Although this represents only one month’s data, the sharp increase in the overall index reflected more than just a surge in energy prices. The core PPI, which excludes the volatile food and energy items, rose by 0.4 percent, reversing the 0.1-percent decline in June. The increase in the core PPI was the largest monthly gain since January. On a year-over-year basis, the core PPI increased by 2.8 percent—the biggest gain since May 1992.

At the earlier stages of production (which include partially-finished products such as lumber and steel), price increases were less pronounced than at the finished stage, especially outside of energy. The core intermediate goods edged down by 0.1 percent, following a 0.2-percent drop in June. 

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) noted in its statement earlier this month that core inflation has been low in recent months but inflationary pressures have remained elevated. Following several months of muted core inflation both for producers and consumers, including Tuesday’s release of only 0.1-percent gain in the core consumer price index in July, the sharp uptick in the core PPI renewed concerns that inflationary pressures in the pipeline may be brewing and that such pressures could materialize at the consumer level in the months ahead.

The report reversed Tuesday’s bond rally, prompted by the tame July core consumer price inflation and weak July industrial production. The yield on the 10-year Treasury notes rose by 7 basis points over the course of the day to 4.27 percent by mid-Wednesday afternoon.

(Orawin Velz is director of economic forecasting in the Mortgage Bankers Association’s economics and research department. She provides commentary and analysis on key monthly economic indicators. She can be reached at ovelz@mortgagebankers.org.)
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The roundtable, scheduled for Thursday, August 25, would be the seventh in a series held this summer. Six previous roundtables took place in Washington and three other cities.

The Mortgage Bankers Association is participating in the Washington roundtables, including the roundtable scheduled for today at HUD headquarters. MBA NewsLink will provide coverage in tomorrow’s edition.

“These informal discussions at HUD headquarters and those around the country have been extremely well attended,” A HUD spokesman said. “The Department has been approached by a number of organizations who were not invited to previous roundtables and hoped to contribute to the dialogue. So, in a spirit of openness, HUD is planning one more roundtable…to provide the sort of balanced and diverse representation we've had at previous sessions, we're also asking some consumer and industry representatives to attend though they may have attended previous roundtables.

Additional information can be found at www.hud.gov/respareform.
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Because it is automated, eLIENS also enables insurers to reduce significantly insurers’ notification costs and eliminate the expense of returned mail.

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Valley Commerce Bank, Phoenix, reopened as Bank of Arizona, Within one year, the Bank of Arizona plans to expand its employment base by 30 percent as it adds new products and services. 

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Central Pacific Mortgage (CPM), Folsom, Calif., opened a new wholesale office in Portland, Ore. 
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Edward Hurley, managing director of Charlotte, N.C.-based Wachovia Securities Inc. has been named the new chair of COMBOG. Edward Padilla, Certified Mortgage Banker (CMB), CEO of Minnesota-based NorthMarq Capital Inc. and Stacey Berger, executive vice president of Overland Park, Kan.-based Midland Loan Services Inc./PNC Real Estate Finance are COMBOG’s new vice chairs. The new leadership and membership become effective at the first board meeting, to be held on October 25, in conjunction with MBA's Annual Convention.

MBA also announced six new members of COMBOG: Ken Beyer, president and CEO of MortgageRamp , Atlanta; Tari Flannery, president of M&T Realty Capital Corp., Baltimore; Barry Nectow, managing director of loan origination at ARCap REIT Inc., Irving, Texas; Stephanie Petosa, senior director at FITCH Ratings, New York; H. Treak Tasker, CMB, AMP, president of Holliday American Mortgage LLC, Tulsa, Okla.; and Alan Wiener, chairman of American Property Financing Inc., New York.

The 30 member COMBOG, representing all sectors of the commercial/multifamily real estate finance industry, works in conjunction with its standing committees and task forces to lead the strategic development of commercial/multifamily policy, industry technology and best practices and standards aimed at helping members operate their businesses more efficiently.

Hurley is a managing director and head of Agency Lending for Wachovia's Real Estate Capital Markets group. He has 24 years of commercial banking and real estate finance experience. Most recently, he was CEO for Lend Lease Mortgage Capital L.P., a Fannie Mae DUS and Freddie Mac Program Plus lender acquired by Wachovia Securities. He has worked for Wachovia and its predecessor companies for more than 20 years. He also serves on the Fannie Mae DUS Advisory Council.

Padilla joined NorthMarq in 1991, first as managing director of the Minneapolis Regional Office, and then in 1996 as executive vice president. He became president and CEO in 2000. NorthMarq is a national real estate investment bank providing financing for commercial real estate, including office, retail, industrial and multi-family developments. NorthMarq also arranges joint ventures and equity capital for commercial properties. NorthMarq is headquartered in Minneapolis, with regional offices in 28 U.S. cities.

As executive vice president of Midland Loan Services Inc., Berger is responsible for corporate strategy, business development and marketing activities. Midland, a wholly owned subsidiary of the PNC Financial Services Group, is the leading provider of loan servicing, advisory services and technology solutions for the commercial real estate finance industry.

Prior to joining Midland in 1991, Berger was senior executive responsible for the real estate asset management and investment advisory services for a subsidiary of Landmark Land Company Inc. Prior to joining Landmark in 1983, he was director of research for Smolkin Consulting Services Inc., a real estate market research and economic feasibility consulting firm.
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Chateau Pleasant Hill in the city of Pleasant Hill, 15 miles from Oakland and the Greater San Francisco Bay area, encompasses 150 independent living and assisted living units built from 1986 to 1988. The community has a trio of three-story buildings, one two-story building and a single one-story common area with common amenities that include main and private dining rooms, living and activity rooms, beauty salons, a general store, exercise room, laundry rooms and an interior courtyard and fountain.

The California Statewide Community Development Authority issued bonds for the tax-exempt portion of the financing, underwritten by Red Capital Markets Inc. Red Capital served as remarketing agent for the weekly, variable rate bonds. Intercontinental Services, Inc., an independent owner and operator of senior housing communities in the San Francisco Bay Area, manages the property.

Chateau Pleasant Hill’s refinancing closed to refinance a previous issue of fixed-rate, tax-exempt bonds. The borrower obtained roughly $750,000 in escrowed funds for planned property upgrades to both resident apartments and common areas as a result of the refinance. “In addition to the benefit of refinancing with a low tax-exempt variable rate, the additional monies obtained for planned upgrades will further increase the property’s curb and interior appeal and improve its long term viability,” said Andrew Kitts, director for Red Mortgage Capital.

“The prior bonds were locked out from prepayment,” said Nicholas Hamilton, director at Red Capital Markets Inc. “In order to realize the increased cash flow resulting from the refinancing sooner rather than later, the prior bonds were defeased and refunding bonds were issued.”

Red Capital Markets Inc. recently financed $5.35 million in Section 42 low income housing tax credits (LIHTCs) for the second phase of the 144-unit Anson Park Apartments in Abilene, Texas.  Red Capital Markets previously syndicated the tax credit allocation for phase one, bringing the total of LIHTCs financed for the project to nearly $11 million.

Developers plan to build the 80-unit phase two of Anson Park Apartments on the 21-acre site where phase one was built. Phase One now includes 64 units. The combined affordable housing project will consist of eighteen two-story buildings with 144 one-, two- and three-bedroom units at its completion.

Apartment units at Anson Park will contain upscale amenities, including walk-in closets, laundry connections, and large picture windows. Common amenities will include a clubhouse, daycare facility, playground, and swimming pool, and the property will offer free tenant supportive services. Nearly 85 percent of the units will be affordable to families earning between 30 percent and 60 percent of Area Median Income (AMI).  The city of Abilene is located two and a half hours from Dallas and Lubbock, Texas.

Austin-based Tejas Housing & Development, Inc. is developing both phases of Anson Park. R.J. Collins, President of Tejas Housing & Development, has more than 40 years of experience in the real estate industry, including brokerage and development of multifamily, single-family, and commercial properties, and administration of public real estate finance entities.

Meanwhile, in the Northwest, Red Mortgage Capital financed Charbonneau Retirement Residence  for Holiday Retirement Corp., an owner and operator of retirement housing.

Red Mortgage Capital provided $9.35 million in Fannie Mae DUS MBS financing. The loan fully amortizes over 20 years and is Red’s sixth transaction with Holiday Retirement Corp.

Charbonneau Retirement Residence in Kennewick, Wash., three hours from Seattle by car, sits on 4.8 acres. It consists of 118 independent living units, including a studio and one and two bedroom configurations.

Charbonneau provides three meals per day with unit amenities, such as a kitchenette, private bathroom, individually controlled heating and cooling, and a private patio or balcony in many units. The common amenities include a private dining room, craft and exercise room, chapel, library and beauty/barber shop.
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The CDL Awards recognize mortgage banking companies that that have successfully incorporated diversity initiatives into their everyday business practices.

Awards will be given in two categories.  The Best Overall Corporate Diversity Program Award category recognizes the corporate diversity programs within real estate finance companies that best exemplify innovation and effectiveness, and include both employee- and customer-focused initiatives. The Diversity Champion of the Year Award category recognizes an industry professional who facilitates, advocates and promotes diversity within the industry, his or her company and the community.

Each category will also be divided into national impact and local/regional impact.

All entries must be postmarked by August 18 and be accompanied by an application fee of $100 ($150 for nonmembers). All fees are donated to the Path to Diversity Scholarship program. Visit www.campusmba.org/CDLawards to download the application.

Nominations will be reviewed by a selection committee comprising representatives from MBA’s Commercial and Residential membership, the chair of the MBA Diversity Task Force, a representative from the U.S. Department of Education and a representative from Department of Finance of Howard University.

Winners will be notified in September and award presentations will take place at MBA’s 92nd Annual Convention & Expo from October 23–26 in Orlando, Fla. All winners will also be recognized during MBA’s Commercial Real Estate Finance/Multifamily Housing Convention & Expo from February 5–8, 2006 in Orlando.
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According to the August Experian/Gallup Personal Credit Index poll, 18 percent of Americans have experienced identity theft, saying they've had either their Social Security number, bank account number or credit card number stolen. More than one-third—35 percent—of those polled said it was “somewhat likely” or “very likely” that they will have personal financial information stolen.

Two out of three Americans reported reading or hearing about stories involving banks, stores and other databases from which a person’s financial information has been stolen; 41 percent of those polled said they have heard a “great deal” about identity theft.

Despite the high awareness and the percentage of people directly affected, the poll also found that few Americans have done anything to prevent identity theft. Only 19 percent of those surveyed said they purchased a credit report over the past six months; just 6 percent said they purchased identity theft protection or credit score monitoring; 4 percent purchased identity theft insurance; and only 3 percent bought credit repair services.
 
“The public's lack of effort to combat identity theft could be lethal for the U.S. economy,” said Dennis Jacobe, chief economist with the Gallup Organization. “If consumers leave themselves unprotected as the number of people victimized by identity theft grows, the current epidemic could reach critical mass and threaten the march toward a cashless society."

When asked how much they worry about specific types of identity theft, 6 in 10 U.S. consumers said they are “very” (32 percent) or “somewhat” (30 percent) concerned that their personal financial information will be stolen online. Slightly more than half, 55 percent, said they are very or somewhat concerned that they will have their identity stolen from their mail; 53 percent worry it will happen when making a purchase in a retail store; and 47 percent worry their financial information will be stolen when they are at a restaurant.

“Identity theft has clearly registered with many Americans as something they should be concerned about as they conduct their financial affairs,” Jacobe said. “While most Americans don't seem to be doing much to deal with this situation, it is hard to imagine that the current identity theft epidemic can continue much longer before consumers begin to translate their concerns into action.”

“The danger, Jacobe warned, is that before consumers and policy-makers finally take action, the current epidemic could grow to such an extent that consumers will begin to avoid transactions with a high risk of identity theft.

“Online transactions would be the first casualty of such a change in consumer behavior,” Jacobe said. “Other everyday debit card and credit card transactions could soon follow. If the identity theft epidemic continues to gain momentum, we may end up reverting to a more cash-dependent society, with all the transaction costs and reduced productivity that entails.”

The poll was conducted between July 14 and 20 of 1,014 adults. The margin of sampling error is plus/minus 3 percentage points.
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