brown’s proposal to extend statewide collective bargaining to county- level in-home service workers, something unions have sought. Unions were also able to cushion cuts to that program, said Steve Smith, a spokesman for the California Labor Federation, which represents 2.1 million employees, about half of them working in government.

Deeper Blows

Unions continue to resist cuts to the state welfare-to-work program and to subsidies for child care for the working poor, both issues contained in supporting bills still to be voted on, Smith said by telephone.

“In our view, there aren’t any winners,” he said of the budget. “What small victories working people achieved here were staving off even deeper blows.”

Even as pay reductions are negotiated, many state workers are poised for raises in July 2013. During collective bargaining in 2010, Brown’s predecessor, Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger agreed to raises of 2 percent to 5 percent for workers at the top of their pay scales in return for concessions.

“Unions don’t exist to solve the state’s problems,” said Aaron McLear, Schwarzenegger’s former press secretary. “They exist to get the best deal for their members, and in California, they’re really good at what they do.”

To contact the reporters on this story: Michael B. Marois in Sacramento at mmarois@bloomberg.net; James Nash in Los Angeles at jnash24@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Stephen Merelman at smerelman@bloomberg.net


Source: www.bloomberg.com

California's Bad Bet Makes JPMorgan's Look Minor - Yahoo Finance

Congress ordered JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) 's chief executive officer, Jamie Dimon, to testify about $2 billion that his bank lost on an investment bet.

Worrisome as that gamble was -- after all, the banking crisis was largely due to bad bets by banks -- it is unfortunate that Congress has never called hearings on a far bigger bet, one that has had more catastrophic consequences for millions of taxpayers.

The one I'm referring to was made by California legislators on Sept. 10, 1999. They decided that investment gains would cover 100 percent of the cost of retroactive pension increases they granted that day to hundreds of thousands of state workers.

The politicians made the wrong bet -- and the result has been a penalty to California's budget that has averaged $2 billion a year ever since and that will cost the state billions more for decades to come.

Promising that "no increase over current employer contributions is needed for these benefit improvements," and that the state pension fund would "remain fully funded," the proposal, known as SB 400, claimed that enhanced pensions wouldn't cost taxpayers "a dime" because of healthy investment returns. The proposal went on to assert that it "fully expects" the state's pension costs to remain below $766 million a year for "at least the next decade."

Pension Projections

The Legislature included cost projections provided by the California Public Employees' Retirement System -- or Calpers -- in the description of the bill and passed it with broad bipartisan support. Governor Gray Davis signed it.

Since then, the pension system has earned only 75 percent of what it had hoped. Because the state is unconditionally on the hook, the state budget has had to make up the difference. As a result, the state has spent $27 billion on pensions, $20 billion more than Calpers projected.

Because the boosted promises last for decades -- for employees' lifetimes -- and because the pension fund amortizes the difference between what it expected to earn and what it really earned during such a long period, just a small portion of the increased costs has so far been recognized. Far larger increases are in store.

To finance the $20 billion of extra cost for pensions, the state has cut spending on services and raised taxes. As one example, spending on the University of California and California State University systems declined 18 percent from 2002 to 2012, while state spending on pensions rose 214 percent.

The pension deal was a stunning example of nondisclosure. The legislators didn't inform the taxpayers that:

1. The state was on the hook for deficiencies if actual investment returns fall short of assumed investment returns.

2. The assumed investment returns implicitly forecast that the Dow Jones Industrial Average would reach about 25,000 by 2009 (it barely made it over 10,500 that year) and 28,000,000 by 2099.

3. Potential costs to the state were uncapped.

4. Members of the Calpers board had received campaign contributions from beneficiaries of the legislation.

Ten years later, a journalist uncovered that Calpers had produced internal projections showing the risks to the state if the bet didn't work out. The internal projections forecast that if the system earned half of what it assumed, state costs for the pensions would rise to almost $4 billion a year by 2010, close to where those costs ended up.

Negligent Politicians

This problem wasn't caused by the public employees who receive the pensions but by the politicians who made the promises without setting aside sufficient funding. "Because the fuse on this time bomb is long," Warren Buffett noted in 2007, "politicians flinch from inflicting tax pain, given that problems will only become apparent long after these officials have departed." Most of the politicians who made those promises in 1999 are long gone and keep their heads low whenever the issue is discussed.

In JPMorgan's case, the losers of the bet were the bank's shareholders and, according to Dimon's testimony, some of the employees who made the bet. But in California, the losers are taxpayers and recipients of public services. None of the elected officials who made the bet will suffer any consequences. Perhaps we should require politicians to post personal bonds whenever they make bets with the public purse. After all, they are still making bets every day on new pension promises and counting on investments to cover the cost.

(David Crane, a former financial-services executive and a Democrat, is a lecturer at Stanford University and president of Govern for California, a nonpartisan government-reform group. He was an economic adviser to California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger from 2004 to 2011. The opinions expressed are his own.)

Read more opinion online from Bloomberg View. Subscribe to receive a daily e-mail highlighting new View columns, editorials and op-ed articles.

Today's highlights: the editors on why it's time for an EU-U.S. free-trade pact, on amnesty for illegal immigrants and on plugging national-security leaks; William D. Cohan on the death of Dodd-Frank; Noah Feldman on the Supreme Court's coming decisions; Albert R. Hunt on why Obama's campaign needs help; Richard Vedder on why the government should get out of the student loan business.

To contact the writer of this article: David Crane in San Francisco at davidgcrane@gmail.com .

To contact the editor responsible for this article: Katy Roberts at kroberts29@bloomberg.net.

More From Bloomberg


Source: finance.yahoo.com

California home sales highest in over three years - The Move Channel
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Monday, June 18, 2012

Source: Ivan Radford

California's housing market continued to improve in May, with home prices posting solid gains for the third straight month and home sales well above last year's pace, according to the California Association of Realtors.

"California home sales were strong in May, continuing the gradual recovery of the California housing market," said C.A.R. President LeFrancis Arnold.  "First-time buyers are recognizing that the housing market has hit bottom and are now seeing a sense of urgency to take advantage of ultra-low interest rates and advantageous home prices.  Additionally, trade-up buyers are returning to the market after sitting it out for the past few years to get in on favorable home prices."

May sales surged 21.5 percent from May 2011's revised 470,910 pace, marking the highest year-over-year sales increase since May 2009.   The statewide sales figure represents what would be the total number of homes sold during 2012 if sales maintained the May pace throughout the year and is adjusted to account for seasonal factors that typically influence home sales.

The May 2012 sales pace was the highest since February 2009, when 598,770 homes were sold at a seasonally adjusted annualized rate.

Home prices appear to be stabilizing, with the median home price posting both month-over-month and year-over-year gains for the third consecutive month. The statewide median price of an existing, single-family detached home was $312,110 in May, the highest since September 2010.

May's price was up 1 percent from a revised $309,050 in April and 6.6 percent from a revised $292,850 recorded in May 2011. The May 2012 figure was 27.3 percent higher than the cyclical bottom of $245,230 reached in February 2009.  The median price has posted above the $300,000 level for the second straight month after remaining below that mark for 15 months. 

The increase in the median price can be attributed to the strong sales increase in the higher-priced coastal regions, particularly in the San Francisco Bay Area, where job growth is strong and the economy is growing faster than other areas of the state. 

California's housing inventory sank lower in May, with the Unsold Inventory Index for existing, single-family detached homes dropping to 3.5 months in May, down from 4.2 months in April.  May's housing inventory was down from a revised 5.7 months in May 2011.  The index indicates the number of months needed to sell the supply of homes on the market at the current sales rate.  A 7-month supply is considered normal.

"Low housing inventory continues to be the critical issue in the California market," said C.A.R. Vice President and Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young. "Inventory levels have not been this low since December 2005, when the supply matched the current level. The Bay Area has the greatest shortage of homes for sale, with inventory levels in the two- to three-month range for Santa Clara, San Mateo, Alameda, and Contra Costa counties."


Source: www.themovechannel.com

California Quit Claim Deed Website’s Two Year Anniversary - YAHOO!

For two years Deed and Record has prepared and recorded California quit claim deeds. Service includes Preliminary Change of Ownership Report and filing documents with the county recorder’s office.

Irvine, California (PRWEB) June 18, 2012

Deed And Record has provided internet service for two years to change ownership in California real property and timeshares by quit claim deed. Quit Claim deeds are used to fund trusts, for inter-spousal transfers and gifting.

Deed and Record prepares the following quit claim deeds:


Transfer of real estate property into a trust


Add or remove a spouse as co-owner to real estate property


Give away real property

Save Money


Deed and Record is the low cost provider in quitclaim deed preparation and recording. Save at least $150 compared to other online services.

Why a Quit Claim Deed?


A quit claim deed does not contain any implied warranties. The owner who quit-claims real estate simple conveys whatever ownership interest he or she has along with any debt or loans secured by the property. The quitclaim owner makes no promises and the property is taken “as is.” A quit claim is the easiest and cheapest way to transfer ownership to a trust, add or remove a co-owner or give away a timeshare.

Why Preliminary Change of Title Report?


Each county assessor's office in California reviews all recorded deeds for that county to determine which properties require reappraisal under the law. Proposition 13 requires the county assessor to reassess the property to its current fair market value as of the date the change.

Since property taxes are based on the assessed value of a property at the time of acquisition, a current market value that is higher than the previously assessed Proposition 13 adjusted base year value will increase the property taxes. But there are exclusions.

To obtain the exclusion, the grantee fills out a form for the county assessor entitled Preliminary Change of Ownership Report (PCOR). Examples of exclusions from reassessment are: transfers of real property between husband and wife, which include transfers in and out of a trust for the benefit of a spouse, the addition of a spouse on a deed, transfers upon the death of a spouse, and transfers pursuant to a divorce settlement or court order.

Why Record the Deed?


The deed must be made part of the public record so the world knows there has been a change of ownership. The deed must be recorded in the county where the real property is located.

Make it Legal


A properly prepared quit claim deed must have a legal description so the county recorder’s office can add the deed to the public chain of title. The legal description is not the street address. The legal description has at a minimum the map, block and lot number of the real estate property. The county recorder will not accept a quitclaim deed without a legal description.

Receive Personal Service


Now you can use the internet to have your quit claim deed prepared and recorded. With the internet you never leave your house while at the same time you receive personal service from a real person.

Contact


To begin or for more information please go to http://www.DeedAndRecord.com, or call Mark at 949-474-0961 or email to Mark(at)DeedAndRecord(dot)com.

Mark Bidwell
Deedandrecord.com
949-474-0961
Email Information



Source: news.yahoo.com

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