November 11, 2014 Real Estate Report - Veterans Day

The election is over. The October employment report has been released. But these important events should not obscure the real importance of this week. Today is Veterans Day, the day we give homage to those who have served our country by defending our freedom throughout our history. We only need to look at what is happening in the Middle East to be reminded as to how important those who have served are to each and every one of us. Many don't realize how extensive the population of veterans is in this country. There are well over 20 million veterans and active military, comprising approximately 10% of the adult population of the United States. For those in business, this makes veterans a very important demographic. For example, did you know that over 15% of the new home sales in the United States are being financed through the Department of Veterans Affairs VA Loan Program? Veterans also own around 10% of all U.S. businesses and have an income which is approximately $10,000 higher than the average American. So, we should not only thank veterans for serving, but also as veterans come back from overseas, helping them assimilate into society is not only the right thing to do, it makes great business sense. Of course, we could not completely ignore the events of last week. As for the election, the results are important because we will no longer have a "divided" Congress; however, this does not mean that all gridlock will be removed. The employment report was also newsworthy, as this report followed our strongest month of job creation in quite some time. The numbers released Friday were slightly below forecast, but were still strong and included an upward revision of the job gains for the previous month. Plus, the unemployment rate moved down to 5.8% while the labor force participation rate increased slightly as well. All in all, a report that shows the jobs recovery continues to be on track. Keith Stewart 773-529-7000