Wilmington ranked no. 13 for business and careers

WILMINGTON, NC (WECT) - Lucky number 13 - for Wilmington, at least.

Forbes Magazine has ranked Wilmington the 13th best places in the nation for business and careers.

The rankings were based on the research from data on job growth over the past five years and projections through 2011.

Business and living cost data were also taken into account, in addition to income growth and migration trends.

North Carolina had several cities in the top ten including: Asheville at 6th, Durham in 3rd, and Raleigh took the number one spot for the third straight year.

Forbes reports that employment is expected to fall during 2009 in Raleigh after jobs were added at a 4% annual clip the past five years.

They say the job picture is expected to brighten in 2010 and 2011, and the three-year projected annual employment gain is 1.4%. according to Moody's Economy.com, 15th best in the country.

Mortgage Rates for 30 Year Drop To Record Low

U.S. mortgage rates fell to record lows again this week, feeding demand for refinancings, as a result of government efforts to reduce rates to levels that will help the hard-hit housing market begin to recover.

Interest rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 4.85 percent for the week ending March 26, down from the previous week's 4.98 percent.

The rate broke the previous record low of 4.96 percent set 10 weeks earlier, according to Freddie Mac.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is the lowest since Freddie Mac started the Primary Mortgage Market Survey in 1971.

"The Federal Reserve's announcement that it intends to purchase Treasury securities over the next six months caused bond yields to drop and mortgage rates followed," Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist, said in a statement.

Could rides and games return to Carolina Beach Boardwalk?

It's been more than ten years since an amusement park lit up the Carolina Beach Boardwalk, but if all goes according to plan, Ferris-wheels and tilt-a-whirls could once again find a home along the shore.

Rides and midway games used to line the shores of Carolina Beach, however hotels and retail shops have replaced them.

“Sometimes it takes that kind of amusement stuff to make you happy,” said Mayor Joel Macon.

Two years ago, some local business owners almost succeed in bringing the carnival atmosphere back to the boardwalk. This summer carnival rides could find a home among a miniature golf course, a summer concert stage, and a revitalized boardwalk.

The amusement park will include up to 15 temporary rides and will help the town decide if it should install a park permanently.

Carolina Beach residents and visitors both say they've seen drastic improvements in the boardwalk, but say an amusement park could be just the thing to help the beach appeal to the younger crowd.

“I think it would be great, there's nothing for anyone down here to do, as in children wise. I think it would bring a whole lot more business down here,” said CB visitor Angel Cook.

Plans for the park will be reviewed twice in the middle of April.

If everything works out, a small-scale amusement park could open its doors in May.
The Town Technical Review Committee reviewed plans for the park on Monday.

Carolina Beach Planning Commission and Town Council will look at the plans in the middle of April.

Everyone we spoke with said they support bringing amusements back to the boardwalk.

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Homeowners to get break on beach plan insurance

North Carolina homeowners insured under the beach plan will get a break on rate increases.

Most homeowners along the coast get their windstorm and hail insurance through the North Carolina Beach Plan. On Monday a judge ruled that one planned rate increase will be frozen, but another increase could be just around the corner.

In January the North Carolina Insurance Commission rezoned it's insurance territories.

Under the new zoning, beach town homeowners pay different insurance rates from those on the other side of the Intracoastal Waterway.

Last year beach town homeowners paid nearly double the amount of costal homeowners for insurance coverage.

The North Carolina Insurance Commission scheduled a 10 percent increase to take effect February first. That would have meant $200-$300 on insurance premiums for every $400,000 of coverage.

But Monday a judge ruled former insurance commissioner Jim Long didn't follow proper procedures before approving the increase.

Insurance agent Jim Moore said the commission needs to restructure the beach plan. “I think the people on the coast need to lobby to have their premium dollars put into an escrow account and returned down the road if the money is not needed for storms. Second, I think we have painted the insurance companies into a box, we need to relieve them of the potential assessments that could bankrupt them.”

But folks living along the coast aren't out of the woods yet. Local homeowners could still be paying higher premiums beginning in May; 40% increase for costal homeowners and 20% percent increase for beach homeowners.

Insurance agencies said the increase is necessary to prevent them from going bankrupt in the event of a big hurricane.

A spokesperson for the North Carolina Insurance Commission said, "We don't want to have increases if they're not warranted, but the industry provided compelling data."

Moore believes that data is just guesswork. “I just don't think you can predict the cost of a category 4 or 5 storm in North Carolina, when we've never had one.”

If the NC Insurance Commission decides to go after the February increase, new commissioner Wayne Goodwin will have to repeat the process before it can take effect.

That planned May increase could also face a freeze if Senator Boseman has any say. The senator sponsored a bill that would delay all insurance increases until July 2010.

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If Wilmington Had A Facebook Page!

If you’re a regular Web surfer, you likely have a Facebook account. And if you have a Facebook account, it’s likely you’ve been bombarded with friends requesting you to send them “25 Random Things” about yourself. The “25 Random Things” list has become a social networking phenomenon that thousands of Facebook “friends” have kept alive. A Google search for “25 Random Things About Me” yields 83,300 hits. But not everyone has embraced them. Time magazine recently ran an article titled “Facebook: 25 Things I Didn’t Want to Know About You.” Still, advocates say it’s a great way to find out strange and unusual details about the people you thought you knew.

Well, we thought we knew Wilmington. But when we “friended” our fair city, we discovered it’s own “25 Things” list, revealing a surprising, varied history.

Here’s what you might not know about your old buddy, Wilmington.

1. I’m semi-famous. One of my several nicknames is Wilmywood and more than 300 films have been produced here since the 1980s.

2. I raised Henry Bacon, the architect of the Lincoln Memorial. And when he died, he was buried here.

3. I’m getting fatter. My population grew from 55,030 in 1990 to 90,330 in 2000. I’m expected to reach 99,781 next year.

4. I’m not going to tell you my age, but let’s just say George Washington dropped by one day and had supper with me.

5. I’m really into the arts, ever since I was little. Oscar Wilde, Charlie Daniels, Claude Howell, Robert Ruark and others are all buddies. And just recently I’ve decorated with some new sculptures downtown.

6. I love to go fishing. The state’s biggest flathead catfish was caught right here in the Cape Fear River. It was 78 pounds. The state’s biggest black drum was caught here, too. It weighed 100 pounds.

7. I’m athletic, too. I’ve been home to Michael Jordan, Meadowlark Lemon, Sonny Jurgensen, Roman Gabriel, Althea Gibson, Trot Nixon and other sports greats.

8. Sometimes I can be obsessive compulsive. Did you know there are exactly 19 seams in the bridge over Bradley Creek on Oleander Drive? Count them the next time you drive over. Ca-klump, ca-klump, ca-klump . . .

9. I’m super-smart. UNCW has 73 undergraduate degree programs and 32 graduate degrees. About 11,840 students attend the college. Cape Fear Community College’s student enrollment in credit programs topped 7,500 in the fall 2007 semester.

10. I don’t reveal my secrets to just anyone. Did you know miles of more than 100 year-old underground tunnels criss-cross the streets downtown? They were probably originally used as drainage, but who knows what else happened down there. :-) Oh, and that bee hive on my coat of arms? Yeah, nobody knows where that came from. Just ask around.

11. I don’t like to talk about my criminal past. But did you know Stede Bonnet, the “gentleman pirate” was captured here?

12. One of the proudest moments of my life happened just last year when the nuclear fast attack submarine, USS North Carolina, was commissioned at my port.

13. I love to party! Next time you get a chance, come on down to my N.C. Azalea Festival, Riverfest, Fourth of July Fireworks display over the battleship or lighting of the World’s Largest Living Christmas Tree. Those are good times, my friends.

14. My parents had a hard time deciding what to name me. Originally, they were going to call me New Carthage. Then they changed it to New Liverpool, New Town, Newton and finally, thank goodness, Wilmington. Can you think of me as anything else?

15. Years ago there was a rumor that I had more fast food restaurants per capita than any other city in the Union. Well, I don’t know about that. But I sure can cook. All the movie stars complement me on my restaurants including Caffe Phoenix and Deluxe.

16. I’m a tough old bird. I’ve survived a lot of hurricanes, held off German submarines during World War II, lived through race riots, doused huge fires and trudged through two feet of snow back in 1989. But I keep on truckin’.

17. Lately I’ve been socializing with a lot of Northern friends. But I’ve always kept my deep Southern ways – sweet tea, magnolia blossoms in June, Civil War re-enactments and some darn good oyster roasts.

18. I’m a pretty likeable city, but I’ve kicked out a few blow-hards like Hazel, Bertha, Fran, Diana, Floyd, the list goes on.

19. I’m super stylish. I’ve changed my looks a lot over the years, from dirt roads and buggies to brick streets and trolley cars, then asphalt and speedsters. I move with the times. I’m starting to get rid of those unsightly power lines, too, and put in some modern underground ones.

20. Don’t tell anybody. Sometimes I get dandruff. During the spring you’ll find everything covered in yellow-green pine pollen. It’s embarrassing.

21. I’m short but you’ll never guess how short. I only stand about 30 feet above sea level.

22. I’ve served our country. One of North Carolina’s three signers of the Declaration of Independence, William Hooper, lived here.

23. When it comes to love, I’m ruthless. Back in the 1700s I stole away the entire population of Brunswick Town. It’s just a State Historic Site now. They loved me better anyway.

24. Sometimes you might hear mysterious loud booms. Some people call it the Seneca Guns. But it’s really me having a tantrum.

25. I love to spill the beans, the Wilmington Star-News is the oldest continuously published newspaper in North Carolina.

For more information on Wilmington and Wilmington, NC Real Estate visit www.BrettKnowles.com