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Thursday, January 3, 2013

Removal of immigrants declines in Northwest - Spokesman.com ...

January 2, 2013 in City

2012 data show fewer have criminal?record

Manuel Valdes Associated Press

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SEATTLE ? The number of illegal immigrants in the Pacific Northwest removed from the country has fallen dramatically over the past couple of years, according to new numbers from U.S. Immigration and Customs?Enforcement.

They show that 6,733 immigrants were removed in fiscal year 2012 from Washington, Oregon and Alaska, compared with a recent high of more than 10,800 immigrants expelled in?2010.

The 2012 numbers also show that for the first time in five years, the number of illegal immigrants with criminal records declined. The data show that 4,557 of such immigrants were removed in 2012, compared with 5,272 the previous?year.

A fiscal year runs from September to October. These removals also include voluntary departures, which are when illegal immigrants choose to leave the country on their?own.

In recent years, ICE has made removing illegal immigrants with criminal records one of its top priorities. Nationally, the total number of removals stood at nearly 410,000, with nearly 70 percent of those with criminal?records.

The decline of removals from the Pacific Northwest can be attributed to fewer people being transferred from out of state to the Tacoma Detention Center, where some immigrants are processed and held before removal, the agency said in a?statement.

The agency also said another factor contributing to the drop in numbers is the increase of immigration cases of people who are not detained at Tacoma. In general, those cases tend to take longer, even years, to work through the immigration court?system.

For Rich Stolz, executive director of OneAmerica, a Seattle-based immigrant advocacy group, the drop in local numbers is nothing to cheer?about.

?I don?t view this as a big victory in the total scheme of things, those numbers appear to have just been moved to other jurisdictions,? he said, adding that the more than 225,000 immigrants removed without a criminal record nationally ?reflects hundreds of thousands of families being torn?apart.?

Stolz said immigrant advocates continue to be troubled by ICE?s definition of crimes counted toward its tally of illegal immigrants with criminal records removed. He said people who commit traffic violations can be caught in the dragnet of programs ICE employs with local jurisdictions, such as one called Secure?Communities.

Meanwhile, on the day removal numbers were released, ICE director John Morton announced a new policy on when agents should hold in custody immigrants suspected of being in the country illegally. The policy reinforces ICE?s priority of going after people with criminal records and brings its detainment policy in line with prosecutorial guidelines released in?2010.

?The new detainer policy further illustrates the Obama Administration?s refusal to enforce immigration law as written by Congress, opting only to enforce the law against aliens deemed a ?priority,??? argued the Federal for Immigration Reform, a group that pushes for stricter immigration?rules.

Source: http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2013/jan/02/removal-of-immigrants-declines-in-northwest/

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Wednesday, January 2, 2013

3 Large-Cap Dividend Stocks Set To Benefit From The Fiscal Cliff ...

Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article. (More...)

The Fiscal Cliff Deal

Late into the evening on January 1, 2013 the U.S. House of Representatives approved a bill, already passed by the U.S. Senate that will permanently set dividend taxation at 15% for individuals making less than $400k ($450k family). Additionally, the rate is set to increase to 20% for individuals making over $400k ($450k family). This has a been a key issue for dividend stocks over the past few months, as the expiration of the Bush tax cuts would have taxed dividends as ordinary income.

Dividend Stocks

Many have rotated away from these stocks because of this risk, however as the tax rates are now known, it seems like a good time to reconsider these names. Investors have historically looked towards dividend-paying companies for the current income provided, the potential for growth in payments and for equity appreciation potential. Some investors like mitigate single stock risk by buying a basket of dividend-paying stocks. The iShares Dow Jones Select Dividend ETF (DVY) is very popular. It holds mainly large-cap dividend paying companies and yields about 3.5%. This article focuses on three individual stocks that yield at least 3% and have market capitalizations of at least $26 Billion. This list is meant as a base for further research.

Public Service Enterprise Group (PEG)
Dividend Yield: 4.6%

Market Cap: $26 Billion

PSEG is a large utility company, primarily operating in the Northeastern states, with a heavy presence in New Jersey. The company had to do a significant amount of repairs to its infrastructure as a result of Hurricane Sandy in late 2012 and investors will be looking to see how exactly this natural disaster has affected earnings. The stock was down by about 5% for 2012 before dividends are accounted for. PSEG trades for just shy of 13x 2013 earnings estimates. I wrote about PSEG in my December 13th article, "3 Utilities With 4-5% Dividend Yields To Buy For 2013".

Altria (MO)

Dividend Yield: 5.49%

Market Cap: $65 Billion

Altria, a large US tobacco producer pays out a sizeable dividend and many investors look towards the company for this payment, coupled the potential for growth in payments. Altria is largely famous for its Marlboro brand of Cigarettes. The stock was up approximately 6% in 2012, not including dividends paid to shareholders. I featured Altria in my December 23rd, 2012 article, "3 Tobacco Stocks With Dividend Yields Of At Least 4% That Are Poised For Gains In 2013".

Automatic Data Processing (ADP)

Dividend Yield: 3.00%

Market Cap: $28 Billion

Automatic Data Processing is one of the nation's largest payment processing companies. The stock was up approximately 7%, not including dividends paid to shareholders. I wrote an article on ADP on December 12th, 2012 titled, "Automatic Data Processing: Strong Upside Potential From Rising Interest Rates", which talked specifically about how the company will benefit from rising interest rates over the long term. Although ADP has a smaller dividend than the other stocks mentioned, the company has increased dividends for 38 consecutive years and in late 2012 ADP increased its dividend by 10%.

Conclusion

Many are upset with US Government for the way that "Fiscal Cliff" has been dealt with. The US Government still has two big "cliffs" that need to be solved. Those are the debt ceiling and the sequestration cuts, both which need to be resolved in the next two months. However, many are reassured by the clarity and certainty that Congress has finally provided with dividend and income taxation. This dividend clarity should help the companies in this article, as shareholders will be more comfortable owning these names as the tax rates for their dividends are finally known.

Note: At the time of writing this article, President Obama has not yet signed this bill into law.

Source: http://seekingalpha.com/article/1091341-3-large-cap-dividend-stocks-set-to-benefit-from-the-fiscal-cliff-deal?source=feed

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Senate 'Cliff' Bill Retains Mortgage Cancellation Relief

Tax rates would remain the same for most households and mortgage cancellation relief is extended in a budget package passed by the U.S. Senate early this morning to avert the so-called fiscal cliff. The House today could take up the bill, which NAR has been monitoring closely because the fiscal cliff?s automatic tax increases and federal spending cuts involve programs important to real estate and impact household wealth. Based on what the House does, the provisions in the Senate bill could change in the final bill.

The ?American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012?? passed on a bipartisan 89-9 vote in the middle of the night and extends current tax rates for all households earning less than $450,000, and $400,000 for individual filers. For households earning above these limits, tax rates would revert to where they were in 2003, when taxes were reduced across the board. That means taxpayers in the highest bracket would pay taxes on ordinary income at a rate of 39.6 percent, up from 35 percent.

The tax rate on capital gains would also remain the same, at 15 percent, for most households, but for those earning above the $400,000-$450,000 threshold, the rate would rise to 20 percent.

Importantly from NAR?s perspective, the exclusion from taxes for gains on the sale of a principal residence of up to $500,000 ($250,000 for individuals) remains in effect, so only home sellers whose income is $450,000 or above and the gain on the sale of their house is above $500,000 would pay taxes on the excess capital gains at the higher rate (with corresponding numbers for individual filers). For the vast majority of home sellers, there is no change.

The bill also reinstates provisions that phase out personal exemptions and deductions for incomes over $250,000 for singles and $300,000 for couples.

A number of what lawmakers call extenders are in the bill. Extenders keep in place expiring tax provisions. Of most interest to real estate, the bill would extend mortgage cancellation relief for home owners or sellers who have a portion of their mortgage debt forgiven by their lender, typically in a short sale or foreclosure sale for sellers and in a modification for owners. Without the extension, any debt forgiven would be taxable, which, for underwater households, represents a financial burden. The extension is for one year and is in Sec. 202 of the bill.

Also extended is the deduction for mortgage insurance premiums.

In two other important provisions, the alternative minimum tax (AMT) is permanently adjusted for inflation, making it unnecessary for Congress to adjust it each year. The AMT was enacted in 1969 to help ensure a minimum tax bill for high-income households that would otherwise minimize their taxes by shielding much of their income in deductions and using other tax strategies. Because it was never indexed to inflation, AMT threatens to catch middle-income households in the tax, so Congress each year adjusts it. Now the adjustment would be permanent.

The other key provision is a change in the estate tax so that estates would be taxed at a top rate of 40 percent, with the first $5 million in value exempted for individual estates and $10 million for family estates. Currently, the top rate is 35 percent.

The other side of the fiscal cliff is hundreds of billions of dollars in automatic, across-the-board federal spending cuts, with a disproportionate share of the cuts affecting defense spending. The Senate bill would push back the deadline for the cuts for two months.

Previous coverage of the fiscal cliff.

Source: http://speakingofrealestate.blogs.realtor.org/2013/01/01/senate-%E2%80%98cliff%E2%80%99-bill-retains-mortgage-cancellation-relief/

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PwC: Investors anticipate opportunities in commercial real estate ...

PwC: Investors anticipate opportunities in commercial real estate

January 1, 2013

By Rob Starr, Content Manager, Big4.com

According to the fourth quarter 2012 findings of the PwC Real Estate Investor Survey, investors in the office sector are showing a greater acceptance for slower growth and less apprehension about moving further out on the risk spectrum. Although core trophy assets remain the preferred target of both domestic and international investors, aggressive pricing and improved fundamentals have resulted in certain investors looking to buy either core in strong secondary markets or less-than-core in primary markets.

Mitch Roschelle, partner, U.S. real estate advisory practice leader, PwC comments:

?The commercial real estate industry continues to show its investment durability as assets command attractive spreads over fixed-income investments and offer more stability than stocks, while most property sectors continue to post occupancy gains and rental rate growth,? he says. ?Foreign investors are particularly bullish on U.S. commercial real estate as they look for stable investments during uncertain times abroad. In 2013, Survey respondents expect to see an uptick in sales activity as property owners cull portfolios to take advantage of the low cap rate environment. And as investment capital continues its trend of matriculating beyond just apartments, cap rates are expected to compress across the entire asset class.?

In the fourth quarter of 2012, the average overall cap rate, the initial return anticipated on an acquisition and a reflection of an investment?s anticipated ownership risk, decreased in 24 of the surveyed markets, held steady in seven, and increased in just one of them. The overall cap rate shifts remain irregular with tech office markets (i.e. San Francisco) and the warehouse sector both showing some of the steepest declines. The national warehouse market?s cap rate compression, where the average overall cap rate declined 40 basis points, reflects the optimistic outlook held by most surveyed investors.

5 Newest Positions on Big4

Source: http://www.big4.com/pricewaterhousecoopers/pwc-investors-anticipate-opportunities-in-commercial-real-estate-4/

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