Factors Surrounding Trade Services and Supply impact on Property Industry

The availability of houses in any town/ city affects the overall operation of the housing market. Just as it is the case with the law of demand and supply, the same applies to the property industry, most specifically the housing sector. For any investor who is interested in this field, considering the pull of supply effects is inevitable.

The law of supply and demand states that when there is high demand for a good or service, the price of the good or service rises. If there is a large supply of a good or service but not enough demand for the good or service, the price falls.

In the housing market, the law of supply and demand is prominent. Generally, each housing transaction involves a buyer and a seller. The buyer places an offer for a property and the seller may accept or reject the offer. The law of supply and demand dictates the equilibrium price of a property.

When there is a high demand for properties in a particular city or state and a lack of supply of good quality properties, the prices of houses tend to rise. When there is no demand for housing due to a weak economy and an oversupply of properties is available, the prices of houses tend to fall.

For example, during the Great Recession, the United States experienced an economic downturn from December 2007 until June 2009. The collapse of the real estate market in 2007 caused a decrease in demand for properties, thus creating an oversupply of houses and decreasing properties prices.

Sourced from: http://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/040215/how-does-law-supply-and-demand-affect-housing-market.asp

Trade agreements are an influential aspect in the property industry. In addition to affecting the growth of the industry in different markets, trade factors also affect the investment flow. Trades services in any country or globally thus affect the property industry significantly and these terms should be revised prudently to safeguard the property industry investors as well as their clients from being affected by any fluctuations that may be detrimental to the industry.

Trade agreements shape economies in the longer term by altering the kinds of goods and services produced and raising per capita incomes. Consequently, the sources of demand for commercial real estate change. This, in turn, affects the growth potential for property types in different markets.

Liberalization of trade also influences investment flows. For example, envision a company opening a new operation in a foreign country where a recent trade agreement has created the opportunity to manufacture its products at a lower cost. As well as specific demand for industrial real estate, the communities in which this investment takes place would enjoy the positive effects of money flowing into their economies. The positive economic impact of new investment and wages ultimately translates into higher fundamental demand for commercial and residential real estate. Improved fundamentals could also lead to further investment flows as international real estate investors begin to acquire stock.

Sourced from: http://cbrecapitalwatch.com/?p=1976

Keeping the supply curve at an optimum level in the property industry is as essential to the society as it is to the industry itself. The fluctuations in these levels are largely affected by a number of factors including new developments within the industry and political factors as well as social factors. However, balancing of the trend in this sector is critical to the property industry.

Housing Supply Always in Flux

Every year the housing supply is reduced by events such as demolitions, abandonment, conversion, and natural disasters such as earthquakes or hurricanes. At the same time, new housing starts are added to the supply, with construction and redevelopment in areas that were dormant.

To keep supply at a good pace, new construction and should hover around 3% of the current housing supply. If the number is above that, we could see a housing bust, and if the number is below, we could see a boom.

New construction activity is a good way to measure the state of affairs in the real estate industry, with the cost of construction often running in sync with the cost of real estate. As construction costs rise, the price of homes also go up; the inverse is also true. But if construction costs surge, further development will likely be discouraged.

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The housing supply is also affected by political and social factors such as Federal Clean Air Act in the 1970s, or “no-growth” and “limited-growth” planning in communities to make additional construction more difficult. While these measures have had good intentions, the result has been higher prices due to tighter demand, with homes less affordable for the masses.

Sourced from: http://www.thetruthaboutrealty.com/real-estate-supply-and-demand/

How to tell if your Accountant is stealing

Accountants are very special people. They are the doctors of every organization. They know when things are doing well and when they are going down under. Unfortunately they could also be the reason why a company is going down under. You need to keep a close eye on your financial records and there are signs that cannot be ignored.

Have you noticed your finances reducing? Have you noticed that something wasn’t quite right with your finances. Do you think your accountant is stealing money? How do you know if you accountant is stealing money and if they are how can you protect your account?

No matter what you should know your companies finances. Sadly, it is a problem in today’s world that accountant’s are stealing money from their companies. They can steal money easily since you aren’t in control of the day to day finances. You should know some ways on how to protect your account.

Sourced from: http://businessknowledgesource.com/finance/is_your_accountant_skimming_off_the_top_how_to_know_025854.html

We need accountants, not every business person is good with numbers. There are things they ought to do but some things are off limits.

This list is not meant to be all-inclusive, but if any of this rings true for you, run – don’t walk – to your nearest CPA.

You don’t have access to your accounting system. Why on earth would you give someone full control of your finances without maintaining access yourself so you can review their work from time-to-time? These are your records and, I believe, your company’s property, so don’t let anyone tell you that you cannot have access to your accounting system.

Your bookkeeper gets defensive when you start asking questions or requesting information. If you ask to see a profit & loss statement, a bank detail report, or any type of banking or financial document and you get an attitude in response, this is a red flag. No one should be so protective of his or her work that you cannot review it. If you are met with such resistance, the reason is probably because your books are a complete mess and the bookkeeper does not want to get fired. This goes back to #1. You should not even have to ask; you should have full access to your records at all times.

Your bookkeeper does not prepare bank and credit card reconciliations. This is one of the most basic bookkeeping tasks for any business. Why? Because it is your checks-and-balance system. It is the way you know if you have everything in your financial system that should be there – nothing more or less. These reconciliations should be done monthly, and I advise you get copies of them. This shows your cleared and outstanding checks, deposits and all other transactions, providing a great snapshot of your business transactions.

Sourced from: http://iconisgroup.com/5-warning-signs-your-bookkeeper-doesnt-have-a-clue/

Since now you know what an accountant can do intentionally or by accident there are signs that you should know. These are quite blatant and if you turn a blind eye then you have no one else to blame but yourself.

Here are just some of the internal controls King recommends business owners adopt to protect against theft.

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1. Open the bank statement yourself.

Review each check for authorized payee, signature and approved electronic payments before handing it over to the bookkeeper.

2. Don’t let your bookkeeper reconcile the bank account.

The person paying the bills should not reconcile the account – that’s how embezzlers cover their tracks.

3. Close the prior period.

Once you produce a financial statement, that period should be closed to reduce risk of hiding a fraudulent transaction in a prior year.

4. Attach scanned images to each transaction.

Most fraud occurs through check tampering, where the bookkeeper changes the payee to him or herself.

Sourced from: http://www.insperity.com/blog/6-easy-steps-to-ignore-if-you-want-your-bookkeeper-to-steal-your-money/