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The average long-term US mortgage rate dips below 7% to its lowest level since early August

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:56 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate dropped below 7% to its lowest level since early August, another boost for prospective homebuyers who have largely been held back by sharply higher borrowing costs and heightened competition for relatively few homes for sale.The average rate on a 30-year mortgage dropped to 6.95% from 7.03% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 6.31%.Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, popular with homeowners refinancing their home loan, edged up this week, lifting the average rate to 6.38% from 6.29% last week. A year ago, it averaged 5.54%, Freddie Mac said.The latest drop in rates is the seventh in as many weeks. Mortgage rates have been easing since late October, when they reached 7.79%, the highest level since late 2000.The pullback has echoed a decline in the 10-year Treasury yield, which lenders use as a guide to pricing loans. The yield, which in mid October surged to its hig...

Depressed or anxious about finances amid inflation and rising rates? You’re not alone

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:56 GMT

As rent, mortgage payments, grocery bills and the cost of just about everything else rises, more and more Canadians are feeling the weight — not just on their budgets, but also on their mental well-being. Canadians are grappling with what a November report from MNP Ltd. called “inflation isolation”: loneliness brought on when avoiding the expense of social events means less time with friends. Two in five are feeling stressed or anxious because of inflation and higher interest rates, the report found. But financial and mental health experts say it’s crucial to break out of the cycle of shame and avoidance that money struggles can cause and ask for help, whether from friends and families or from professionals. “The best thing that we can do for ourselves is to treat financial stress in the same way you would treat any other stress,” said Megan Rafuse, a registered social worker and psychotherapist, and CEO and co-founder of online mental health practice Shift Collab. “Ask ...

North Carolina Rep. Nickel won’t seek reelection due to remapping, will consider 2026 Senate bid

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:56 GMT

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Democratic U.S. Rep. Wiley Nickel said Thursday he won’t seek reelection to Congress next year, the result of congressional redistricting by Republican state legislators this fall that’s likely to shift North Carolina’s delegation to the right. And he said he’ll consider a U.S. Senate bid for an election that would be nearly three years away.The decision by the first-term congressman on the day before candidate filing ends for the March primary means three incumbent House Democrats from North Carolina won’t run in 2024. Each of them blamed the reconfigured lines by GOP lawmakers — now the subject of litigation — that they say make it futile for them to run.Democratic Reps. Jeff Jackson of Charlotte and Kathy Manning of Greensboro already said they wouldn’t seek reelection. Nickel’s decision should benefit national Republicans in their efforts to retain a U.S. House majority in 2025.“Republicans have rigged the system to favor ...

Liberal MPs ask universities if calling for genocide of Jews violates school codes

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:56 GMT

OTTAWA — Five Liberal members of Parliament are asking 25 Canadian university presidents to say whether calling for a genocide against Jewish people or the elimination of Israel violates their school policies. The letter, shared online by Montreal MP Anthony Housefather, comes amid a rise in antisemitism during the Israel-Hamas war, including on campuses.Former justice minister David Lametti, fellow Montreal MP Anna Gainey, Winnipeg representative Ben Carr and ex-public-safety minister Marco Mendicino also signed the letter. Housefather and Carr are Jewish, and the letter says all five MPs been hearing from students in their constituencies who are being harassed by peers or “subjected to hostile environments in some classrooms.” The heads of U.S. schools have been facing similar questions during recent congressional hearings about antisemitism on campuses.Former University of Pennsylvania president Liz Magill resigned amid controversy after telling lawmakers such a call ...

US officials block Elf Bar-maker from importing 1.4 million illegal e-cigarettes

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:56 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. agents recently seized more than 1.4 million illegal e-cigarettes from the Chinese manufacturer behind Elf Bar, a line of fruity disposable vapes that has become the top brand among American teens, officials said Thursday.Officials pegged the value of the e-cigarettes seized at Los Angeles International Airport at $18 million and said they included several related brands, including Lost Mary, Funky Republic and EB Create, according to a statement from the Food and Drug Administration. The agency announced the seizure with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which helped conduct the operation.Many of the containers were deliberately mislabeled as toys, shoes and other household items in order to evade customs, the agencies said. FDA records show regulators intercepted the shipment on Nov. 6 from iMiracle Shenzhen, which makes Elf Bar and other disposable electronic cigarettes.It’s the first time authorities have reported successfully blocking the company ...

Indiana State Police K9 suffers gunshot wound Thursday morning; injuries not life-threatening

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:56 GMT

GARY — An Indiana State Police K9 suffered a gunshot wound Thursday morning during an incident in Northwest Indiana.According to Indiana State Police, the K9 suffered non-life-threatening injuries and is being treated at a local vet hospital.The incident occurred after Indiana State Police troopers pursued a suspect in a vehicle on Interstate-80/94. At some point, Indiana State Police say, the suspect left the vehicle and was pursued on foot.During the apprehension of the suspect, the K9 suffered a gunshot wound. At this time, it is not clear who fired the gunshot that struck the K9.Following the foot chase, the suspect was taken into custody in the area of Wisconsin and 21st in Gary.Indiana State Police is working to investigate the incident and the circumstances surrounding the K9 shooting.

Lawmakers call for gun safety measures on 11th anniversary of Sandy Hook

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:56 GMT

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) - Today marks 11 years since the massacre at Sandy Hook elementary school and some lawmakers are again calling for more gun safety measures.But any movement on this issue of gun safety or restrictions is unlikely given the makeup of Congress.Some lawmakers in Washington say the country still hasn’t learned lessons from Sandy Hook.House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries says, “The country said we must never allow it to happen, but this year alone there have been 635 mass shootings in the United States of America.” Democrats and the Biden administration say a renewed assault weapons ban is needed."I am absolutely in favor of the Second Amendment, and I am also in favor of an assault weapons ban, a universal background check," said Vice President Kamala Harris.But Republicans say that’s not the answer. Ohio Republican Senator J.D. Vance says, “They seem to be saying let's impose a new set of legal standards on law abiding gun owners. And as a law-abiding gu...

Connecticut police officer saves girl's life, becomes part of her family: 'I'll be there for her graduation and wedding'

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:56 GMT

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) – When Tooka gets home from school, she runs into the outstretched arms of her Uncle Mike."I missed you!" she tells Uncle Mike, aka Det. Michael Harton of Connecticut's North Haven Police Department.Harton been a constant in Tooka's life for the past several years, ever since saving her life."They call her Tooka but not for me — [it's] 'little angel,'" said Harton.Det. Mike Harton of the North Haven Police Department is pictured with Tooka, the girl whose live he saved four years ago. (WTNH)Their paths first crossed four years ago. Tooka, just a few months old at the time, was with mom Nikki Huckaby at a movie theater in North Haven when a scary situation unfolded. "I went to pick her up when the movie was over, and I realized she wasn't breathing," said Huckaby. "I was like, 'Oh my God!' I was hysterical.""I see Nicole running towards me with a little angel in her arms," remembered Harton, who just happened to be stationed at the theater that night. 7 Virg...

7 Virginia 4th-graders sickened by gummies eaten from fentanyl-laced bag

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:56 GMT

AMHERST COUNTY, Va. (WFXR) – Seven fourth-grade students in Amherst County, Virginia, are recovering after eating gummy candy from a bag that later tested positive for fentanyl residue."A student brought a sandwich bag containing gummies to school, and then shared those gummies with six classmates during lunch," said Dr. William Wells, the Amherst County Public Schools superintendent,. Not long after, it was clear something was wrong."Students who ingested the gummies exhibited symptoms of nausea, vomiting, headache, and some muscle spasm," said Dr. Wells. What to do if someone overdoses on an opioid, such as fentanyl The Amherst County Sheriff's Office was then called to investigate, testing the gummies for multiple substances."We tested further and found actually what it was," said Lt. Dallas Hill.The issue? Fentanyl residue, found on the plastic bag that the gummies were in.After that discovery, Dr. Wells says the school was cleaned to prevent further exposure to students.On W...

Austin approves more than $15M to kickstart I-35 'cap and stitch' design work

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:56 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin City Council approved Thursday millions of dollars in funding agreements with the Texas Department of Transportation for the city's Our Future 35 "cap and stitch" program.TxDOT is working toward its eight-mile I-35 Capital Expression Central project in downtown Austin, which features added lanes along with the removal of the upper decks and lowering of the highway. The cap and stitch program calls for the installation of caps — or deck plazas that can host community and green spaces, pavilions, public art or cultural facilities — on top of those sunken highway lanes. City officials outlined Nov. 7 several sites where “caps” — or deck plazas that can support community and green spaces, pavilions, public art or cultural facilities — could exist over the lowered highway. (Courtesy: Our Future 35)During a Nov. 7 council work session, highlighted locations for caps included some running from Cesar Chavez to 4th streets, one from 4th to 7th streets, one over 11th an...