Contract 1: Heavy Civil and Airfield Lighting
Approximately 86% of the contract work is complete with only 60% of the contract time used.

• Installation of underground utilities continues in the General Aviation area; approx. 80 % complete.
• 8400' of Runway 16-34 is 100% complete. (Still awaiting final approval for 10,000').
• Earthwork, sub grade and limerock base is complete on Taxiway D; Asphalt paving is approximately 60% complete.
• Masonry work is ongoing on the ALV building.
• Installation of the centerline lighting cans is approximately 82% complete.
• TDZ lighting cans are approx. 81% complete.

Approximately 115 pieces of heavy equipment are in operation at any one time with approximately 160 personnel on site for the heavy civil (contract 1) and utilities(contract 3) contracts.

Contract 2: Terminal Building, ATCT and Support Buildings
Approximately 22% of contract work is complete with 31% of contract time utilized.

Terminal:

• Beginning installation of roof deck in Area A.
• 2nd floor is now complete in Area B.
• Continuing installation of reinforcing steel in area D 2nd level.
• Continuing installation of underdrains.
• Slab on grade is complete between columns B & C in Area A.
• Continuing with structural steel sequence in Area A.

Air Traffic Control Tower:

• Completed concrete pour of foundation walls.

Air Maintenance Facility:

• Completed slab on grade and now erecting steel.

Air Maintenance Shed:

• Continuing installation of split face CMU walls.

Air Cargo Facility:

• Continuing installation of split face CMU walls; setting door frames.

Rental Car Facility:

• Completing installation of underground utilities.

Public Safety Building:

• Forming, resteeling and pouring elevator walls.

The average man power on site for Contract 2 per day is 106 people based on a five day work week. Saturday manpower is average 48 people.

Contract 3: Utility Contract
Approximately 26% of contract work is complete with 25% of contract time utilized.

Main Access Road:

• 3W2" Power Distribution Duct Bank: 68% complete.
• Street light duct work: 75% complete.

Joyner Road:

• 24" water main: Testing complete-passed.

GA Access Road:

• 30" water main: 55% complete.

Lift Station:

• Wet well installed.

Crooked Creek:

• 8" Directional Drill is complete.

ORLANDO, Fla. - April 2, 2009 - These days, it's easier to make a low-ball offer than it used to be, but it's still important to be smart. Here are some things that a real estate practitioner and would-be buyer should consider when contemplating such an offer:

• Use foreclosures as comps carefully. Look realistically at the prices foreclosures in the neighborhood brought. Foreclosures aren't good comps if the homes were stripped of appliances, pipes, HVAC, etc.

• Examine details of short sales critically. How many liens were there against low-selling short sales? If there were no secondary liens, the lender had considerable flexibility.

• Establish realistic time frames. Even in the best circumstances, foreclosure takes a long time. Will the seller play the waiting game? How long have houses whose owners have equity stayed on the market? Is the buyer in a hurry?

If your buyer makes a low-ball offer, the bank probably won't be in any rush to take it. They'll probably keep soliciting offers without coming back with a counter. Ultimately, the property is likely to sell for a higher price and, chances are, you and your buyer won't know it until the deal is done.

Source: ThinkGlinck, Ilyce R. Glink (03/30/2009)

Out & About
A Calendar of Events


17th Annual Heart Ball
"The Ace of Hearts"
Date: March 28
Location: Edgewater Beach Resort
Time: 6:30pm-12:00am
Cost: $200 per person
For More Information please call 850-769-3070.


Friday Fest
Date: April 3
Location: Harrison Ave
Downtown Panama City
Time: 5:30pm
Cost: Free
For more information please call 850-785-2554.


2009 Seabreeze Jazz Festival
Date: April 16 thru April 19
Location: Pier Park Outdoor Amphitheater


March of Dimes March for Babies
Date: April 18
Location: McKenzie Park
Time: 8:00am
For more information please call 850-785-6460.


16th Annual Kidfest
Date: April 18
Time: 10am-4pm
Location: Gulf Coast Community College
Cost: $1 for kids, $2 for adults
For more information please call 850-872-7550

Looking for another event for Panama City Beach for this fall.....mark your calender....this year should be even better than last......

In the Meantime........

Please take a moment to check out this video from Madonaro 2008 - the Emerald Coast Street Painting Festival. It was a great success for the Visual Arts and for all the artists who took part. Join us again this year . . . November 13 - 15, 2009 at Pier Park! http://www.vac.org.cn/madonnaro/Madonnaro.html

Of course noone knows for sure, but this is a "readers digest" version of an article in the Wall Street Journal......it may help you to push some of your customers off the fence !

The Federal Reserve is going to extraordinary lengths to push down long-term interest rates, including home-mortgage rates. But those hoping mortgage rates will fall sharply from current levels, already historically low, may be disappointed. Mortgage firms Thursday were quoting rates averaging 4.75% on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages, according to Zillow.com, a real-estate information service. That is down from more than 5% two days ago and about 6% in mid-November. But further big declines will be hard to achieve, partly because the mortgage-lending market has grown less competitive in the past year as hundreds of small banks and independent mortgage lenders have collapsed. The big banks that dominate the market are eager to boost their profits margins, not give deeper bargains to consumers. Rates for borrowers with the strongest credit are likely to be in a range of roughly 4.5% to 4.75% for the rest of this year, says Mahesh Swaminathan, a mortgage strategist at Credit Suisse in New York. Others say that is too optimistic. Assuming no big change in government policy, Walter Schmidt, an analyst at FTN Financial Capital Markets, sees a range of 4.75% to 5.5% for most of this year. ( Tell your customer ...waiting may mean missing an opportunity ) The Fed began driving mortgage rates down in late November when it announced plans to buy as much as $500 billion of mortgage securities this year. On Wednesday, the Fed expanded that program, saying it will spend as much as $1.25 trillion on such securities in 2009. That is enough to provide funding for more than half of all home-mortgage loans likely to be made in the U.S. this year. The Fed also is buying long-term Treasury bonds to drive down rates on those securities, whose pricing affects mortgage rates. By historical standards, rates look incredibly low. Until recently, 30-year fixed-rate mortgages hadn't been below 5% since the 1950s. For the past couple of months, rates have been bobbing between about 5% and 5.25%. The 30-year rate averaged 4.98% in the week ended March 19, down from 5.03% the prior week, according to Freddie Mac's survey. Fifteen-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 4.61%, down from 4.64%. One reason mortgage rates often tick back up after a decline is that a rush of people seeking to refinance quickly causes backlogs at lenders, which frequently don't have enough employees to process all of the applications. "If lenders are working people overtime to close loans, they don't have an incentive to compete too hard on price," says Arthur Frank, who heads research on mortgage securities at Deutsche Bank in New York. The situation highlights a conundrum for the government. It wants low rates to spur the housing market, but also wants the banks to make profits on loans so they can return to financial health. Many of the small mortgage banks that remain are struggling. Mortgage banks, often small, family-owned companies, aren't licensed to take deposits and so lack that source of money for their loans. Instead, they typically borrow money for short periods from so-called warehouse lenders. They use this short-term credit to make loans to their customers and then pay back the warehouse lenders after selling the loans to bigger banks or to government-backed mortgage investors Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. But this warehouse credit is much harder to obtain than it was a year or two ago because many of the big banks and Wall Street firms that used to provide it have exited that business. Despite these constraints, the Fed's action is "going to be a plus" for the housing market, says Thomas Lawler, an economist in Leesburg, Va. Lower rates make it more likely that home prices will hit bottom in many parts of the country later this year, Mr. Lawler says. The recovery, though, is likely to be gradual, partly because rising unemployment reduces housing demand. Christopher J. Mayer, a real-estate professor at Columbia Business School in New York, says the Fed's moves to cut rates are "helping to put a floor under the housing market." But he worries that the Fed could face huge losses on the mortgage securities if inflation fears eventually push interest rates much higher. Still, the consumers who need these low rates the most aren't likely to get much help. Many people can't qualify for these low rates because their credit scores aren't high enough or they can't afford a down payment of 20% or more on a home purchase. Such people will be socked with fees that can drive up their housing costs considerably. Banks also have become far pickier about appraisals and are nixing many purchases as a result. Others can't qualify for a refinancing because they owe far more on their homes than the estimated current market values. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have new refinancing programs that will let some borrowers refinance into lower rates even if they owe as much as 105% of the home value, but only for current loans owned or guaranteed by Fannie or Freddie.