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State officials have noted an increase in tax revenue for the present year 2011. The increase has been slow as KY encountered many setbacks such as high unemployment rates and sluggish personal income and overall economic growth. The recent changes portend well for the future of Kentucky’s economy.

Based on reports from the State Budget Director’s office, Kentucky has had increases in personal income tax, corporate income tax and also coal tax revenue. The data showed that income tax growth accounted for the majority of increases with a growth of over 93 million. Greg Harkenrider who is with the State Budget Director’s office stated that General Fund growth in May was 17.8 percent.

Kentucky was never severely affected by the economic downturn and as such, its slow growth in comparison to the rest if the nation is not necessarily indicative of a weakened economic state. Greg Harkenrider stated much to the same effect saying, ‘We never were hurting as badly as the rest of the U.S. during the recession…The fact that we had lower growth does not (overly concern) me.” Harkenrider stated that “The third quarter was a great quarter and it looks good going forward.” These improvements have come albeit slowly. In fact Kentucky’s personal income is lagging behind the national average coming in at 4.7 percent versus 5.6 percent for the entire U.S. However growth continues to proceed at a steady pace.

At the 22^nd annual economic outlook conference recently, University of Kentucky economists discussed their projections for the future of Kentucky’s economy. They stated that there would be slight growth but the overall economy would not see any momentous surges due to the lapse in new jobs being added. Ken Troske, the chair of the economics department stated “We still have persistently high unemployment, which is a concern.” According Troske’s predictions, the unemployment rate in Kentucky is likely to get better but should stay at 9.5 percent for the remainder of 2011. “Certainly when you don’t have a job, you don’t feel like it’s getting better,” Troske stated.

Despite the slow recovery and stagnant job growth, positive changes are occurring compared to last years numbers. Christopher Jepsen, a fellow economist said that “Employment always takes a while to respond in a recovery…it’s too soon to tell whether or not we’ve turned a corner…but at this time last year, the situation looked much worse.” The University of Kentucky’s economists agree that the job market is slow to improve but at least the housing market is not in complete arrears. There was never the drastic up and down in the real estate market that other sates like Florida experienced. In addition, the manufacturing sector across the nation is beginning to improve which should reflect in Kentucky’s economy as well.

Although change has been slow to come, there is evidence that progress is being made. The change may be occurring slowly and the jobs may not be plentiful but increases in personal income may mean that Kentuckians are finding more creative ways to earn a living rather than from more traditional jobs. Either way, economists have hopeful predictions for the future.

Articles on this site have been acquired from a variety of sources.  No content on this site should be considered financial or legal advice

The State of North Dakota has been exhibiting record economic growth that is quickly outpacing the rest of the nation. Despite high unemployment rates and the excessive amounts of foreclosures plaguing other states, ND continues to lead the nation in economic growth and has even experienced an unparalleled boom in their rate of employment.

Since the economic downturn of 2008, North Dakota has done nothing but flourish. Since July 2008, North Dakota has had one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country at only 3.3 percent. In addition, their payroll rate has also increased by 5.2 percent. This rate of growth has been consistent for every month since July of 2008 until the present according to a data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Residents of North Dakota have been enjoying an increase in jobs as well as a low rate of unemployment that has remained at one third of the national average. The reason behind this steady rate of growth appears to be that North Dakota is one of the only states that has its own source of funding through a state owned bank. This is the primary reason that North Dakota has proceeded virtually unaffected by the financial tumult that has affected the rest of the country.

The name of the bank that has North Dakota’s economy virtually flourishing is simply called the Bank of North Dakota or BND. This bank acts as a source of federal funding for the entire state. It backs local banks and acts as a partner to them providing them with loans and guarantees. Data gleaned from a report published by BND showed that the bank loaned funds from both secured and unsecured Federal fund lines. These loans amounted to over $318 million for the year 2010. In addition to providing banks with local funding, The Bank of North Dakota also makes its own loans through a loan program entitled Flex PACE. This loan program allows the community to fund endeavors such as local job assistance, small business funding, retail and technology creation.

The effect of the Bank of North Dakota on the state’s economic proficiency is indisputable. The bank works as a type of economic stimulant and allows the state to prosper independent of outside funding. The bank shows no sign of going under any time soon and in fact according to The BND’S annual report, the bank appears to be flourishing. Their lending portfolio has demonstrated an increase in loans since the year 2006. The bank has also served to assist the state by providing over $300 million in revenue over the last ten years. The Bank of North Dakota has been a veritable treasure trove and has worked to ensure that the state continues to prosper.

North Dakota has clearly withstood the economic storm that has seen the nation’s unemployment rate rise to 9.1%. Their unemployment rate has remained low while jobs have been added in record numbers. The Bank of North Dakota is clearly responsible for the majority of the state’s economic success and serves as an excellent example of a funding structure that other states may do well to copy.

Articles on this site have been acquired from a variety of sources.  No content on this site should be considered financial or legal advice

Pennsylvania has had an increase in mortgage delinquencies according to a recent report released by the Mortgage Bankers’ Association. With foreclosures still high around the nation, the housing crisis which began in 2009 has yet to show signs of tapering off. For Pennsylvania residents seeking relief from foreclosure and looking for a way to remain in their homes, there may be some options available.

The housing market in Pennsylvania remains depressed as many homes in the state have mortgages in some state of delinquency. The recent report released by the Mortgage Bankers’ Association found that mortgage delinquencies were at 8.24 percent which was an increase of 62 basis points from the first quarter in 2011. The state ranked 19^th in mortgage delinquencies in comparison to the rest of the nation. Although mortgage payments were behind, it seems that the amount of homes entering into the foreclosure process itself was on the decline. According to the report, the amount of homes entering into foreclosure dropped 8 basis points to 0.63 percent. These may be demonstrative of homeowner’s efforts to rectify their delinquencies in order to prevent their homes from entering into the foreclosure process.

Traditional remedies for the foreclosure process have been refinancing when possible as well as short sales. However there may be additional help available from the state of Pennsylvania for those who qualify. Earlier in the month of August at the commissioners meeting, Pennsylvania’s Foreclosure Prevention act of 1983 was discussed. The Act had been established to help homeowners remain in their homes by protecting those unable to make their mortgage payments and helping to prevent foreclosure. However this program was closed down due to a shortage of funding. Taking its place is a new program called Emergency Homeowners’ Loan Program. This program allows homeowners the same type of assistance as the previous plan but is only available through September 30^th of this year. To qualify for assistance, homeowners must be at least three payments delinquent on their mortgage due to either illness or job loss.

Although not a permanent solution, the new program enacted can provide relief for many homeowners who have no other available options. The plan gives homeowners up to $50,000 in loans or 24 months of mortgage payment assistance. Those applying for the loan must be able to resume making payments on their own within two years time. The program will hopefully be extended past the end of next month to provide assistance to a larger amount of Pennsylvania residents.

With the steady amount of delinquencies in mortgage payments, assistance from the state provides much needed reprieve for residents with no other options. With the tapering off of federal stimulus funds, states must come up with creative options to fund programs such as the Emergency Homeowner’s Loan Program. This is a trend that will hopefully spread to other states as state officials realize that helping their residents will also prosper the overall economy of the state in the long run.

Articles on this site have been acquired from a variety of sources.  No content on this site should be considered financial or legal advice