Targeting Construction and Real Estate Industries It has become commonplace in the real estate and construction industry to make electronic, digital, and wired payments, especially with the very large sums that are often transferred. With paper checks disappearing, cybercriminals are now targeting these industries—victimizing both payors and payees—and causing significant financial tension and reputational harm. As evidenced by a recent FBI bulletin specifically warning the construction industry, fraudsters have become increasingly sophisticated, hacking into e-mail servers, posing as escrow agents or company employees, intercepting wire transfers before the payee or payor even realize it. The author discusses the schemes that…
-
-
In March, the federal government imposed a twenty-five percent tariff on imported steel and a ten percent tax on imported aluminum. The resulting increased costs will likely be passed on to the construction industry. General contractors typically increase their bid price to account for anticipated cost escalations. For those projects already under contract, however, the pending increases pose a dire threat to profitability. And a looming trade war could impact other materials widely used in the industry. The critical question for those bidding is how to anticipate how far prices will rise and when. To read the full article in…
-
In their recently released Beige Book, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System break down the economic performance of the nation within seven business sectors across 12 metropolitan economic districts. Prepared at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, the findings are based on all data collected on or before August 26, 2013. Business sectors covered include consumer spending & tourism, nonfinancial services, manufacturing, real estate & construction, banking & finance, agriculture & natural resources and employment, wages & prices. Participating districts include Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Richmond, Atlanta, Chicago, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Kansas City, Dallas and…