PROFNET WIRE: BUSINESS & TECHNOLOGY: Housing Market

Feb. 1, 20064, 2006 ________ ROUND-UP

Housing Market (continued, 1 expert) _____ LEADS

1. Business: GM Will Go Out of its Way to Keep Delphi, UAW from Going to War 2. Business: Corporate Ethics and the Enron Trial 3. Careers: Work-at-Home Scams -- Don't Become a Victim 4. Energy: America's Cities Need Highly Reliable Power Infrastructures 5. Finance: Earned Income Tax Credit Still Misunderstood 6. Management: Employers Must Offer Training to Retain Workforce 7. Pensions: Current Pension Rules Could Lead to Painful Retirement

ROUND-UP: HOUSING MARKET (continued)

We've added the following to items posted previously at http://profnet.prnewswire.com/organik/orbital/thewire/lst_leads.jsp?iLRTopicI D=9497

**1. DR. BENJAMIN POWELL, director of the Center on Entrepreneurial Innovation at the INDEPENDENT INSTITUTE and professor of economics at SAN JOSE STATE UNIVERSITY: "Much of the rise in housing prices can be attributed to restrictive land-use regulation. In the San Francisco Bay Area, over a million acres, nearly a quarter of total land in the region, is public land off limits to building, and the land that is available is heavily restricted. Economists Edward Glaser and Joseph Gyourko studied the effect government restrictions have on housing prices around the country and found that 90 percent of the difference between physical construction cost and the price of new homes could be attributed to government restrictions on building." News Contact: Wendy Honett, whonett@independent.org Phone: +1-510-632-1366, ext. 119 (2/13/06) _____ LEADS

**1. BUSINESS: GM WILL GO OUT OF ITS WAY TO KEEP DELPHI, UAW FROM GOING TO WAR. CHRISTOPHER WHALEN, managing director at INSTITUTIONAL RISK ANALYTICS: "Many analysts have predicted that GM will be forced to file bankruptcy to reduce its labor costs, and we agree, but we also think that GM will go out of its way to keep its bankrupt former subsidiary, Delphi, and the UAW from going to war. Contrary to what you read in the financial press, there is no time limit on the ability of a debtor to seek to void a labor agreement -- or any contract -- in bankruptcy. Thus, it appears that Delphi and GM intend to first extract the maximum possible concessions from the UAW, all the while holding the threat of a motion to reject the current contract over their heads." Whalen: cwhalen@institutionalriskanalytics.com Phone: +1-914-827-9272 (2/13/06)

**2. BUSINESS: CORPORATE ETHICS AND THE ENRON TRIAL. JIM HULING, president and CEO of Atlanta-based MATRIX RESOURCES, INC., one of the nation's top technology staffing companies, and board member of the Institute for Leadership Ethics and Character at Kennesaw State University, is a passionate advocate of corporate values and ethics: "In the wake of Enron, ethics has become the moral high ground, the antidote to underlying fears and the greatest marketing theme since new and improved -- but that's the problem." Huling can discuss how companies can truly change their cultures and behaviors and become organizations that stand for something, people can be proud to work for and that will gain the confidence of customers and investors. News Contact: Mitchell Leff, mitch@leffassociates.com Phone: +1- 404-861-4769 (2/13/06)

**3. CAREERS: WORK-AT-HOME SCAMS -- DON'T BECOME A VICTIM. LIZ FOLGER, founder of BIZYMOMS.COM, says the beginning of the year is when many moms look to starting a home business, making work-at-home scams very appealing: "You can spot a work-at-home scam in a number of ways. The ad you read will be vague on what type of work you'll be doing, but you're told you can make a lot of money doing it. The ad contains a lot capitalization and exclamation points. The ad will go on to say you don't need any experience and the products sell themselves. You often have to pay a fee to be hired. Before you pay any money to anyone, know exactly what you're getting into and believe in the product or service you are about to sell." Folger: lizf@bizymoms.com Phone: 707-337-3573 (2/13/06)

**4. ENERGY: AMERICA'S CITIES NEED HIGHLY RELIABLE POWER INFRASTRUCTURES. GUY WARNER, CEO of PARETO ENERGY, LTD., is an expert on distributed electricity: "The current and future volatility of imported natural gas is forcing Americans to take a candid assessment of its energy challenges. Hospitals, financial institutions, and data service centers can no longer afford the costly price of blackouts and power outages they currently face in deregulated energy markets that treat electricity as a tradable commodity. Now is the time to seek public support for investments in the next generation of energy technologies. America's cities need highly reliable power infrastructures to sustain their economic development ambitions." News Contact: Alonza Robertson, alonza@westinrinehart.com Phone: +1-202-466-1933 (2/13/06)

**5. FINANCE: EARNED INCOME TAX CREDIT STILL MISUNDERSTOOD. NICOLE SIMPSON, assistant professor of economics at COLGATE UNIVERSITY: "In spite of IRS reports that a significant portion of tax fraud cases may involve the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), the program should not be scrapped. The initiative has been more effective than any other at getting people off the welfare rolls in this country. Instead, the tax preparation process should be streamlined, especially for households who qualify for EITC, so that tax fraud is more easily detected." Simpson, who has worked with numerous families in the Central New York region who need the EITC to pay their rent and bills, is available to discuss this and any other tax season issues. News Contact: Caroline Jenkins, cajenkins@mail.colgate.edu Phone: +1-315-228-6637 (2/13/06)

**6. MANAGEMENT: EMPLOYERS MUST OFFER TRAINING TO RETAIN WORKFORCE, IMPROVE PRODUCTIVITY. DREW J. STEVENS, Ph.D., president of GETTING TO THE FINISH LINE, a leadership and sales training firm, and author of numerous books and articles, including "Worker Productivity and Job Satisfaction": "A recent Salary.com survey found that 65 percent of employees will look for new jobs because they're frustrated, discouraged and bored. This is a harmful trend. Employers can retain workers and increase productivity by offering opportunities for growth. In fact, employers should hire workers who need to learn more -- the process is motivating and builds loyalty. The workforce is a company's most important asset, so training and recognition are crucial."

News Contact: Connie Mitchell, thewriteimage@charter.net Phone: +1-314-306- 1757 (2/13/06)

**7. PENSIONS: CURRENT PENSION RULES COULD LEAD TO PAINFUL RETIREMENT. STEPHEN C. STAPLETON, bankruptcy attorney at COWLES & THOMPSON, P.C.: "The time has come to take seriously the effect corporate bankruptcies have on the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. Currently, American pensions are underfunded by about $450 billion, and much of that burden may be shifted to the PBGC, which insures pension plans for financially struggling companies. But the PBGC already faces a record $23.3 billion deficit. The PBGC's current rules give employers too long to make up shortfalls, and even allow for benefit increases. It's too easy for financially weak companies to shift pension costs to the PBGC when the company fails. The rules have to change." News Contact: Alan Bentrup, alan@legalpr.com Phone: +1-800-559-4534 (2/13/06)

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NOTE TO EDITORS: The following experts have provided direct contact information: Nicole Simpson, Colgate University, nsimpson@mail.colgate.edu Phone: +1-315-228-7991; Drew J. Stevens, Ph.D., Getting to the Finish Line drew@gettingtothefinishline.com Phone: +1-636-938-4486 /PRNewswire -- Feb. 14