· “PACE
program expanding - Despite complaints from consumers when the bill comes due”
by Ron Hurtibise
o Sun Sentinel (Ft. Lauderdale)
o This article highlights some of the issues
surrounding a unique program used to finance home improvements. The program,
called Property Assessed Clean Energy financing or PACE, is available to
practically any homeowners with jobs and sufficient equity in their houses,
regardless of credit scores. However, the seeming ease and convenience of this program
may be too good to be true. Many customers have been caught by surprise when
they had to start paying back the loans because the terms are unclear. The
payments come as a part of the homeowner’s property taxes, so many are caught off
guard when they have to start paying earlier than they were told or have to pay
much greater amounts than anticipated.
o The problem boils down to a lack of
communication between contractors for the PACE program and customers utilizing
it. Whether it is intentional deception or accidental miscommunication is up
for debate depending on who you ask. Borrowers who agree to use this program
without realizing the full costs or extent of it may find themselves in greater
debt than they can handle. The risk only escalates as the program continues to
expand.
o Borrowers are at the losing end of this
program’s deal. Anyone seeking to do the kind of home improvements PACE offers
can be affected by this problem. With the program and its projects gaining
popularity, this could end up being a great deal of people. “Qualifying energy efficiency
and storm-hardening projects include new roofs, air conditioning systems,
hurricane-resistant impact windows and doors, and storm-hardened garage doors.”
· “The best way to get a mortgage” by Gary M.
Singer
o Sun Sentinel (Ft. Lauderdale)
o In this Q&A style story, Singer explains
some tips and tricks for getting a good mortgage. He goes over what potential
buyers should expect when applying for a mortgage and gives them advice about house
shopping.
o The main problem presented in the story is
that there is a general lack of knowledge on how to get a mortgage. People are
also given the advice to “buy the most home you can afford,” but Springer warns
readers not to buy so much home that they become “house poor.”
o This problem affects potential future homeowners
as they prepare to search for a house and apply for a mortgage on it.
· “Bosses
with blind spots - Here's what employees see” by Scott Mautz
o Sun Sentinel (Ft. Lauderdale)
o The article details Gallup poll findings
concerning employees’ discontent with their company leadership. It explains how
these issues are usually despite many bosses’ best efforts to be effective
leaders. They may lead to employee burnout and a high turnover rate.
o The primary issues discussed are that employees
do not believe their leaders have a clear direction for their organization or deliver
on promises to customers. Employees also do not believe that their companies do
an excellent job of onboarding and 67% report experiencing burnout at work.
o These problems affect almost anyone at a
company. While employees are the ones diagnosing and reporting the problems,
leaders are the ones who must do their part to solve them.
· “The
next possible victims of the shutdown: Your food, flowers and toys” by Rob Wile
o Miami Herald
o This article explains some of the ways in which
the government shutdown affects the average consumer. While food and other
imported items are still being inspected for contaminants, inspections are
taking longer than usual due to fewer inspectors on the job. This risks the shelf-life
of produce and could eventually raise prices in grocery stores. Florists also
worry that their large shipments from South America will not be ready in time
for Valentine’s Day because of the limited number of federal workers to inspect
them.
o The problem is that the government shutdown
is leading to great numbers of furloughed workers which slows down various business
processes. As of now, the problem mainly affects the workers who are working
without pay and the actual buyers and sellers of fresh produce. If the
situation continues without resolution, it will begin to affect the everyday
consumer as prices go up to make up for slowed inspection processes. It will
also affect florists in the weeks leading up to one of their busiest days of
the year.
· “More
than 68,000 pounds of chicken recalled after wood was found by some customers”
by David J. Neal
o Miami Herald
o Perdue recalled over 68,000 pounds of “Simply
Smart Organics Breaded Chicken Breast Nuggets Gluten Free” after hearing from
three customers who found wood in their nuggets. The company was able to trace
which production run led to the faulty nuggets and offered anyone who purchased
that batch a full refund.
o The problem in this story is that customers
found items unsafe to eat in their pre-packaged food. It is also a problem on
Perdue’s end because the nuggets should never have been near wood, and the
batch clearly was not searched thoroughly enough for quality control.
o This problem primarily affects those who
bought the bad chicken nuggets as well as Perdue.
Beatriz,
ReplyDeleteI though you did a great job on this assignment. I also identified a local problem in Miami because of the government shutdown. The shutdown has definitely affects lots of local communities. You did a great job identifying the people who have these problems. I liked how this assignment made us become more aware of the problems in our communities.
Hi Beatriz,
ReplyDeleteI like how you focused on South Florida because, as a local from South Fla., it's important for me to know what's going on from smaller communities to the larger region, as a whole. I also liked what you wrote about the article about employees not believing their bosses having strong leadership/clear direction. That was really eye-opening and hopefully some bosses have read that to improve their leadership skills.
Hi Beatriz,
ReplyDeleteGreat choices for your articles. My favorite (and most concerning) article is the one where people found wood in their chicken nuggets. This is worrying, as small children could eat these nuggets and choke. I can't even imagine how wood could get in there, but I do know I'll be checking twice next time I try any chicken nuggets.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteHi Beatriz,
Great articles. The government shutdown affecting consumer daily lives really frustrates me. Toys, flowers, foods and other products that are all over the homes of so many people may be contaminated and harmful. Does the Perdue chicken have to do with it do you think? So alarming. These issues are affecting customers and employees all over America and its not fair.