WACO, Texas (PRWEB) January 06, 2015

Global franchise company, Mr. Appliance, a subsidiary of The Dwyer Group, today announced the appointment of Michael Green as vice president of operations. In this position, Green will have direct oversight of the operations, expansion and strategic direction of Mr. Appliance.

Green, prior to his promotion, served as a franchise consultant for sister company, Mr. Rooter Plumbing, for 3 years, where he aided franchise owners in the areas of strategic business development, operations and process improvement and profitability.

I am thrilled to be working with the skilled team at Mr. Appliance to continue supporting our franchisees as they seek unprecedented successes, stated Green. I have always admired the technologically advanced approach Mr. Appliance takes to business development and look forward to helping support and expand upon this initiative.

President of Mr. Appliance, Doug Rogers, foresees great success under the leadership of Green.

Michael brings a vast array of experience in building successful small businesses and will be able to share that breadth of knowledge to help our franchise partners succeed, stated Rogers. In addition, he shares our corporate values and enthusiasm for fostering and developing successful franchise owners.

Green will be joining Mr. Appliance on January 6, 2015. Prior to working under The Dwyer Group umbrella, Green honed his skillset by developing his own small businesses and operating as a successful entrepreneur for nearly 10 years as well as working with Fortune 500 companies such as Owens Corning Fiberglass, Xerox Corporation, and Aramark Corp.

Mr. Appliance is a prominent global appliance repair company poised for growth and expansion in 2015. Through embracing cutting edge business technology, the company is positioned to lead the appliance repair and maintenance industry into the future.

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Mr. Appliance Announces New Vice President of Operations, Michael Green

MIDDLETOWN The common council has postponed action on an incentive plan that city officials want to offer a developer with plans to build a new downtown residential building beside the MiddleOak office tower.

A Massachusetts developer, Hajjar Management Co., is proposing an upscale 89-unit apartment building at the corner of College and Broad streets adjacent to the MiddleOak office tower. Hajjar owns the property.

The $20 million project would include 3,400 square feet of retail space on the first floor with studios, one bedroom and two bedroom apartments on the second, third and fourth floors.

Council members said they needed more time and more information about the deal, which calls for a seven-year tax freeze and a cap on building permits at $142,600. The council voted Monday night 9-2 to postpone a decision until the Feb. 2 council meeting.

Democratic Majority Leader Thomas Serra said he hopes the city can reopen negotiations to get a deal that is more beneficial to taxpayers. He said there are also remaining questions about the 1987 deal the city offered when Middlesex Mutual built the office tower at Broad and Court streets, and about the impact the new building might have on the school district.

"I support this in the context of what's happening," Serra said. "However it's about fairness to the citizens of Middletown. My intention [in postponing a vote] is to have input and to have answers to all the questions my colleagues asked."

Planning Director Michiel Wackers said the city in 1987 made an $11 million investment into the construction of the office tower, but there wasn't much of a return.

The new offer to Hajjar is an investment of just $18,000, and the city stands to gain hundreds of thousands of dollars in new tax revenue after the project is complete, he said.

"This is revenue that will ultimately reduce the tax burden and we need to keep that in mind," Wackers told the council. "We've struck a deal that's in the interest of taxpayers, as well as in the interest of the developer, to bring new development into Middletown."

Council Republican David Bauer cautioned against rushing an approval for the project, and said more scrutiny is needed to make sure the plan is beneficial to taxpayers.

Excerpt from:
Middletown Council Unsure About Tax Abatement Plan For Apartment Building

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) Home builders and investors have poured money into so many new rental units that tenants may see rent growth slow in the near future, one economist said.

While there will likely be robust demand in 2015 from renters and young adults, in particular builders have already started and plan to start enough new apartment projects that the days of excess demand may soon be over, said Ryan Severino, senior economist at Reis, a New York-based research firm focused on commercial real estate.

Demand will struggle to keep pace with the significant amounts of new construction that should come online over the next few years, Severino said.

Growth in rents over coming years should remain positive, according to Reis, but it will likely slow from 2014s heady pace of about 3.5%, which far outpaced overall consumer inflation.

Although an improving labor market with more jobs and faster wage growth should provide landlords with more leverage to increase rents, over time this will be stymied by the sheer number of new units that are going to come online, increasing competition in the market, Severino said.

The frenzy for apartments has been fed by a choppy jobs market that made it tough for workers to set aside enough cash for a down payment. Also, persistently high credit standards have kept singles and families from obtaining a mortgage, a key financial ingredient for many would-be homeowners, particularly first-time buyers.

Seeing an opportunity, developers ramped up apartment building. The rate of private construction spending on new multi-family residences was up 27% in November from the year-earlier pace, more than double a 13% gain for new single-family homes, according to government data. Meanwhile, outstanding multifamily-mortgage debt swelled in the third quarter, rising the most since the end of 2007, the Mortgage Bankers Association said Tuesday.

Rental vacancy rates are the lowest in 20 years, which gives landlords power to raise rents. Government data show that landlords recently ramped up rents by the fastest pace in six years. But that power may taper as the supply of rental units rises.

With a veritable deluge of new supply set to come online over the next few years, vacancy is headed higher. The supply pipeline swells larger and larger on a weekly basis and presents the greatest risk to the apartment markets health, Severino said.

Read more here:
Capitol Report: Apartment glut may tame rising rents

After all, last year saw the most apartment construction since 2001, with 161,518 new units delivered, according to Reis. Cities like Houston, Austin and Washington, D.C., are seeing an apartment boom, which could start to ease rising rents.

"We work in an industry that has a huge propensity to overbuild." Severino said. "I don't think it's going to be a massive overbuilding, but I do think even with demographics so favorable it's going to be difficult if not impossible for demand to keep pace with supply."

Read MoreOffice sector works its way back

Still, landlords are able to collect higher rents, which rose 3.5 percent in 2014, the best performance since 2007. Rents are setting new records, and the improving labor market, including faster wage growth, will give landlords at least in the short term more leverage to raise rents.

"It is surprising, and an outlier, to have a strengthening fourth quarter when everyone is going home for the holidays," said Alexander Goldfarb, an analyst with Sandler O'Neill. "Rent (price) growth in 2014 surprised everyone."

But as developers start to see too many cranes in major urban markets, they are now setting their sights, too, on the suburbs, where there has not been a building boom and where potential returns are far higher.

Both Avalon Bay and Essex Property Trust are starting to focus their investment dollars on the suburban markets. Essex, which is concentrated on the West Coast, is especially well-positioned.

"Housing is unaffordable in San Francisco, so Essex has been capitalizing on the fact that rent growth has been tremendous," Goldfarb said. "In their development projects, the yields have been way above what they expected."

On the flip side, multifamily real estate developers who also invest on the East Coast, like Equity Residential, are finding the competition from condominium developers in New York City fierce. Both land and labor are now so expensive that the numbers don't work.

Read MoreManhattan apartment prices hit record high

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Will too many apartments pinch the rental market?

Perth, Western Australia (PRWEB) January 07, 2015

Anahata Technologies Pty Ltd was established 4 years ago in Western Australia as privately owned software developed company. It focuses on the analysis, improvement and implementation of efficient tailor-made applications.

The Aged Care Industry has evolved over time. However, persistent challenges of management and administration in care services have been hampered by the lack of a consistently organized approach. Despite there being software available for this sector, the apps are expensive and often unreliable. The small and medium scale businesses cannot afford to invest in software that is priced out of their reach. However, Anahata has ventured into the market to offer affordable and customized ICT solutions that ensure proper management and control within the targeted institutions. The apps are reliable and durable.

Anahata employs a versatile approach in rendering services to its customers. The software supplied is of the highest quality and consists of flexible processes and tools that incorporate customer input during development. This allows for the full customization in order to cater for the needs and requirements of customers.

The firm also delivers cross-platform ICT solutions developed with open source technology. Open standards are thus adhered to making the apps stable, secure and compatible. The customers benefit from a significant reduction in upfront and ongoing licensing fees.

For additional details, visit the company website at http://www.anahata-it.com.au

About Anahata Technologies Pty Ltd

Founded in Perth, Western Australia in 2010 by Pablo Rodriguez Pina, Anahata Technologies Pty Ltd is an Australian privately owned software development company specializing in the analysis, design, implementation and support of cost-effective, custom built software applications.

Anahatas preferred delivery approach is an iterative, agile, customer centric software development process where business analysts and developers work with the customers to gather requirements and an understanding of the current business processes, and to design and deliver a software solution that not only meets the businesss needs, but also is desgiend to improve business productivity.

During development, a continuous integration process allows customers to test the application regularly as it is being built. Upon implementation, customers staff are trained on the usage of the new system.

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Software Company Anahata Offers Services to Perths Aged Care Industry

Restaurant patios are no longer a refuge for smokers in New Westminster after a new bylaw took effect New Years Day.

The bylaw is the result of Fraser Health asking municipalities to beef up their regulations. It prohibits smoking within 7.5 metres of doors, windows and air intakes of public and workplace buildings; restaurant and pub patios; and within 15 metres of outdoor sports facilities, playgrounds, off-leash parks and picnic areas within city parks. Building owners and businesses are required to put up signs to make smokers aware of the new regulations.

But dont look for the heavy hand of big brother to come down hard. At least not initially.

The new regulations bring New Westminster in line with many municipalities in Metro Vancouver although the bylaws between cities arent always identical.

Fraser Health spokesman Ken Donohue said the first step in enforcing the new regulations will be education.

Weve found thats the best approach, said Donohue.

He added the regional health authoritys environmental health officers will work in collaboration with city bylaw enforcement officials. If a ticket needs to be issued it will be done by the city, he said.

Donohue admitted enforcing the regulations will be a challenge, even for the health authority since many hospital workers and patients are frequently seen smoking just outside of hospital entrances.

Thats the challenge with a lot of these smoking bylaws, said Donohue. Even where our offices are located in Central City (in Surrey) youre not supposed to smoke, there are signs all over the place. Youve always got people who will light up by the door Its a huge issue and its not an easy one to stamp out and its definitely there.

Although the Paddlewheeler Pub at the River Market had a popular patio for smokers, an employee said the new regulations wont likely affect their business. Brooke Mitchell said the smokers will likely still patronize the restaurant and just adjust where they go to smoke. She pointed out since no one else is allowed to have a smoking patio they wont have any other place to go.

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Smoking rules continue to tighten in New West

FITCHBURG -- Unitil Corp., the electricity and natural-gas provider for Fitchburg, Lunenburg, Townsend and Ashby, reports that energy usage is highest during this time of year, due to a combination of the cold weather, holiday events and get-togethers and, in some households, elaborate holiday displays.

Derek Kimball, manager of residential services of Unitil, said with the shorter days, people also end up using lights more, and that's a good place to start when trying to lower energy usage.

"Look at the types of fixtures you have and how often they are on," Kimball said.

He said it's a good idea to replace older incandescent lights with newer CFL bulbs, in general, and the rule is especially true for lights that will be on for three or more hours a day.

Kimball also said to check insulation levels connecting to the attic and basement, as they are common places where heat is lost. He said when people run wires or plumbing fixtures through different levels, they often create new air-leak spots that need to be plugged with foam insulation.

On the stove, Kimball said to match the pan size to the element size to prevent waste. For example, a 6-inch pan on an 8-inch burner will waste more than 40 percent of the heat produced by the burner. He also recommended using smaller pots and pans when possible.

"If you're cooking two eggs, you don't need a big frying pan for that," he said.

Also, keep the stove top clean and shiny, particularly the replaceable burner pans.

Don't run dishwashers until they are full, and then select the shortest cycle that will adequately clean the dishes. If the dishwasher model allows it, users can also save power by shutting it down before the drying cycle and keeping the dishwasher door ajar instead.

Set the refrigerator dial to 36 to 40 degrees and the freezer to zero to 5 degrees. Look to see if the refrigerator has an energy saver switch, and if so, activate it. Defrosting is also recommended before ice gets to be a quarter-inch thick, because the appliance will have to work harder through the ice.

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Unitil offers tips to save energy, money

If they're correct, 2015 could bring better business outcomes, billions in renegotiation, the end of the RFP, and cloud robots.

This year brought the IT outsourcing industry an increase in hybrid offshoring, a greater focus on in-house service integration, a new lower-cost consulting model, smaller deals, and bigger governance requirements.

CIO.com again asked outsourcing observers to peer into their crystal balls. And if they're right, 2015 could be the year IT outsourcing gets business-focused, customers embrace standardization, sourcing decisions become fact-based, and the age-old RFP process gets some real competition.

1. Outcomes Become the Name of the Game

The new year should see an increase in market facing process solution -- marketing, campaign management, inside sales--that enable providers to align their compensation and incentives with the buyer's intended business outcomes, says Marc Tanowitz, partner with outsourcing consultancy Pace Harmon. "These solutions will incorporate increased use of cloud-based technologies to allow providers to compete and differentiate based on their unique offerings and will allow buyers to partner with outsourced providers to transform the way they engage with their customers," Tanowitz adds.

Meanwhile, says Susan Danino, partner with outsourcing consultancy Information Services Group, "outcome-based pricing is evolving as a true answer to solving some challenges of upfront one time investment costs when it comes to contracting with a third party."

2. Dawn of the Cloud Robots

In 2015, autonomics and cloud technologies will meet, argues Jeff Augustin, managing director of outsourcing consultancy Alsbridge. "Smart robots will increasingly operate in the cloud, and we'll see a 'labor-as-a-service' approach emerge as clients and providers find that intelligent tools and virtual agents can be easily and flexibly hosted on cloud platforms," Augustin says. "This will build even more momentum and interest in autonomics."

3. Customers Embrace Standardization

Cloud, utility computing, and virtualization will converge in 2015, and everything will start to look the same in 2015, says Joshua B. Konvisser, partner with law firm Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman. "As the industry becomes more and more comfortable working with the cloud, the industry is becoming even more comfortable with the benefits of standardization -- increased efficiency, virtualization, reduced support costs, for example, Konvisser says. "Thus, even in bespoke outsourcing arrangements, there may well be more similarity than difference, both within a single company's formerly complicated IT environment, and across companies -- both client and provider. The cloud, utility computing, and virtualization are converging to create this new operating model that will become the new paradigm for IT outsourcing.

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10 Outsourcing Trends to Watch in 2015

My New Years Resolution: Keep Dem Kitchen Countertops DeCluttered
I wasn #39;t going to make a new year #39;s resolution, but decided I need to challenge myself to keep my kitchen countertops decluttered.

By: Lynn Daniel

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My New Years Resolution: Keep Dem Kitchen Countertops DeCluttered - Video

North Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- When it comes to home repairs, some jobs require a professional. But it's important to do some research, before handing your hard-earned money to just anyone.

"I trusted him. You know," said Jim Duckett.

He's disappointed with the progress of his latest home improvement project. He was expecting to see granite countertops and refurbished cabinets by now.

"I went on Craigslist, I found the guy, he came over, measured all my countertops," said Jim.

But two months after hiring a handyman, the kitchen makeover is clearly a work in progress. Jim said the guy he hired isn't a licensed contractor and admits, that was his first mistake. The second, was paying this handyman upfront.

"We went to the bank, I got him $1,200," said Jim.

Jim hasn't seen the guy since then. Along with his money, the handyman disappeared with all his kitchen cabinet doors, which he was supposed to refinish.

"But he's never come back, and he doesn't answer our text messages," said Jim.

So Jim reached out to Contact 13. With only a phone number for this handyman, we tried calling, but only got his voicemail. We left several messages explaining the situation, but we never heard back from anyone.

The sad part is, Jim could have avoided this entire headache. All he had to do was call the Nevada State Contractors Board. It's a free service that provides all the information you need, in order to hire a legitimate professional. If there's a conflict, they'll look into it.

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Handyman creates home remodel nightmare