Finance Blog number 1

Texas Comptroller Susan Combs this week introduced a new program designed to help parents prepay their child’s college education, while locking in current tuition rates.

The Texas Tuition Promise Fund allows parents to make flexible monthly payments toward their child’s future college expenses. Once an account is opened, parents can make minimum monthly payments of $15 toward a college plan, depending upon the age of the child and how much money they want to apply toward college.

Parents can spread out the cost of the education over longer periods of time if they start saving early.

“Starting early makes saving for college more affordable, and it also has another very important benefit,” Combs says no teletrak payday loans. “Studies show that regardless of a family’s income level, the children of parents who start saving early are more likely to have higher academic achievement throughout their school years. It increases the children’s expectations of going to college and achieving their dreams.”

texastuitionpromisefund.com

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Health insurer Humana Inc. has agreed to pay a $750,000 fine to the state of Wisconsin as part of a regulatory settlement with the Office of the Commissioner of Insurance.

The state’s insurance commissioner alleged that Humana’s marketing of Medicare Advantage and Part D products violated Wisconsin regulations.

The commissioner also alleged that some insurance agents selling Medicare products in Wisconsin on behalf of Humana were not licensed in the state, a violation of Wisconsin statutes.

Louisville-based Humana (NYSE: HUM) denies the allegations, the insurance commissioner’s office said in a news release.

“Humana is quickly and thoroughly addressing the exam issues,” Humana’s Louisville-based corporate spokesman Jim Turner said in an e-mail. “Humana’s primary concern is always our members, and after review of our records and the cases in question, it appears that there was no significant impact to members online payday advance. Humana either has successfully addressed or is in the process of addressing issues identified in the Wisconsin OCI exam report for 2005-2007 that led to the forfeiture.”

According to the findings of the investigation, which was initiated in 2007, Humana did not comply with recommendations made by the insurance commissioner following a 2002 investigation.

“With this settlement, we protect our senior citizens by addressing issues with marketing of Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D products,” Wisconsin insurance commissioner Sean Dilweg said in a news release. “The settlement also resolves long-standing issues with company claim adjudication, customer service and underwriting practices.”

Click here to read the full report issued by the Wisconsin Office of the Commissioner of Insurance.

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Pending home sales fell 3.2% in July after gaining in June, according to a real estate group’s report released Tuesday, in the latest in a series of gloomy housing reports.

The Pending Home Sales Index fell to 86.5, after gaining 5.8% in June, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). It now stands 6.7% below July 2007’s reading of 92.8.

The index is a forward-looking indicator of housing sales, based on contracts signed during the month.

"This is more evidence that the housing market is still in a malaise," said Michael Larson, a real estate analyst with Weiss Research.

Tighter lending standards have made it hard for buyers to get loans, which is hurting sales.

"Overly stringent lending criteria imposed by Fannie Mae (FNM, Fortune 500) and Freddie Mac (FRE, Fortune 500) in the past month no doubt held back contract signings," said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yuan.

The Midwest was the best performing region in July, with sales contracts up 2.8%. The index fell in the Northeast by 7.5% and in the West by 10.6%, while the South region was unchanged.

The July result was disappointing, according to Richard DeKaser, chief economist for National City Corp. (NCC, Fortune 500), but not unexpected. The index has held in a range between 83 and 89.4 over the past few months, but saw a sharp jump in June to 89.4.

The good news, according to DeKaser, is that the index has plateaued, indicating that a bottom in existing home sales may have been reached http://paydayloans-on.com. And that bottom may mean that prices could stabilize in some areas, although at lower levels than they once were.

Bargains in areas of the country hard hit by the bust are drawing house hunters back into a few local markets, said Larson.

"We have seen sales pick up in some areas where homes are being basically liquidated for just about any price the sellers can get," he said.

That could provide a boost to sales volume in the coming months.

Sales have been flat despite the fact that home prices are way down. The most recent S&P/Case-Shriller report found that home prices fell 15.4% nationally during the 12 months ended June 30.

"Pricing remains attractive, but the ability of home buyers to obtain financing has been made more difficult," said DeKaser. "Lending standards had gotten increasingly tight."

The weekend takeover of Fannie and Freddie, the two mortgage giants that were created to promote mortgage lending, should help. Funding costs for Fannie and Freddie will be significantly reduced, according to DeKaser, and those savings will be passed on to consumers.

Already interest rates have fallen to 5.88% from 6.26% a week earlier, according to Bankrate.com.

"We want to see if the mortgage rate decline stands," said Larson. "That would help to stabilize things." 

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Williamsville’s Casey Middle School is always in the hunt, but has never captured the title of Western New York’s best middle school. Until now.

Casey is making its first appearance at the top of Business First’s rankings, following a six-year span in which it finished third (three times), fourth (twice) and fifth (once).

Mathematical ability is a key factor in Casey’s emergence. Thirty-seven percent of the school’s eighth graders reached the superior level on the statewide math test a year ago, four times better than the Western New York average of 9 percent.

The school’s language skills are impressive, too. Casey’s eighth graders achieved a superior rate of 16 percent on last year’s statewide English exam, compared to the regional average of 5 percent.

“I could give you the standard explanations, and there’s a lot of truth to all of them,” says Fran McGreevy, Casey’s principal. “We get strong support from our district office. Our faculty and staff are outstanding. And our families have high expectations, and they’re very supportive in helping us meet them.”

Business First analyzed the academic records of 211 middle schools throughout the eight-county region. Ratings were based on test scores compiled by the New York State Education Department during the past four years.

Full details will be available in Business First’s 2008-09 Guide to Western New York Schools, which hits newsstands on Friday. The top-to-bottom rankings of middle schools can be found at the end of this story.

This year’s runner-up is Christ the King School, a private school serving children from kindergarten through eighth grade. It’s located in the Amherst district.

Christ the King has made its mark in Business First’s elementary school rankings, where it earned the best score of any private school each year from 2004 to 2007. But it’s also moving up the middle school standings, hitting fifth place in 2007 and second this year.

Principal JoAnn Mikulec credits a tougher homework policy — “if students miss homework, they have to see the principal, which helps them to concentrate” — as well as a new weekly class designed to improve study habits.

“Instead of a library period where some of the students would be fooling around, we decided to use that time to emphasize study skills,” she says paydayloans.com. “A teacher shows them how to take notes, how to take tests, how to be organized. It really helps them here — and when they get to high school.”

Three middle schools in the Northtowns round out the top five: No. 3 Transit Middle School of Williamsville, No. 4 St. Leo’s School in the Sweet Home district, and No. 5 Amherst Middle School.

Erie County dominates the upper echelon in this year’s standings. The top-rated middle school beyond Erie’s borders is St. John Lutheran School, located in Niagara County’s Niagara-Wheatfield district. It ranks 11th this year, up from 17th place a year ago.

St. John has only 92 students from kindergarten through eighth grade. Principal Herbert Meissner says the school strives to maintain a strong academic program and a mix of extracurricular activities, despite its small size.

“We have a choir and sports programs, and we compete in the county instrumental music competitions,” he says. “Many of our students participate in all of those activities, so they’re getting a well-rounded education.”

Thirteen middle schools have climbed at least 30 notches this year, led by Holy Ghost Lutheran School in Niagara-Wheatfield, which soared 62 places from 125th a year ago to 63rd now.

Also registering an impressive gain is Chautauqua Lake Middle School in Chautauqua County. It’s up from 72nd in 2007 to 33rd this year. Principal John Panebianco says Chautauqua Lake uses year-by-year test results to closely track student performance, both for individuals and whole classes.

“That allows us to give assistance where it’s needed,” he says. “If we see that a student is having trouble with decimals, we’re able to address that with after-school tutoring. Or if we see that an entire grade level is struggling with math, we’re able to address that in class.”

Thirty-two middle schools have qualified for this year’s subject awards, which means they fit in the top 10 percent regionally in English or math, based on four years of test results.

Twelve schools, headed by overall leader Casey Middle School, have earned a pair of subject awards. Ten schools hold single awards in English, as do 10 in math.

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Continental Airlines Inc. said Friday it is charging some coach customers $15 for a first checked bag, matching a similar fee imposed by most other major U.S. carriers.

A company spokeswoman said the fee would help offset high fuel costs, which have caused Continental and other carriers to lose money this year.

The fee took effect immediately on tickets for travel in the United States and Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Canada for travel starting on Oct. 7 or later.

Bags that exceed weight and size restrictions could be subject to additional fees, the airline said.

Houston-based Continental (CAL, Fortune 500) said the fee wouldn’t apply to elite members of its frequent-flier program, those in first- or business-class seats, customers traveling on full-fare economy tickets, or military personnel and their families traveling on official orders.

Most U.S. airlines charge customers who check more than one piece of luggage.

Among major carriers, AMR Corp.’s (AMR, Fortune 500) American Airlines, the nation’s largest carrier, was the first to impose a fee for the first checked bag, beginning in June. AMR Chairman and Chief Executive Gerard Arpey conceded his airline took "a little bit of flack" for the fee.

Continental’s decision leaves Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL, Fortune 500) as the only holdout among the six so-called legacy carriers, and Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV, Fortune 500) also doesn’t charge for the first bag.

Continental Chairman and CEO Lawrence Kellner said this summer his airline was watching how the fee worked at other airlines — whether it caused delays in boarding — and whether customers would rather pay a fare increase than face a bunch of fees.

"My general view is if those people need a product, how do we put that in an all-inclusive fare?" he said at the time.

But in the nearly three months since American’s fee took effect and other carriers began matching it, it hasn’t seemed to sway customers.

"We thought we would see more of a market shift by not having the fee," Continental spokeswoman Julie King said Friday cash advance. "So we feel it’s the right competitive move" to charge for a first checked bag.

King said the fee would help offset fuel costs that remain high despite the recent decline in oil prices.

Continental declined to say what percentage of its customers would likely be charged the fee. American, which also waives the fee for many loyal customers, estimated it covered about one-fourth of its summer travelers.

Continental also didn’t give an estimate of how much it hopes to raise from the charge. The company has lost $84 million in the first half of the year after two straight profitable years, and it’s cutting 3,000 jobs and reducing U.S. flights this fall.

Shares of Continental rose 21 cents to $18.15 in morning trading. 

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Silver State Bank, which recently included Republican presidential candidate John McCain’s son on its board, was closed by regulators on Friday, becoming the 11th bank to fail this year, as the struggling economy and falling home prices take their toll on financial institutions.

Andrew McCain, whom Senator John McCain adopted in a previous marriage, formerly served as a director of the Henderson, Nevada, bank, which was closed by Nevada state officials and taken over by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

Andrew McCain sat on Silver State’s board in February and served on the audit committee, bank regulatory filings show.

He resigned in July due to “personal reasons,” the bank said. He previously served as a director of Choice Bank in Scottsdale, Arizona, from 2006 to April 2008 when Choice Bank merged with Silver State.

His involvement in the bank during the current credit and housing problems is a reminder of his father’s alleged role in the massive savings and loans scandal decades ago.

In the late 1980s John McCain was one of five senators known as the “Keating Five.” They were investigated by Congress over their alleged roles in the crisis, which resulted in a U.S no fax payday loan. taxpayer bailout.

They were accused of aiding Charles Keating, who was the chairman of the failed California-based Lincoln Savings and Loan Association. McCain and another senator, John Glenn, were cleared in the Senate Ethics Committee investigation.

On Thursday John McCain accepted the Republican Party’s presidential nomination. He and his running mate Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin are battling Democrat Barack Obama and his vice presidential running mate Joe Biden for the White House. 

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John McCain’s acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul Thursday night was watched by more television viewers than Barack Obama’s speech a week earlier.

More than 38.9 million people watched McCain on ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Fox News Channel, MSNBC, Telemundo or Univision, according to The Nielsen Co. results. A week earlier, Obama’s acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention in Denver was watched by 38.4 million viewers.

McCain’s speech also beat that of his controversial running mate, Alaska Gov guaranteed payday loans. Sarah Palin, whose speech Wednesday night attracted 37.2 million viewers, Nielsen reported.

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James Hardway, spokesman for the Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, will be stepping down Sept. 9 to become the new executive director of the state’s Workforce Development Council.

Hardway has served as the assistant to the director of the state Labor Department for the last six years.

The Workforce Development Council is a 31-member private-sector led organization that is responsible for advising the governor on workforce development to support further economic and employment opportunities in Hawaii.

“One of the most critical issues facing Hawaii’s economic future when you talk about economic sustainability is work-force development and it was a challenge I felt I’d like to undertake,” Hardway told PBN.

The board, which meets four times a year, appointed Hardway as its new executive director on Aug cashadvance.com. 28.

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Sallie Mae has named Kenneth Fischbach senior vice president of corporate finance.

In his new position, Fischbach will oversee debt investor relations at Reston-based Sallie Mae (NYSE:SLM), which manages nearly $172 billion in education loans.

Previously, Fischbach served as managing director at Residential Capital LLC, where he managed investor relations strategy.

He replaces Guido van der Ven, who left the company in August to start a consulting business in the student loan space, called Education Investment Group easy payday loans.

Sallie Mae said it will be a client of the new company, which was also launched by two other former Sallie Mae senior vice presidents.

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Apparel chain Steve and Barry’s is closing one of its three Dayton-area stores.

The bargain retailer is closing its 80,000-square-foot location at the Miami Valley Centre Mall in Piqua.

“We’re disappointed to see them leave,” said Peggy Henthorn, regional manager of the mall. “But it’s out of our control.”

Henthorn said she has not received official notice of the store’s closure, but signs were posted in the store last Friday.

No date has been set for the store’s closing. Henthorn said it may stay open until after Christmas.

Port Washington, N.Y.-based Steve and Barry’s was purchased by BHY S&B Holdings, a partnership between New York investment firms Bay Harbour Management and York Capital Management, whose investors include Steve & Barry’s co-founders Steve Shore and Barry Prevor freecreditreport. The company’s new owners have plans to reduce its 276 stores to about 175.

When Steve and Barry’s filed bankruptcy, Henthorn said the mall began marketing the space.

“We’d hate for it to sit empty,” she said.

Henthorn said the Piqua Steve and Barry’s was on the first list of stores to be cut, with more to be announced. The other Dayton-area locations are at Washington Park Plaza in Centerville and Upper Valley Mall in Springfield.

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