A captain flying on a commercial airline’s largest aircraft can bring home an average of $348,252 a year, based on recent pilot contracts that passed over the last year.

That’s just the best of the best when it comes to being a commercial airline pilot — a career that comes with years of high-earning salaries and benefits. But to get there, pilots need to invest into training and flying hours, which can often come with mounds of debt. ATP Flight School estimates it costs $108,995 to become a pilot when starting with no previous experience or $86,995 when starting with a private pilot certificate.

So what are the top commercial airlines for pilots to earn the big bucks? Here’s a list of a few.

American Airlines

At American, first-year pilots are at a flat rate, Tajer said. A first-year, first officer at American would be paid $116 an hour in 2024 under the new contract. Depending on how often that new commercial airline pilot would fly, that could mean an average $114,180 annual salary starting out, Darby said.

On average a major airline first officer in their first year flying the smallest aircraft may bring home $98,616, according to Darby.

Pay scales are based on a variety of factors, including each year of service, the type of aircraft the pilot flies and the rank of the pilot.

“It’s a good job,” Tajer said. “Each year you’ll get a pay raise because of the length of service and that goes out to 12 years. If you stay as a first officer, you’ll get an annual increase for your longevity up to 12 years and then you’ll cap out your pay per flight hour.”

Southwest Airlines

At Southwest, it is the only airline that pays per trip and a formula is used to calculate how much the pilot makes.

Southwest also only flies Boeing 737 airplanes — a difference in how other airlines get paid. First officers or captains at other major airlines, like American, can see pay bumps if they upgrade to larger airplanes.

A first-year, first officer would make approximately $133.76 an hour at Southwest, under the union’s calculations. Darby estimates that to be about $11,370 a month on average.

Top-of-scale captains at Southwest make $364.52 an hour, but Southwest believes this to be closer to $368.01. That would mean about $371,808 on average per year, Darby said.

Pilots are not paid during boarding or getting to their flight. Pilots sometimes work 10 to 12 hours a day but are only paid for when they are flying.

“What it boils down to is everybody’s competing for the best pilots, the most experienced pilots and that experience translates to safety,” Southwest Airlines Pilot Association president Casey Murray said. “When customers purchase tickets, that’s what they’re buying.”

Delta Air Lines

At Delta Air Lines, the Atlanta-based airline which nailed down its contract before all other airlines early last year, a first officer flying its smallest aircraft can make an average of $109,212 annually, according to Darby.

Pilots at Delta are represented by the Air Line Pilots Association. The deal raised their pay by more than 30% over four years. The union of about 15,000 pilots voted in the contract in March.

Flying their largest aircraft, a captain can make $420,876 a year on average.

United Airlines

United’s pilots who are first officers in their first year on the smallest aircraft can bring home a similar salary — $114,696, according to Darby’s estimate.

In July, United Airlines pilots reached an agreement for a new four-year contract, providing a cumulative increase in total compensation of as much as 40.2% over the life of the agreement.

On the other side of the scale, senior-most captains flying United’s largest aircraft can make a salary of $424,920.

Other commercial airlines

At JetBlue Airways, a first-year pilot can make $99,000. Top of the line, a captain at JetBlue flying its largest planes will make $303,840 on average.

At Allegiant Air, a first-year pilot might make around $55,356. A senior captain on average makes $222,696 flying its largest airplanes.

Spirit Airlines’ first officers starting out on the smallest aircraft make $92,868 a year. For captains flying the largest aircraft, that’s an average of $297,876 a year on average at Spirit.

Alaska Airlines pilots flying the smallest aircraft in their first year make $107,844 in the first year. As a senior captain, they can bring home $326,640 on average flying the largest airplanes at Alaska.

©2024 The Dallas Morning News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

In a real estate transaction, there’s always some level of negotiation. If you’re the seller, you face haggling not only with prospective buyers, but also with the person you’re working with to seal the deal: your real estate agent.

Thanks to a federal lawsuit that was recently settled, the way real estate commissions work will change in July 2024 (pending court approval). If you’re looking to save some money, here’s what you need to know about how commissions work, and how to agree on a rate that both you and your agent can feel good about.

How real estate commission works, and who pays for it

A generation ago, real estate commission rates were typically around 6% of a home’s sale price. But the average real estate commission rate has gone down in recent years to just under 5% of a home’s sale price, according to Real Trends, a real estate research and consulting firm, and to Anywhere Real Estate, the parent of Century 21, Coldwell Banker and other brokerage brands.

Under the current system, the fee is typically paid by the seller at closing, and it’s customarily split down the middle between the seller’s agent and the buyer’s agent. (So, for a 5% commission, each agent would earn 2.5%.) On a $400,000 transaction, which is around the median sale price nationwide, the 5% fee amounts to $20,000.

Agents and brokerages can offer a variety of commission structures, though, with some marketing flat fees or other incentives. So there may be opportunity to negotiate the rate if you’re looking to save on the cost of selling your home.

“There are agents and brokerages that reduce, discount or coupon their services,” says Kevin Van Eck, an executive with @properties, a brokerage in Chicago. “Each agent, along with their brokerage, can determine where they set commissions based on the value and success created.”

Can you negotiate Realtor fees?

Often, yes, there is room for bargaining. And as of July, there may be even more room. As a result of a lawsuit involving the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and several major brokerages, new commission rules will take effect that month that will mean sellers no longer have to cover the cost of the buyer’s agent’s fee, which may lead to more aggressive price competition among buyer’s-side agents. In addition, listing agents will no longer be permitted to state the buyer’s agent commission in the MLS (multiple listing service), as has been common practice.

Your success at negotiating often depends on an individual agent’s circumstances, says Dave Liniger, chairman and co-founder of RE/MAX Real Estate. “Some agents are dead-set,” he says. “Other agents need the business so bad they’ll readily negotiate.”

As you prepare to list your home for sale, you may want to meet with a few listing agents to find the right one for the job. Ask each agent about their commission rate and what exactly you’ll be getting for that price. Consider not only how the agent plans to market your home, but also their skill in pricing it, experience, resources and track record.

“It’s OK for a seller to ask about the commission, but the best time is after talking with the agent and understanding their experience, how they will create exposure for the home and the value they bring to the table,” says Van Eck.

Liniger suggests that sellers invite three to five listing agents to their homes to make their pitches. The competing proposals will let you see how much agents charge, and give you leverage to bargain for a better deal. “You don’t get if you don’t ask,” he says.

You might also consider weighing what you learn from full-service agents against the services of a discount broker. Just keep in mind that the discounter’s offerings may be limited compared to those of a traditional agent.

How to negotiate real estate commissions

Once you understand exactly what you’re paying for, you will be in a better position to ask for a discount. Here are some tips:

• If you’re able to offer the agent more than one listing opportunity, that might be a compelling argument for a reduced commission. “If [you’re] a real estate investor who is looking to offload several properties, I would definitely talk about the commission,” says Dana Bull, an agent with Compass in the Boston area. Most agents welcome repeat business, she says.
• If you don’t have another listing opportunity of your own to offer, try leveraging your ability recommend the agent to others in your neighborhood or network. This might be especially impactful if you know they are looking to build their business. “I can’t just slash my commission, but I might be willing to give a slight discount if the client offered some sort of other strategy to get more business after the sale,” Bull says.
• If you have a home in a sought-after area, or a buyer already interested, or an unusually high sale price, your agent may not need to do as much to earn their fee. If neither party can foresee the need for additional services — “if an agent is coming in to basically just do some hand-holding, keeping the transaction on schedule and assisting with paperwork,” Bull says — that might be another good reason to propose a slightly lower rate.
• If you plan to buy a new home while selling your current one, use that in your favor. Liniger says an agent who can represent you on both the sale and the subsequent purchase will likely be willing to cut their fee.

You may be considering skipping the commission conversation entirely and selling your home yourself. If so, be aware: While an experienced house flipper might be skilled enough to list a home without an agent, for most homeowners, the for-sale-by-owner route can be more challenging, more costly and more time-consuming in the long run.

Bottom line

In any negotiation, both parties must be willing to give and take. Negotiating your agent’s commission can work in your favor, but an agent can walk away if they don’t necessarily need your business. Keep in mind, too, that it can make sense for sellers to pay more for additional services instead of negotiating the commission down, Bull says. These might include higher-end marketing, home staging or additional mailers, for instance. And if you’re not in a rush, consider waiting until after the July rule change to see how things shake out. Ultimately, it’s important to find an agent you can speak with openly about cost, and who you trust to do the best job to sell your home.

(Visit Bankrate online at bankrate.com.)

©2024 Bankrate.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

In the seven weeks the 7,500-square-foot family-fun center — featuring arcade games, axe throwing, virtual reality games and party rooms — has been open, the owners have donated the use of the facility’s party rooms to local youth sports teams for board meetings and team events. They’ve donated all the proceeds from one day of business and raffles to a Paradise police officer in need of financial support to help pay medical bills; served as the site for team-building events for local government and school staffs; partnered with Paradise Stronger; and are “in negotiations” with the Boys and Girls Club about offering summer programs.

“We’re here to support the community in any way we can,” said Hastain. “We’re going to say yes to just about everything that supports the community.”

Both Clark and Hastain lost their family homes in the Camp Fire, and both chose to stay because “Paradise is our home” and because they want to see the community thrive again.

The two first connected through a community Facebook page and discovered a common interest: creating more things for kids and families to do on the Paradise ridge. They met for the first time in September of 2021 at the Starbucks and began brainstorming. They continued to meet, texted constantly and created shared spreadsheets until they had both a business plan and a plan of action — and then, they set about doing everything it would take to get their business venture up and running including establishing a corporation, securing a location and purchasing all the games and equipment for Paradise Playdium.

“One of our goals is also to kick start the economy,” said Clark. “We want to bring people from all around to Paradise to have fun at Playdium and enjoy our shops and restaurants.”

Playdium, located in the True Value Hardware Shopping Center at 6848 Skyway, is open Thursdays through Sundays and staffed by nine part-time employee as well as Hastain and Clark. The fun center is also open on days when schools are closed during the regular school year. These non-regular business day openings as well as special events, last minute specials, updates and information about new things in the works are posted on the Playdium Facebook page.

While the facility doesn’t offer food or drinks, families are encouraged to bring their own snacks and non-alcoholic beverages. To help make event planning easier for folks renting one of the party rooms, which are already booked out to May, Playdium’s website offers the opportunity to order and have delivered specialty cupcakes from Stepanoff Sweet Treats, an “amazing gourmet baker in Magalia,” and balloon creations, arches, gifts and party decor from local business Poptastic.

“We don’t mark up any of the products from Stepanoff or Poptastic when people order through our website,” said Clark. “It’s just another service we offer to our customers and another way we can support other local businesses.”

The owners say that since its opened, Playdium has stayed consistently busy on the weekends, and the community has been “extremely supportive” of the new business.

“In the last month, we’ve taken on a lot, more than most new businesses would take on in a year,” said Hastain. “We plan to continue to accelerate that pace as we move forward.”

Moving forward includes changing out arcade games fairly regularly to keep things new and exciting for customers and expanding the facility within the next two months to add bumper cars and laser tag. Hastain and Clark are also applying for a license to serve beer.

“Ultimately, we’re planning to keep on being a positive force in the community,” said Hastain. “We’re going to keep supporting every one in every way we can and keep doing that for as long as we’re around.”

Reach Kyra Gottesman at kgottesman@chicoer.com.

California’s 5.3% unemployment in February was the highest rate in the nation.

My trusty spreadsheet, looking at labor stats dating to 1976, could find only 11 other months the state reached this dubious ranking. Look to the early 1990s economic malaise (August to December 1994) and the coronavirus chill (March to August 2021).

That’s on top of our previous mention in this space that 2023 was the first year since 1994 that the state ranked dead last in the nation for job growth on a percentage-point basis.

To be fair, California historically has been the nation’s leading job creator. At the same time, it’s a reasonable bet that in any given month California will be high on the joblessness scorecard.

Consider that California unemployment has ranked second-highest amongst the states in 72 months over 48 years. It was third 52 times, fourth 35 times, and fifth 49 times.

So an average month since 1976 has seen California unemployment ranked No. 10 among the states. Only five places fared worse – Alaska, the District of Columbia, West Virginia, Mississippi, and Michigan.

And by the way, here’s another example of California’s persistent high joblessness: Its best month in the unemployment rankings since 1976 was 29th best in October 1987.

Yes, the best ranking was a paltry 29th place.

Why so high?

California has heavy concentrations of workers in businesses with big seasonal swings – hospitality, agriculture, and retail. Other economically volatile industries, major employers in California, include technology, real estate, and entertainment.

Additionally, California’s celebrated entrepreneurial grit has a downside – that risk-taking creates a higher-than-average failure rate. That can also boost unemployment.

Consider a yardstick for chronic high unemployment from my spreadsheet: How often during the past 48 years has a state’s monthly jobless rate ranked among the nation’s 10 highest?

This is not a Top 10 list to be envied.

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By this measure, California ranked in the Top 10 in 63% of the months since 1976. Just four others ranked more frequently: Alaska at 78%, DC at 69%, Michigan at 66%, and West Virginia at 63%.

Please note that California’s economic rivals were in the middle of the pack: Texas was No. 21 at 17% and Florida was 24th at 15%.

It’s worth noting that 12 states never made the Top 10 – Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, and Virginia, a diverse mix economically and politically.

Bottom line

It’s hard to sugarcoat California’s high unemployment in February.

Look, California’s astronomically lofty cost of living nudges folks with solid finances to think about relocating – no less those who are missing a paycheck.

But let’s mention that the state’s chronically high joblessness during the past half-century came as California created more jobs than any other state since 1976.

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That’s 9.7 million new jobs – 13% of all US hires. Even California’s job growth rate of 119% topped the 92% employment expansion in the rest of the nation.

Not to dismiss the pain of joblessness, but that top-of-the-nation 5.3% February rate is historically low. California has averaged 7.2% unemployment since 1976.

These stats suggest California employers have enjoyed the deep supply of job candidates that unemployment can create.

These same figures also indicate that California workers, if nothing else, have been very flexible.

PS: Ponder Nebraska, where the average monthly jobless ranking since 1976 is No. 48. That’s the lowest among the states. But Nebraska employers added just 477,000 workers over the 48 years – 95% less than California’s hirings.

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com

Chico Electric’s director of Business Development, Norm Nielsen, said Gorrilla Ranch’s total greenhouse gas offset is around 759 metric tons.

Gorrill Ranch board chair Corrie Davis accepted the award, and in attendance were Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale), the office of State Assemblyman James Gallagher (R-Yuba City), the office of State Senator Brian Dahle (R-Bieber), and Butte County Supervisors Tod Kimmelshue and Peter Durfee.

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — The Biden administration on Thursday restored rules to protect imperiled species and shield their habitat from destruction after the measures were rolled back under former President Donald Trump.

Among the changes, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will reinstate a decades-old regulation that mandates blanket protections for animals and plants newly classified as threatened. That means officials won’t have to craft specific plans to shield each individual species while protections are pending, as has been done recently with North American wolverines in the Rocky Mountains, alligator snapping turtles in the Southeast and spotted owls in California.

The restoration of more protective regulations rankled Republicans who said the Endangered Species Act was being wielded too broadly and to the detriment of economic growth. Meanwhile, wildlife advocates were only partially satisfied, saying some potentially harmful changes under Trump were untouched.

The blanket protections rule had been dropped in 2019 as part of a suite of changes to the application of the species law under Trump that were encouraged by industry. Those changes came as extinctions accelerate globally due to habitat loss and other pressures.

Another rule issued Thursday clarifies that officials must decide if species merit threatened or endangered designations regardless of the potential economic costs of bestowing protections. That’s already government practice, but the 2019 Trump rules caused confusion because they removed an explicit directive to ignore economic impacts, said Fish and Wildlife Service Deputy Assistant Director Gina Shultz.

The rules from the wildlife service and National Marine Fisheries Service also make it easier to designate areas as critical for a species’ survival, even if it is no longer found in those locations.

That could benefit imperiled fish and freshwater mussels in the Southeast, where the aquatic animals in many cases are absent from portions of their historical range, officials have said.

Fish and Wildlife Service Director Martha Williams said in a statement that the rule changes underscored the agency’s commitment to using the best available science to halt population declines as “climate change, degraded and fragmented habitat, invasive species, and wildlife disease” threaten many species.

Details on the rules were obtained by The Associated Press in advance of their public release. Officials said almost a half-million public comments were submitted on the three proposals.

Environmentalists expressed frustration that it took years for Democratic President Joe Biden to act on some of the Trump-era rollbacks. Stoking their urgency is the prospect of a new Republican administration following the 2024 election that could yet again ease protections.

Jamie Rappaport Clark, a former Fish and Wildlife Service director and now president at Defenders of Wildlife, characterized Thursday’s announcement as a “marginal win” that restores essential protections for wildlife, but leaves in place some of the changes made in 2019 under Trump. The environmental group said the retained provisions would open the door to the destruction of habitat critical for some species to survive.

The rules have gotten strong pushback from Republican lawmakers, who say Biden’s Democratic administration has hampered oil, gas and coal development, and favors conservation over development.

“We know the Endangered Species Act is an outdated piece of legislation that has repeatedly failed its primary goal of recovering listed species, yet Biden is now undoing crucial reforms and issuing new regulations that will not benefit listed species,” said House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Bruce Westerman, a Republican from Arkansas.

Property rights attorney Jonathan Wood said the Biden administration’s changes reduce the incentive for private landowners to take voluntary conservation measures.

With blanket protections, species designated as “threatened” automatically qualify for the same protections as those with the more severe designation of “endangered.” That means landowners could become indifferent to a species’ fate, Wood said, because even if they work to get an endangered species downgraded to threatened, there might not be a lessening of government restrictions.

Shultz, with the Fish and Wildlife Service, said blanket protections would be used primarily for threatened plants, which are generally protected under federal law on federal lands but not private property. She said agency officials expect to continue crafting species-specific rules for threatened animals.

Many energy companies, ranchers, developers and representatives of other industries have long viewed the 1973 Endangered Species Act as an impediment. Under Trump, they successfully lobbied to weaken the law’s regulations as part of a broad dismantling of environmental safeguards.

The Biden administration two years ago withdrew a Trump rule that limited which lands and waters could be designated as places where imperiled animals and plants could receive federal protection. It also reversed Trump’s decision to weaken enforcement of the century-old Migratory Bird Treaty Act, which made it harder to prosecute bird deaths due to toxic oil industry waste pits, collisions with wind turbines and other causes.

Trump officials also rolled back protections for individual species including the northern spotted owl and gray wolf.

The spotted owl decision was reversed in 2021 after officials said Trump’s political appointees used faulty science to justify opening millions of acres of West Coast forest to potential logging. Protections for wolves across most of the U.S. were restored by a federal court in 2021.

The Endangered Species Act is credited with helping save the bald eagle, California condor and scores more animals and plants from extinction since President Richard Nixon signed it into law. It currently protects more than 1,600 species in the United States and its territories.

BALTIMORE (AP) — Maryland Gov. Wes Moore warned Thursday of a “very long road ahead” to recover from the loss of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge as the Biden administration approved $60 million in immediate federal aid after the deadly collapse.

Meanwhile the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was moving the largest crane on the Eastern Seaboard to help remove the wreckage of the bridge, Moore said, so work to clear the channel and reopen the key shipping route can begin. The machine, which can lift up to 1,000 tons, was expected to arrive Thursday evening, and U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen said a second crane with a 400-ton capacity could arrive Saturday.

The state is “deeply grateful” for the federal funds and support, Moore said at an evening news conference.

Moore promised Thursday that “the best minds in the world” were working on plans to clear the debris, move the cargo ship that rammed into the bridge from the channel, recover the bodies of the four remaining workers presumed dead and investigate what went wrong.

“Government is working hand in hand with industry to investigate the area, including the wreck, and remove the ship,” said Moore, a Democrat, who said the quick aid is needed to “lay the foundation for a rapid recovery.” President Joe Biden has pledged the federal government would pay the full cost of rebuilding the bridge.

“This work is not going to take hours. This work is not going to take days. This work is not going to take weeks,” Moore said. “We have a very long road ahead of us.”

Van Hollen said 32 members of the Army Corps of Engineers are surveying the scene of the collapse and 38 Navy contractors are working on the salvage operation.

The devastation left behind after the powerless cargo ship struck a support pillar early Tuesday is extensive. Divers recovered the bodies of two men from a pickup truck in the Patapsco River near the bridge’s middle span Wednesday, but officials said they have to start clearing the wreckage before anyone could reach the bodies of four other missing workers.

State police have said that based on sonar scans, the vehicles appear to be encased in a “superstructure” of concrete and other debris.

National Transportation Safety Board officials boarded the ship, the Dali, to recover information from its electronics and paperwork and to interview the captain and crew members. Investigators shared a preliminary timeline of events before the crash, which federal and state officials have said appeared to be an accident.

“The best minds in the world are coming together to collect the information that we need to move forward with speed and safety in our response to this collapse,” Moore said Thursday.

Of the 21 crew members on the ship, 20 are from India, Randhir Jaiswal, the nation’s foreign ministry spokesperson, told reporters. One was slightly injured and needed stitches, but “all are in good shape and good health,” Jaiswal said.

The victims, who were part of a construction crew fixing potholes on the bridge, were from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, Butler said. At least eight people initially went into the water when the ship struck the bridge column, and two of them were rescued Tuesday, officials said.

The crash caused the bridge to break and fall into the water within seconds. Authorities had just enough time to stop vehicle traffic, but didn’t get a chance to alert the construction crew.

During the Baltimore Orioles’ opening day game Thursday, Sgt. Paul Pastorek, Cpl. Jeremy Herbert and Officer Garry Kirts of the Maryland Transportation Authority were honored for their actions in halting bridge traffic and preventing further loss of life.

The three said in a statement that they were “proud to carry out our duties as officers of this state to save the lives that we could.”

The Dali, which is managed by Synergy Marine Group, was headed from Baltimore to Sri Lanka. It is owned by Grace Ocean Private Ltd. and was chartered by Danish shipping giant Maersk.

Synergy extended sympathies to the victims’ families in a statement early Thursday.

“We deeply regret this incident and the problems it has caused for the people of Baltimore and the region’s economy that relies on this vitally important port,” Synergy said, noting that it would continue to cooperate with investigators.

Scott Cowan, president of the International Longshoremen’s Association Local 333, said the union is scrambling to help its roughly 2,400 members whose jobs are at risk of drying up until shipping can resume in the Port of Baltimore.

“If there’s no ships, there’s no work,” he said. “We’re doing everything we can.”

The huge vessel, nearly as long as the Eiffel Tower is tall, was carrying nearly 4,700 shipping containers, 56 of them with hazardous materials inside. Fourteen of those were destroyed, officials said. However, industrial hygienists who evaluated the contents identified them as perfumes and soaps, according to the Key Bridge Joint Information Center.

“There was no immediate threat to the environment,” the center said.

About 21 gallons (80 liters) of oil from a bow thruster on the ship is believed to have caused a sheen in the waterway, Coast Guard Rear Adm. Shannon Gilreath said Thursday.

Booms were placed to prevent any spreading, and state environmental officials were sampling the water.

At the moment there are also cargo containers hanging dangerously off the side of the ship, Gilreath said, adding, “We’re trying to keep our first responders … as safe as possible.”

Divers sent to work beneath the bridge debris and container ship will encounter challenging conditions, including limited visibility and moving currents, according to officials and expert observers.

“Debris can be dangerous, especially when you can’t see what’s right in front of you,” said Donald Gibbons, an instructor with the Eastern Atlantic States Carpenters Technical Centers.

The sudden loss of a highway that carries 30,000 vehicles a day and the port disruption will affect not only thousands of dockworkers and commuters but also U.S. consumers, who are likely to feel the impact of shipping delays.

The governors of New York and New Jersey offered to take on cargo shipments that have been disrupted, to try to minimize supply chain problems.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who met Thursday with supply chain officials, has said the Biden administration was focused on reopening the port and rebuilding the bridge, but he did not put a timeline on those efforts.

From 1960 to 2015, there were 35 major bridge collapses worldwide due to ship or barge collisions, according to the World Association for Waterborne Transport Infrastructure.

___

This story has been updated to correct that 14 shipping containers holding hazardous materials were destroyed, according to the according to the Key Bridge Joint Information Center. Previously it said 13 were destroyed.

___

Witte reported from Annapolis, Maryland. Associated Press writers Sarah Brumfield in Washington and Krutika Pathi in New Delhi contributed.

It wouldn’t be Easter without colorful eggs and chocolate bunnies. But threats to the supply of these holiday essentials are pushing prices up at a time when shoppers are worn out by years of high inflation.

Here’s a look at why inflation is having an outsized impact on your Easter basket.

Cocoa prices soar with no relief in sight

Chocolate prices have risen nearly 38% since 2020, the year before inflation started heating up, according to NielsenIQ market research data provided to NerdWallet. Recently, price hikes have stemmed from the soaring cost of chocolate’s key ingredient: cocoa.

A series of bad weather events, as well as disease, have devastated cocoa crops in West Africa, where about 70% of the world’s cocoa is grown. As a result, cocoa prices are at record highs.

So far, there aren’t any signs of cocoa prices turning a corner, says Billy Roberts, food and beverage economist with CoBank, a Colorado-based lender specializing in agriculture. Initial reports on next season’s harvest — which occurs in late summer and early fall — aren’t as optimistic as the industry hoped. Until crop yields improve, cocoa prices will likely stay high.

Roberts says chocolate makers have realized ever-higher chocolate prices aren’t sustainable. While shoppers spent more money on chocolate in each of the past two years, they did so while buying less of it, according to NielsenIQ data.

But that doesn’t mean prices will come down. Instead, Roberts says, packages will shrink. “It’s not necessarily that they’re trying to fool the consumer, but they’re trying to deliver a product at a price point that consumers are comfortable paying.”

Egg prices have increased 47% since August

While chocolate might be an indulgent purchase by grocery shoppers, eggs are a staple. So, even when it isn’t Easter, consumers tend to watch egg prices closely, says Brian Earnest, an animal protein economist with CoBank.

“People know the last dozen eggs, what it cost them, just like they remember the last time they filled up the gas tank,” Earnest says.

Just like with gas prices in recent years, there’s been a lot to watch. The average cost of a dozen Grade A large eggs was $2.02 around Easter 2020, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, retrieved from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis’ FRED site, a 38% jump from January of that year. That short-lived spike was brought on by sudden changes in consumer demand because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

By Easter 2021, the average price of a dozen eggs was $1.62. The next year, it jumped to $2.52, and prices continued to skyrocket through 2023.

Eggs have been expensive the past two years primarily because of a highly contagious and deadly avian flu that has wreaked havoc on the U.S. egg supply. The virus is the main reason U.S. consumers saw the average price of a dozen eggs more than doubled between January 2022 and January 2023, when it peaked at $4.82.

Prices descended to an average of $3.27 per dozen around Easter last year and continued that way until the fall. That was partly owed to the fact that egg producers weren’t seeing new cases of bird flu and had an opportunity to rebuild their flocks. But farmers reported a new outbreak in November.

Over the past six months, egg prices have marched upward. In February, the average cost of a dozen eggs was $3 — 47% higher than the August price of $2.04.

Earnest doesn’t expect this outbreak to push prices as high as they were in 2022 and 2023, in part because chicken farmers have made changes to better protect their flocks. But now it’s spring again, and that brings more than the Easter bunny to chicken farms. Migratory birds, which have caused outbreaks of avian flu by spreading the deadly virus to stock animals, are a threat once again as they fly north.

Despite fewer new cases of bird flu in recent weeks, “we’re still in a period of seasonally higher risk to the flocks,” Earnest says.

The article Egg and Chocolate Prices Are Hopping — Just in Time for Easter originally appeared on NerdWallet.

A 2023 report from investment firm Vanguard estimates that about a quarter of Americans age 60 and over could move to a cheaper housing market and use the equity in their homes to upsize their retirement savings — making retirement more secure and enjoyable.

Those with home prices near the national median could have cleared about $99,000 in equity, on average, in 2019 (the year the data was gathered). Homeowners in top-priced markets could have cleared an impressive $346,000, on average.

“We’re at a peak of where housing prices have been, ever, in history,” says Matthew Gottshall, a certified financial planner in Westlake, Ohio. “It’s been more and more common for people to weigh the option of, ‘Do I downsize? Do I take the equity that’s grown in my house?’”

Here are the steps to take as you consider the option.

Assess the market

Selling (and potentially downsizing) your home and pocketing the equity is a good strategy in a market where you can make it work. This is easier in pricier housing areas, when you may be able to trade your high-value home for a smaller place in a more affordable market. Vanguard’s analysis noted that relocators in California, for instance, were more successful at clearing equity in their homes than those in lower-priced markets like New Mexico and Texas.

Selling property also isn’t a slam-dunk task. “Just because you want $800,000 for your home, the market may not care,” says Andrew Herzog, a CFP in Plano, Texas. “You may be in the mood to move, but if nobody wants to buy your place in the first place, you’ve got nothing.”

Additionally, you have to make sure you can afford to buy a replacement home that you like. Check home prices in your desired location before putting the “For Sale” sign out.

“My parents — the price of their house has gone up fairly substantially, but everything they want to sell and move into has increased even faster,” Gottshall says.

Research the costs

Make sure you understand property taxes and the basic costs of living in your desired locale, as well as the costs for selling your home. (Hint: The real estate agent commission is generally about 5.5%, although that may change after the recent legal settlement by the National Association of Realtors.) Also, if you’re picking up a mortgage on the new home, there will be closing costs, and rates are probably higher than they were when you last purchased property. All these numbers could chip away at your net sale profit.

“We’re at a place where 30-year mortgages are at 6.5% to 7%,” Gottshall says. “It could very well mean your monthly payment on a much lower-priced house is almost equivalent to the home that you’re in right now.”

In an area with a very low cost of living, do some digging to make sure you understand what to expect from the municipality. Are the streets and sidewalks maintained? How is garbage collected? Is the fire department responsive?

“I had one client who had a beautiful home on the Mississippi Gulf Coast,” says Ralph Bender, a CFP in Temecula, California. “I said, ‘Wow, you must like it, you basically pay no taxes down there,’ and he said ‘Yes, but you get no services either.’”

Weigh the current price of upkeep

Keeping your house could mean maintaining a big yard, replacing an old roof and managing a second-story primary bedroom into your later years. Selling gives you a chance to downsize your responsibilities and look for something that makes it easier to age in place.

“You have people with these four- and five-bedroom houses that no longer have kids staying with them,” Gottshall says. Moving to a home with less to clean and fewer stairs can make it easier to stay in your home long term.

Think about family

You don’t necessarily have to move closer to loved ones — but it’s helpful. Bender recalls a client who moved with his wife to South Carolina because they liked to golf. When the client died, his wife moved back to California because she didn’t know anyone in the area.

“There’s got to be a support network for the family,” Bender says. A community, he says, encourages social participation and contributes to overall longevity.

Test-drive the location

If you’re buying in a new city, visit in every season to ensure you like the area year-round, even in the snow or blazing sun. Vacation there if you can.

“Every area has its negatives,” Bender says. “You have to find out what they are before you move there and be prepared to deal with them.”

Hazel Secco, a CFP in Hoboken, New Jersey, remembers clients who moved from New Jersey to North Carolina and found that the lifestyle wasn’t what they expected. “I think they were visualizing and thinking about the difference theoretically, but I don’t think they fully grasped the implications,” Secco says. “They had to come back after selling the North Carolina [house], so it just ended up costing so much more.”

This article was written by NerdWallet and was originally published by The Associated Press.

The article Selling Your Home Could Boost Your Nest Egg — But Is It Worth It? originally appeared on NerdWallet.

Congratulations. You’re entitled to a piece of the $418 million Realtor settlement fund.

But don’t expect a big windfall.

Since you will be among 21 million other Americans who are part of the “settlement class,” the amount per seller — after deducting attorneys’ fees — could be as low as $13.

That’s a pittance compared with the $18,000-$22,000 commission Southern California sellers typically pay buyers’ agents — on top of what they paid their own agents.

“It’s not going to be a lot of money,” said Jack Miller, president and chief executive of Orange County-based consulting firm T3 Sixty. “It’s not really a financial thing. The rules changes are the bigger deal here.”

See also: Accused of price-fixing, Realtors talk change at annual convention in Anaheim

The size of the seller payout is one of four key takeaways from the 107-page settlement reached this month between plaintiffs in more than 20 class-action lawsuits and the National Association of Realtors.

Homeowners and their attorneys argued in federal lawsuits across the nation that the decades-old practice of requiring sellers to post compensation offers for buyer agents amounted to price-fixing, keeping the 5-6% commission rate artificially high.

NAR called those claims meritless and vowed to appeal.

Faced with protracted litigation, NAR decided to settle on behalf of its 1.5 million members and more than 200 Realtor-affiliated groups named as defendants.

Under the settlement, announced March 15, NAR agreed to pay $418 million, or less than a quarter of the $1.8 billion a Kansas City jury order it to pay Missouri home sellers in October.

In addition, the trade group agreed to revise its commission rules, dropping the requirement that sellers post offers of compensation in a listing database called an MLS or multiple listing service.

Some billed the agreement as an “earthquake” that’s likely to topple the standard 6% commission rate.

A senior fellow for the Consumer Federation of America predicted commissions could fall as much as 30% over the next few years as buyer agents compete for business.

Some real estate professionals pushed back, denying that commissions will fall much, if at all.

One industry blogger called the settlement a “total victory for NAR,” arguing things will change little.

The settlement must win court approval before becoming effective, possibly in July.

Here are key takeaways from that settlement.

1. Buyers and their agents must sign a contract

While most home sellers sign listing agreements with their agents, only about a fifth of California buyers sign contracts, according to a California Association of Realtors estimate.

Under the settlement, Realtors and buyers must enter into a written agreement before the buyer can tour any homes. The contract must specify the amount or rate of agents’ compensation.

The amount of compensation can’t be an open-ended phrase like, “whatever amount the seller is offering the buyer’s agent.”

See also: Realtor associations deluged with ‘copycat’ commission lawsuits

Agents also can no longer say their services are free unless they’re actually working pro bono.

“It’s going to be a different game,” said Art Carter, chief executive of the California Regional Multiple Listing Service, which covers most of Southern California. “For the first time, buyers and their agent are going to be under contract for the entirety of their relationship, and that discussion is going to happen up front.”

CRMLS General Counsel Edward Zorn called the mandatory buyer contracts “the change that’s going to impact the consumer the most.”

2. How buyer agents get paid will be up for grabs

The settlement doesn’t spell out how buyer agents get paid, so it’s possible sellers will continue to pay buyer’s commissions — or that some sellers will pay buyer commissions while some buyers will pay their own fees.

While the settlement prohibits offers of buyer-agent compensation on the MLS, sellers still can use the MLS to make offers of “concessions,” which buyers can use to pay closing costs, pay for repairs — or to pay their broker fees.

Listing agents also can still make compensation offers by any means outside the MLS — such as on their own websites.

Industry officials are hoping federal lending rules will be changed, allowing buyers to use part of their mortgage to pay their broker fees.

Zorn believes some buyers may include a request in their purchase agreement asking the seller to pay their broker fees.

“Now the buyer and the seller are negotiating how the buyer agent gets paid,” he said.

Since current rules prevent veterans receiving VA loans from paying commissions, the Department of Veterans Affairs also will need to revise those regulations.

Miller, the T3 Sixty CEO, predicted some buyers will face a difficult period as the industry goes through a transition.

“Consumers, especially first-time homebuyers (and) lower-income consumers … are struggling just to get the down payment together,” Miller said. “To place the additional cost or burden on them of paying an agent for representation may make homeownership totally unattainable for them.”

3. Will commissions really drop?

Industry insiders challenge media reports that commission rates or home prices are about to fall because of the settlement.

Rancho Cucamonga agent Laurel Starks was rankled by headlines like “Homebuying’s 6% commission is gone.”

“Blatantly false narratives have been published by mainstream media,” Starks said in an email. “Fictional statements are being published as though they are fact.”

Some observers also question the speculation that home sellers will lower their prices since they’re saving money on commissions. Miller and others note that bidding wars over a limited supply of homes are driving up home prices, not commissions.

“We think (sellers are) going to keep the money,” Miller said. “They are going to sell their home for what the market will bear.”

On the other hand, economists and consumer advocates expect commissions to drop by as much as $30 billion a year because of increased agent competition.

Consumer advocate Stephen Brobeck believes the NAR settlement will make price-fixing much more difficult.

“Buyers as well as sellers will be able to negotiate rates, which will be more transparent,” said Brobeck, a senior fellow at the Consumer Federation of America. “Discount brokers will be empowered to compete more effectively with agents trying to maintain 5-6% rates.”

He predicted commissions will decline by 20-30% over the next several years, “which represents tens of billions of dollars of annual consumer savings.”

Real estate commissions total about $100 billion a year, according to one industry estimate.

Rob Hahn of Las Vegas, a former industry consultant who writes a real estate blog under the moniker Notorious R.O.B., has an entirely different take on the settlement.

Asked how much commissions will drop, he said, “None. Zero. … Nothing changes.”

The settlement doesn’t eliminate seller-paid buyer commissions, he said. And it will do little to end the practice of “steering,” or directing clients to homes offering the biggest commissions.

“Agents already are out there saying, I’m just going to call that agent and say, ‘What are you guys offering?’ ”

If the listing agent says, “Nothing, we’re not required to,” he wrote, some agents will say, “Good luck selling (that house).”

“Steering is illegal, and yet, it happens all the time,” Hahn said. “I don’t know this settlement changes any of that.”

4. Who qualifies for settlement payments?

Anyone who sold a home after Oct. 31, 2019, will be eligible for a payment, so long as it was listed in an MLS and a commission was paid.

Sellers should receive notification if they’re entitled to a payment.

More than 21 million homes sold in that period, NAR figures show.

Assuming legal fees consume one-third of the settlement, that leaves just under $300 million for home sellers, or just over $13 apiece.

“Homeowners will get a cup of coffee, and lawyers will get millions,” Hahn said.

The total settlement pool is expected to reach about $2 billion once payments are included from large brokerages such as Re/Max, Anywhere, Keller Williams and others still negotiating, the Consumer Federation’s Brobeck said. That would raise individual payments to $63 per seller.

“But,” Brobeck added, “the main goal of the litigation was to change industry policies and practices, and that will certainly occur.”