When looking at the 100 largest job markets in the US, Hawaii comes in as the 41st hottest job market, down from 18th.  Read PBN’s article Honolulu Is 41st Hottest Job Market (or 59th Coldest).

OK…the state of Hawaii’s unemployment rate currently stands at 4.2%.  Is that good or bad?  Depends on which article you read.  Hawaii’s 4.2% Jobless Rate Ties For 8th Lowest In The Country or check out Isle Jobless Rate Hits 4.2%, Highest Since 2002.  Guess what? Both articles are from the same newspaper. Read Also Star Bulletin Article and the PBN Unemployment Article.

The U.S. unemployment rate is at 6.1% currently, so an unemployment rate of 4.2% is pretty good.

David Hammes, head of the economics department at the University of Hawai’i-Hilo, said although Hawai’i’s rate is rising, it doesn’t necessarily mean bad news for the state. Hammes pointed to the labor force in August, which had 636,050 employed, up from 628,850 the same month last year. Hammes added that 4 or 5 percent unemployment is considered by economists to be an efficient level at which the economy can operate.

I won’t touch on this much really, but merely point you to some interesting articles.  If you want to read more and hear more about the $85 billion loan the government gave AIG check out these articles:

NPR: Another Bailout. (Click the Listen Now link for a great explanation)
NPR: Why The Fed Bailed Out AIG (Click the Listen Now Link)
BusinessWeek: The Fed Bails Out AIG
BusinessWeek: The Fed Bails Out AIG (Different Story)

If you are a Hawaii homeowner and you use your home as a primary residence, then you need to make sure you are receiving your homeowners tax exemption.  The deadline to claim your tax exemption to reduce your property tax assessment and the amount of taxes owed for the year 2009 is September 30th. 

*    For qualifying homeowners under 65 years of age, the exemption is $80,000.
*    For those 65 years and older, the exemption is $120,000.

An eligible homeowner must own and occupy his or her property as the principal home and documentation acquiring the property must be recorded at the Bureau of Conveyances on or before September 30.

For homeowners who are 75 years or older and have a total household income that qualifies as low-income, exemptions vary depending on the age of the owner:
*    75-79 years, $140,000
*    80-84 years, $160,000
*    85-89 years, $180,000
*    90 and older, $200,000

Persons filing for the home exemption must provide verification of age, such as a copy of a driver’s license or birth certificate.
Others who may be eligible for an exemption include:
*    Hansen’s Disease sufferers
*    Totally disabled veterans
*    Property owners who are deaf, blind, or totally disabled

Here is information from the state on the Home Tax Exemption.

View the home tax exemption form: Home Tax Exemption Form

As mentioned by the Honolulu Advertiser, Hawaii will be adding 1,980 new Army personnel, all of which will be coming to Oahu. 

The Army has settled on the number of soldiers it will send to Hawai’i, deciding on a total of 1,980 new soldiers, with 1,680 going to Schofield Barracks and 300 additional soldiers to Fort Shafter, a news release said.

Good News! If you have been thinking about refinancing, now is the time to do so, as mortgage interest rates have dropped significantlysince the Government take-over of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  How much of a drop?  Almost an entire percentage point. Doesn’t that just make you jump for joy:)

Plenty of economist and real estate analysts have predicted bottoms in the housing market well before now, so why should you listen to more chirping about a housing bottom? Read here.

…a consensus seemed to emerge among experts at a housing forum held by Standard & Poor’s and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange on Wednesday in New York. Several panelists, including Economy.com’s chief economist Mark Zandi, Goldman Sachs (GS, Fortune 500) economist Charlie Himmelberg, S&P managing director David Blitzer and S&P senior economist Beth Ann Bovino all agreed that home prices would stabilize sometime during the summer of 2009. “The bottom of the housing market is coming into view,”

Consider this quote also from Lawerence Yuen, Chief Economist for the NAR:

It is safe to say we have hit bottom in home sales (which have been essentially stable for 12 months). I do not foresee another notch down. It is just the timing of when the pent up demand will reach the market place. Interest rates are favorable, homebuyer tax credit is available, conforming jumbo loans will become more accessible and affordable, and the job market will likely stabilize by the year’s end given the continuing economic growth. Nationally, sales will pickup. The exact timing as to whether this will start to occur during the fourth quarter of this year or during the second quarter of next year, and as to how robust or modest the recovery will be are a bit cloudy. However, it is certain that existing home sales will be higher in 2009 compared to 2008.

The first Hawaii Whole Foods store has officially opened at Kahala Mall.   

and traffic was backed up around the mall as shoppers lined up to get a peek at the Texas-based natural foods giant’s first store in the Islands. Whole Foods also plans stores at Ward Village Shops in Honolulu, in Kailua and on Maui.

So unless you have been living under a rock or on a rock, like somewhere out in the middle of Puna, then you have probably heard that the Government has taken over Freddie Mae and Fannie Mac.

The Bush administration, acting to avert the potential for major financial turmoil, announced Sunday that the federal government was taking control of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson says the historic actions were being taken because “Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are so large and so interwoven in our financial system that a failure of either of them would cause great turmoil in our financial markets here at home and around the globe.”

You may not, however, totally understand the whole rescue picture and how it impacts home loans.  The NPR came out with an excellent article answering just about every question regarding the Fannie/ Freddie takeover.  I highly recommend reading, Understanding the Fannie, Freddie Rescue.  This is a great article. 

Now compare it to the Honolulu Advertiser’s article on the same topic called, Fannie, Freddie Too Big To Fail.  Two very differing articles on the same subject.

Wow!  This is impressive.  The Honolulu Advertiser actually posted an article that was not totally doom and gloom! In fact, it was relatively positive.  OK, it is an Associated Press article, but I’m shocked the Advertiser ran the article.  It must be that reference in the article to the “Hawaii is over-valued” statement that was in there.  This must mean the market is going to be booming here soon…….OK. I know, I sound like the Honolulu Advertiser in reverse, but check out this article title: U.S. Home Prices Declining At Slower Rate,  Study Says.

Prices of single-family homes fell in the second quarter, but at a slower rate than in the previous three-month period, an economic analysis company said Thursday……the slowdown in price declines and the amount of extremely overvalued markets are signs that the housing “bubble” has burst, the company said in a news release.