By Roby Brock
Home sales in Arkansas showed marked improvement in October as statewide total sales rose 24 percent over the previous year.
According to the Arkansas Realtors Association, 2,332 homes were sold during October 2009 versus 1,879 in October 2008.
Among the 5 largest markets in terms of sales, Pulaski County led the state with 425 home sales, a 30 percent improvement over last year. Benton and Washington county home sales leaped 36 percent and 25 percent respectively. Saline County home sales were up 33 percent, while Sebastian County sales rose 25 percent.
Average home prices fell by 3 percent to $139,139 suggesting that lower prices statewide may have impacted the year-over-year sales environment. The first time homebuyer tax credit and low mortgage rates also contributed to rising sales.
For the full year, home sales in Arkansas are down 5.5 percent and average home prices are 4 percent below last year’s levels.
State revenues remain below forecast
Arkansas’ rocky revenue picture will likely remain a concern for state officials.
The Department of Finance and Administration released its November collections report, which showed that net available general revenues totaled $391.6 million, 19.4 percent above last year, but 4 percent below forecast.
Individual income tax collections totaled $190.7 million, down 0.8 percent from last November and 0.1 percent below forecast. Corporate income taxes leaped to $83.8 million, an increase of 1,165 percent from year earlier levels, but just 2.3 percent above forecast.
Gross receipts, which include sales and use taxes, topped $155.7 million, down 7.1 percent from last year. Collections were below monthly forecast levels by 3.9 percent.
Gov. Mike Beebe has already called for $100 million in budget reductions with state agencies. This week, state finance officials revealed that they expect revenues to grow by about 2 percent in the coming fiscal year that begins on July 1, 2010.
Dillard’s same store sales fall
Dillard’s Inc. reported November sales, which decreased 13 percent compared to one year ago. Revenue for the Little Rock-based mall retailer fell to $437.9 million during the month compared to $505.7 million one year ago. Dillard’s same store sales decreased 11 percent.
FCC asking for ‘sensitive’ data in Alltel, Verizon, ATN deal
The Federal Communications Commission asked Verizon Wireless and Atlantic Tele-Network (ATN) to provide more information on plans to sell divested Alltel assets, including details regarding 450 current Alltel employees.
In May and June, Verizon announced that it would sell 105 former Alltel properties to AT&T and ATN to satisfy federal regulators’ anti-trust concerns from the $28.1 billion Verizon-Alltel merger. AT&T would acquire 79 of the markets for $2.35 billion and 36 markets were sold to ATN for $200 million. In the interim, Alltel has continued to operate as a stand-alone company.
In a Nov. 19 letter, the FCC requested more information related to Verizon’s bidding process and how ATN plans to handle its future business, including “highly sensitive” data related to staffing plans and territorial properties.
Sparks sale officially closes
Naples, Fla.-based Health Management Associates formally closed on its acquisition of Sparks Health System, a 492-bed hospital in Fort Smith. The transition was effective Tuesday, Dec. 1.
A definitive agreement to sell Sparks to HMA was signed Nov. 4. The two parties announced their intent to seek the transaction on Aug. 14.
HMA is a publicly held company that reported $104 million in net income on total revenue of $3.4 billion for the first nine months of 2009. The company operates 55 hospitals — including Sparks — in 15 states and employs about 34,000.
HMA also operates Summit Medical Center in Van Buren and two Van Buren clinics — Cornerstone Family Clinic and Internal Medicine & Associates.
I-49 group aiming to jump-start efforts
A coalition of supporters for the I-49 highway project gathered and renewed their commitment to seek the nearly $3.4 billion needed to finish the project in Arkansas.
Gard Wayt, the coalition’s executive director, and Curt Green, board chairman of the coalition, spoke in Mena to a joint meeting of the Arkansas Legislature’s Senate Committee on Transportation, Technology and Legislative Affairs and the House Committee on Public Transportation.
“We’ve been kind of dead for the last couple of years,” said Green. “We’re not dead anymore.”
Fed study debunks myths about recession
A recently released study from the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank analyzes different demographic groups that have been impacted in the current recession.
Notable findings included:
—Men account for 78 percent of job losses in the current recession, the same as it was during the 2001 recession.
—The 55 and up age demographic actually experienced positive employment growth during the current recession, due mostly to this group delaying retirement.
—Married people have experienced much lower employment losses than single people.
—African-Americans have been affected the most by direct employment loss.
—Education has a much greater effect on total employment than does gender.
——-
Roby Brock, a freelance journalist based in Little Rock, writes weekly for the Arkansas News Bureau. His weekly television program airs at 10 p.m. Sundays in Central and Northwest Arkansas. His e-mail address is roby@talkbusiness.net; his Web site address is www.talkbusiness.net.
