Average US Rate on 30-Year Mortgage Falls to 3.59 Percent
WASHINGTON — Average long-term U.S. mortgage rates slid this week to their lowest level since February 2015, luring prospective purchasers during the spring home-buying season. Mortgage buyer Freddie...
View ArticleFNBC Bank Elevates Two at Ash Flat (Movers & Shakers)
Julie Seat has been hired as manager of FNBC’s Ash Flat branch. She previously managed an IberiaBank branch that closed last month. Molly Carpenter has been promoted to vice president of marketing and...
View ArticleShale Play Loan Hits Nonaccrual at Heartland Bank
Two months ago, Richard O’Brien was president and CEO of Little Rock’s Heartland Bank when he spoke about a dramatic increase in nonaccrual loans. “We’ve had a couple commercial borrowers who are under...
View ArticleMerchants & Planters Ready for 3rd Branch in Batesville
A Jackson County bank is moving to increase its presence in the neighboring $815 million-deposit Independence County market. Merchants & Planters Bank of Newport is seeking regulatory approval to...
View ArticlePlea Deal Could Be Coming in First National Bank of Lawrence County...
Do you keep wondering about that $3.9 million employee theft that First National Bank of Lawrence County discovered in 2015? So does Whispers. Things have been very hush-hush outside Walnut Ridge,...
View ArticleTandem Apartment Sales Add Up to $11.2 Million (Real Deals)
The sale of two apartment projects combined for more than $11.2 million. SC Apartments AR LLC bought the 196-unit Shorter College Gardens Apartments at 800 Beech St. in North Little Rock for $7.05...
View ArticleBear State Latest Bank Going for State Charter
Another Arkansas lender is opting to become a state-regulated institution. Bear State Bank of Little Rock, which now has a national bank charter despite its name, intends to convert to a state charter....
View ArticleBig Stipulations from Energy Security Partners Gets Cheap Lease on Land
So how do you get a 10-year lease on a big chunk of land and pay just $10 a year in rent? If the $100 deal between Energy Security Partners LLC and the Economic Development Corp. of Jefferson County is...
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Calling Out Boss Hogg (Gwen Moritz Editor's Note)
Last week, the Federal Reserve System’s Division of Banking Supervision & Regulation announced that it would develop new training to help bank examiners spot an issue that was a documented factor...
View ArticleIRS Collected Over $3.3 Trillion in FY 2015
The Internal Revenue Service last week released its 2015 IRS Data Book, which includes information about returns filed, taxes collected and other tax-related subjects. It covers the agency’s fiscal...
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Developing Your Bench (Barry Goldberg On Leadership)
One of the seminal myths in Greek mythology is the story of Apollo and his mortal son, Phaeton. I will not recount the myth here, but let’s just say that Phaeton gets promoted into a job he is not...
View ArticleBenton, Washington Counties Show Increase in Homes Sold
Northwest Arkansas showed a significant increase in building permits issued and existing homes sold in the second half of 2015 compared with the same period last year, according to the Skyline Report...
View ArticleBank of Ozarks Reports Record 1Q Net Income
Bank of the Ozarks Inc. of Little Rock on Monday reported first-quarter net income of $51.7 million, a new record, and up nearly 30 percent from the same quarter last year. The publicly traded company...
View ArticleCitizens Bank Announces $10M Low-Interest Loan Fund for Downtown Batesville
Citizens Bank of Batesville announced Tuesday the creation of a $10 million redevelopment fund to be used for low-interest loans to redevelop the historic downtown of its hometown. The locally owned...
View ArticleTech Park Board Approves Phase 1 Rental Rates
The Little Rock Technology Park Authority Board on Wednesday approved rental rates ranging from $200 to $1,100 for furnished slots at 48,264-SF of office space, which is under construction at 415 and...
View ArticleJulie Bridgforth Fills Executive Spot at Relyance (Movers & Shakers)
Julie Bridgforth has joined Relyance Bank of Pine Bluff as vice president of corporate sales and community relations. Bridgforth was previously the director of physician recruitment for Jefferson...
View ArticleZoe's Kitchen Serves $2.2 Million WLR Sale (Real Deals)
A west Little Rock restaurant weighed in at $2.2 million. 12900 Chenal Parkway LLC of Santa Monica, California, bought the Zoe’s Kitchen at its namesake address from Zoe’s Arkansas LLC of Plano, Texas....
View ArticleTaxing Times: IRS Data on Refunds
Last week we brought you information on taxes collected by the Internal Revenue Service (see IRS Collected Over $3.3 Trillion in FY 2015); this week, we focus on refunds. The IRS issued more than 119...
View ArticleDespite First Steps, ESP's Jefferson County Fuel Factory Not Set in Stone
Jefferson County taxpayers have picked up the tab for nearly $3 million worth of land, and Energy Security Partners has signed a lease to use it for building a fuel-making plant near Pine Bluff, but...
View ArticleExecutive Recruiter Cameron Smith on Assessing Assistants
Cameron Smith, originally from California, founded the executive recruitment firm Cameron Smith & Associates in 1992. The firm has gone on to become the top provider of executive talent to the...
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