What do we need to think about when disposing of old computers? The data on the hard drive may contain personal information about customers. Does a simple re-format of the drive eliminate all the info? Would that comply with Pricacy law requirements to protect consumer privacy.
Is there a specific guide available to follow when updating equipment and disposing of the old?
Any insight would be appreciated.
Posted via email from Title Insurance Clear Capital has released new home price data, with an encouraging, albeit cautious, analysis to boot. The California-based real estate valuation company reports that through the end of January, national home prices are down 1.6 percent on a rolling quarter-over-quarter basis. But despite the negative quarterly price change, Clear Capital says the national index has demonstrated a positive trend since the start of 2011. Clear Capital’s latest release shows that U.S. home prices stopped declining in early January and have posted their first uptick since mid-August 2010. “This recent national change in price direction is encouraging for the overall housing sector, yet it is still too early to determine whether this current uptick in home prices is a temporary reprieve or the start of a sustained recovery,” said Dr. Alex Villacorta, senior statistician at Clear Capital. Villacorta went on to explain, “This uptick is the first non-incentivized change in prices we’ve seen since the downturn began, and could provide great opportunity for buyers, sellers, and investors alike. Although many markets still remain under significant downward pressure in light of increased distressed sale activities, it is clear that the severity of the downturns observed in October and November have subsided.” Based on sales transactions through the end of January, the company’s report says “national home prices have turned the corner.” Clear Capital adds that this observed change in prices is especially meaningful as the first months of the year are typically affected by the seasonal slowdown in sales activity. The company says one primary driver that may explain the cause for the sudden increase in prices is the slowing of the rate of sale of REO properties. Clear Capital also keeps close track of what the company calls REO saturation, calculated as the percentage of REO homes sold as compared to all properties sold in the last rolling quarter. The data show that every spike in REO saturation has corresponded with a decline in home prices, and vice versa. According to the company’s latest report, the most recent rolling quarter for REO saturation has slowed considerably after gaining 3.2 percent during Q3 2010, with national REO rates only climbing 1.4 percent. “A decrease in REO saturation indicates that an increasing proportion of fair market transactions are occurring, and as the level of distressed transactions decrease, prices tend to increase since the overall market value for an area is less affected by distressed comparable sales,” Clear Capital explained. The company continued, “If this observed negative correlation persists, a leveling off of the national REO saturation rate could indicate that home prices are poised for further gains well ahead of the seasonal spring lift.” Posted via email from Title Insurance If you live in a city like San Diego or Pittsburgh and own your home, you can probably count on a rise in its value this year. That’s the conclusion of a new study from Veros Real Estate Solutions, which found that 40% of major metro markets will see a bounceback in home values in 2011. Looking at all markets, Veros also found that cities with under 250,000 people will make up the majority of those with positive growth. The survey comes at a time when the health of the U.S. housing market is in serious question. The national median U.S. home price is $168,800 — 1% below December 2009, according to the National Association of Realtors. The NAR blames the stagnant home prices on the rising sales of distressed homes. “The modest rise in distressed sales, which typically are discounted 10% to 15% relative to traditional homes, dampened the median price in December, but the flat price trend continues,” says Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist. But according to Vero Real Estate’s VeroForecast, there is a light at the end of the tunnel — at least for some. Using what it calls “advanced analytics and micro-market data,” the Santa Ana, California-based company says that smaller cities seem to be faring best with housing prices right now, a trend that should continue for the rest of 2011. Citing data from December 2010 and projecting through December 2011, the report notes that “smaller metro markets with populations less than 250,000 make up the majority of the better appreciating markets.” Such cities, which include Fargo, N.D. — ranked second overall — can expect home price appreciation of 2.5% to 3.5%% in 2011. On the downside, Florida is expected to experience the most depreciation, with key areas like Orlando, Daytona Beach and Port St. Lucie all suffering the greatest percentage of housing price loss in 2010. See the following chart for Vero’s top five and bottom five housing markets: 5 Strongest U.S. Housing Markets: Dec. 2010-Dec. 2011 San Diego, Calif. +3.5% 5 Weakest U.S. Housing Markets: Dec. 2010-Dec. 2011 Reno, Nev. -7.2% Regionally, the report sees more vigorous recovery in the South, with overall growth rates being the best in Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas. Besides Florida, the weakest regions for home prices are the pariahs of the housing crisis — California and Nevada. Vero also says that while overall growth isn’t exactly robust, price trends are stronger than they were a year ago: “It is noteworthy that depreciating forecasts remain much better than those from a year ago with nothing worse than 7% depreciation,” says Eric Fox, an analyst at Vero Real Estate Solutions. “A year ago, we were seeing some markets with depreciation rates in the double-digit range.” “Approximately 40% of all major metro areas are forecast to appreciate over the next 12 months, even though appreciation is expected to be mild,” he adds. “Looking out to the 12 to 24 month horizon, nearly 60% of markets are expected to appreciate. So while things aren’t happening rapidly, the forecast indicates they are getting better.” That would certainly be great news for the embattled U.S. housing market. After years of stagnant growth, more key areas seem to be going in the right direction. Posted via email from Title Insurance
Continuing Ed for Title Agents
Clear Capital Sees Signs of Upturn in U.S. Home Prices
Continuing Ed for Title Agents
where-will-housing-bounce-back-most: Personal Finance News from Yahoo! Finance
Kennewick, Wash. +3.4%
Pittsburgh, Pa. +2.7%
Fargo, N.D. +2.6%
Washington, D.C. +2.5%
Orlando, Fla. -6.5%
Boise City, Id. -6.4%
Daytona Beach, Fla. -6.3%
Port St. Lucie, Fla. -6.3%
Continuing Ed for Title Agents
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