Resources

November 4, 2014 U.S. households plan to spend an average of $538 on gifts this holiday season, up slightly from $528 last year, The Conference Board reports today.  About 8 percent of consumers say they plan to spend more this year on holiday gifts, while approximately 32 percent plan to spend less.  The remaining 60... Read more »

October 31, 2014 A growing economy, rising household formations, low mortgage rates and pent-up demand will help single-family housing production to rev up in 2015, while a growth in renters will keep the multifamily market at cruising altitude or higher, according to economists who participated in yesterday’s National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) 2014 Fall... Read more »

October 31, 2014 Dollar General has extended the deadline for Family Dollar shareholders to approve a buyout while it continues to recommend a “no” vote on a competing proposal from Dollar Tree. Dollar General said it extended its tender offer to acquire all outstanding shares of Family Dollar for $80.00 to December 31 from October... Read more »

October 24, 2014 Temperatures are forecast to trend warmer than last year and normal across the Northern Plains and Northeast.  The South will be warmer than last year, but not too far from normal.  The West will trend cooler than last year with much greater precipitation in the Pacific Northwest.  In fact, much of the... Read more »

October 30, 2014 Retailers are in for a “humbling holiday” with a 3.4% overall increase in sales and a deceleration in e-commerce growth, according to a new forecast from retail industry consulting and research firm Customer Growth Partners. In the 14th annual holiday forecast, the 3.4% increase in sales is well below projections of others,... Read more »

October 30, 2014 The iconic suburban, single-family American home isn’t going anywhere – and neither are their Baby Boomer owners.  Contrary to common perception, the post World War II generation will not be trading home ownership for renting, suburbs for cities, or yards and gardens for more maintenance-free living.  Rather, most Boomers will age-in-place, while... Read more »

October 29, 2014 The all-important holiday shopping season is upon us.  NRF’s 2014 holiday forecast calls for a retail sales increase of 4.1 percent to a total of $616.9 billion.  “Holiday sales” are defined as those happening from November 1 through December 31. Overall, we expect holiday spending to reflect recent economic momentum.  The economy... Read more »

October 29, 2014 Weaker than expected third quarter sales prompted Kohl’s to lower its profit forecast while noting that e-commerce sales increased 30%. The company held an investor conference on October 29 and said third quarter sales were expected to decline 1.4% due to softer than expected sales during October.  The top line weakness caused... Read more »

October 27, 2014 Home improvement in New York is in for a new look in 2015 when Lowe’s opens two tiny stores in Manhattan. Lowe’s is coming to Manhattan to bring homeowners, renters and professional customers the products and services they need to maintain and improve their homes and businesses, the company said.  Its two... Read more »