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Strongest Quarter for Earnings in 5 Years
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1. Strongest Quarter for Earnings in 5 Years
Financial Times
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2. The U.S. Added $450Billion to National Debt Since July 1
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3. ”AI is Going to Cause Mass Unemployment”??? Jobless Claims Lowest Since 1969
Layoffs fall to the lowest level since the U.S. put men on the moon. Here’s what that says about the economy.
Rising sales and a labor shortage are deterring job cuts. Jobless claims haven’t been this low since 1969. Marketwatch By Jeffry Bartash
Businesses aren’t hiring lots of people, but they are extremely reluctant to shrink their workforces with sales rising and the economy still expanding.
The last time layoffs in the U.S. were as low as they are now, NASA was landing astronauts on the moon, young Americans were rocking out at Woodstock and President Richard Nixon was moving into the White House.
So-called initial jobless claims, filed by people who lose jobs, totaled less than 200,000 for the third week in a row — a feat last accomplished in 1969.
“Layoffs remain historically low and have, if anything, declined further this year,” said chief U.S. economist Stephen Stanley of Santander Capital Markets.
Ethan Allen’s CEO on Effective Leadership StrategiesSee All Videos
The ultralow level of jobless claims is another sign of a gradually strengthening labor market and possibly even a growing shortage of labor.
Businesses aren’t hiring lots of people, but they are extremely reluctant to shrink their workforces with sales rising and the economy still expanding.
New jobless claims in the last three weeks totaled 199,000, 198,000 and 189,000 after adjusting for seasonal swings in employment. By contrast, new claims averaged 223,000 in the same three-week period a year earlier.
“These are levels indicative of a sturdy labor market,” economists Robert Kavcic and Shelly Kaushik of BMO Capital Markets wrote.
Nela Richardson, chief economist at the large payroll processor ADP, said people who switch jobs have seen a notable bump-up in salaries. That’s a sign businesses are willing to poach employees from other companies to fill key roles.
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/layoffs-fall-to-the-lowest-level-since-the-u-s-put-men-on-the-moon-heres-what-that-says-about-the-economy-71f7bd23?mod=home_lead
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4. USA Unemployment by State…Some States 2-3%
USAFacts
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5. 300 Legislators Have Served More Than 30 Years in Congress
Barrons By Brian Hamilton To date, more than 300 legislators have served for more than 30 years in Congress. Some 70% of the current members were career politicians before they made it to Washington. No Founder would have even thought to consider laws around term limits because they couldn’t have fathomed hanging out well beyond their welcome, all the while depending on the government dole for their salary.
The natural question is, why would legislators want to stick around for so long?
It turns out that, since 2004, the top 100 wealth gainers in Congress have averaged a 114% increase in net worth while in office, according to a recent Ballotpedia study. During the same period, the median U.S. household saw its inflation-adjusted net worth decline by nearly 1%. That means that for every $1 of wealth the average American lost, Congress’s top 100 gained $121. Wow. Today, at least 30% of senators are estimated to be worth more than $10 million, despite their taxpayer-funded base salary being just $174,000.
How is this possible?
One obvious explanation is that these politicians are privy to information that average Americans aren’t, yet they are still permitted to own and trade individual stocks. The 2012 Stock Act, which requires members of Congress to report stock trades worth more than $1,000 within a 45-day window, does nothing to curb legislators’ trading.
You would hope that they would want to act in the interest of the country without the appearance of personal gain. However, an investigation conducted by a consortium of news organizations that analyzed nearly 9,000 financial-disclosure reports identified 78 members of Congress who violated the Stock Act.
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6. Illicit Drug Usage
Semafor
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7. The Air Conditioning Divide
The Daily Spark
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8. Real Estate Friday
34% of American Homes are Affordable for Typical Household.
Home affordability. "Americans need to earn $109,796 to afford the typical U.S. home for sale, down 0.5% from an all-time high of $110,382 a year ago ... Just over one-third (34.2%) of U.S. home listings were affordable to someone earning the median income in June, up from 30.5% a year earlier."
Redfin
Top 10 Cities with Growing Home Values.
Nick Gerli
7 Home Improvements to Skip Before Listing Your Home
July 28, 2026 by Kierra Todd
Thinking about tackling a long list of renovation projects before putting your home on the market? It’s a common instinct, but bigger isn’t always better when it comes to preparing your home to sell. While some updates can make your home more appealing, others can cost thousands of dollars without adding enough value to justify the expense.
Whether you’re selling a home in Chicago, IL, or preparing to list a house in West Palm Beach, FL, knowing which improvements to skip can help you focus your time and budget on updates that leave the best impression on buyers.
1. Skip major remodels before listing
A full kitchen or bathroom remodel might seem like a smart investment, but these projects are often expensive and time consuming. Unless the space has significant damage or functional issues, there’s a good chance buyers would rather personalize these rooms themselves.
Instead of gutting an entire room, consider making smaller improvements that freshen the space. Small updates like replacing outdated cabinet hardware, updating light fixtures, or repairing worn caulking can help a room feel well maintained without the price tag of a full renovation.
2. Luxury upgrades aren’t always worth the investment
Installing high-end appliances, custom built-ins, or premium finishes may sound like a great way to attract buyers, but luxury features don’t always deliver the return sellers expect.
Every buyer has different tastes, and features that feel like must haves to one person may not appeal to another. Rather than investing heavily in upgrades that could go unnoticed, focus on presenting a clean, functional home that allows buyers to imagine making it their own.
3. Think twice before replacing flooring
Worn or damaged flooring can certainly affect a buyer’s first impression, but replacing perfectly functional floors simply because they’re not your style may not be necessary.
Professional carpet cleaning, refinishing hardwood floors, or making minor repairs can often refresh a room at a fraction of the cost of installing brand new flooring. If the existing flooring is in good condition, many buyers will appreciate having the opportunity to choose their own finishes after moving in.
4. Avoid overdoing the landscaping
Curb appeal plays an important role in attracting buyers, but that doesn’t mean you need to completely redesign your yard before listing.
Large landscaping projects, mature tree installations, or elaborate outdoor features can quickly become expensive and may not increase your home’s value enough to offset the cost. Instead, focus on simple maintenance like mowing the lawn, trimming shrubs, pulling weeds, adding fresh mulch, and planting a few seasonal flowers to create a welcoming first impression.
5. Be careful with DIY projects
Taking on home improvement projects yourself can save money, but only if they’re done well. Uneven tile, sloppy paint lines, poorly installed fixtures, or unfinished projects can leave buyers wondering what other maintenance may have been overlooked.
If you’re not confident completing a project correctly, it may be better to leave it to a professional or skip it altogether. Buyers generally respond better to a home that feels properly maintained than one filled with noticeable DIY mistakes.
6. Focus your budget on simple improvements that make an impact
When preparing to sell, the goal isn’t to create a brand new home. It’s to help buyers see a property that has been cared for and is ready for its next owner.
“Cleaning, decluttering, and applying a fresh coat of paint are appealing to buyers and make the home look more spacious,” says Tommy Decebal Adamescu, Board Certified Master Home Inspector at HomeSpector, Inc. “Servicing the mechanical systems and maintaining the landscape can also have a good impact without overspending.”
Simple improvements like deep cleaning, decluttering, touching up paint where needed, and making sure heating, cooling, and plumbing systems are functioning properly can go a long way toward creating buyer confidence without stretching your budget.
7. Preparing your home without overspending
It’s easy to assume that selling a home requires expensive renovations, but that’s rarely the case. Instead of investing in projects with uncertain returns, focus on improvements that help your home look clean, well maintained, and move in ready. By prioritizing practical updates over costly remodels, you can make a strong first impression while keeping more money in your pocket.
If you are represented by an agent, this is not a solicitation of your business. This article is for informational purposes only, and is not a substitute for professional advice from a medical provider, licensed attorney, financial advisor, or tax professional. Consumers should independently verify any agency or service mentioned will meet their needs. Learn more about our Editorial Guidelines here.
Kierra Todd is a content marketing strategist at Redfin, where she crafts engaging stories about shopping for homes and open houses. Originally from Alexandria, VA, she enjoys returning home for special occasions and holidays to spend time with family. Her dream home blends warm, traditional charm with modern design and plenty of space to host friends and loved ones.
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9. Top 20 Most Valuable College Football Programs
Svea Sturm
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9. Why Flights are Expensive? CNBC
CNBC
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10. Perseverance in Life
Psychology Today Personal Perspective: Moving forward in the face of crushing obstacles Greg O'Brien
Key points
Perseverance often means steady faithfulness, not dramatic acts of courage.
Forward motion—no matter how slow—is vital when facing crushing obstacles.
Studies show perseverance and optimism can help reduce anxiety, depression, and panic.
“If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving forward.” — Martin Luther King, 1960
I’ve been crawling a lot of late.
I’m not alone in this. Life, at times, offers all of us a haversack of trials—crushing burdens in the moment and beyond.
And we think of giving up.
I’m not saying my challenges are any tougher than others, but just sayin’: in my case, fighting off advancing and bruising Alzheimer’s, cancer, black hole depression, and the death of a son in 2022. No parent should ever have to bury a child.
Some days, the urge just to give up is overwhelming, as the body feels frozen in the moment and the demons are snapping. But I’m trying not to take the bait, and think often of others struggling.
I’m encouraged by Albert Einstein, who said: “You never fail until you stop trying.”
As an aging jock, 76 now, I don’t want to stop trying. So, I’m fighting forward, but can’t say it’s easy in any way.
We all find discernment in many ways. I was raised Irish Catholic, both mother and father with deep Irish roots (47 of 48 branches of our family tree from Erie). I’m now a bit more evangelical, though I haven’t forgotten my roots.
I’m not preaching, just trying to connect; we all come from different places.
I so respect that…
I recently saw the blockbuster summer movie The Odyssey—Director Chris Nolan’s account of the ancient epic about the hero Odysseus trying to return home to his wife and son after serving in the Trojan War and the interminable string of hurdles in his path. Bloodied but unbowed, as William Henley writes in his epic poem “Invictus,” Odysseus never gave up, and through remarkable perseverance, he finally makes it home.
Doug Scalise, my pastor on Outer Cape Cod, emphasized the drive of Odysseus in his Sunday sermon to underscore the faith needed to persevere in life. “There’s something deeply admirable about refusing to quit,” Scalise said. “Sometimes we imagine perseverance as dramatic acts of courage. Occasionally it is. More often it looks like quiet faithfulness over a lifetime.”
Added Scalise, “Have you ever had a week where every day brings another problem, another disappointment, another phone call telling you something you didn’t want to hear?” In a reference to the New Testament Book of Hebrews, he says: “Faith in everything requires perseverance.”
As a wholly imperfect person, I’m trying to find my way out of a valley of depression without wavering. Scalise once reinforced to me that one can’t helicopter out of such a serpentine valley; you have to walk it out.
We often find perseverance in different ways, though forward motion is forward motion.
Experts say perseverance is the confluence of passion and lasting stamina and is more critical in life than talent or intelligence.
The American Psychological Association notes: “People who don’t give up on their goals (or who get better over time at not giving up on their goals) and who have a positive outlook appear to have less anxiety and depression and fewer panic attacks, according to a study of thousands of Americans over the course of 18 years.”
The study, published by the American Psychological Association in the Journal of Abnormal Psychology, says: “Perseverance cultivates a sense of purposefulness that can create resilience against, or decrease, current levels of major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder and panic disorder.”
Lead author of the study, Nur Hani Zainal, M.S., from Pennsylvania State University, notes: “Looking on the bright side of unfortunate events has the same effect because people feel that life is meaningful, understandable and manageable…Our findings suggest that people can improve their mental health by raising or maintaining high levels of tenacity, resilience and optimism.”
No one said it would be easy…Something to be said for baby steps.
As Rev. King once observed, “You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.”
Had Odysseus not persevered, had he given up, symbolically he’d still be in the Trojan Horse.
Not a good place for any of us.
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Indices that may be included herein are unmanaged indices and one cannot directly invest in an index. Index returns do not reflect the impact of any management fees, transaction costs or expenses. The index information included herein is for illustrative purposes only.
Material for market review represents an assessment of the market environment at a specific point in time and is not intended to be a forecast of future events, or a guarantee of future results.
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