First Hawaiian gives $100K to Inouye Institute Fund
The Daniel K. Inouye Institute Fund, a program of the Hawaii Community Foundation, has received a $100,000 grant from the First Hawaiian Bank Foundation. The grant will support the establishment of the Daniel K. Inouye Institute.
Through the preservation and sharing of the late U.S. senator’s collection of materials spanning his career as a public servant, The Daniel K. Inouye Institute will allow future generations to learn about Hawaii’s highly regarded political leader.
The First Hawaiian Bank Foundation is the charitable arm of First Hawaiian Bank. In 2012 the foundation and bank contributed more than $2.5 million to more than 400 nonprofit organizations in Hawaii, Guam and Saipan.
Mortgage checks due to 1,413 isle residents
The National Mortgage Settlement will result in 1,413 Hawaii residents receiving checks for $1,480.
Hawaii’s $2,054,146.64 portion of the national settlement will be evenly divided among homeowners who submitted valid claims after losing their homes to foreclosure between Jan. 1, 2008, and Dec. 31, 2011.
The mortgage servicers found liable in the national settlement were Ally (formerly GMAC), Bank of America, Citi, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo.
"These checks come from a $1.5 billion payment pool we negotiated and set aside as part of the National Mortgage Settlement," said David Louie, state attorney general, in a statement. "These payments help compensate borrowers for the mortgage servicing abuse that they likely endured."
He added that the $1,480 check amount "is much higher than the minimum amount we first announced, which was $840."
Receipt of the settlement payment does not limit a borrower from seeking relief through a separate lawsuit or other claims, he said.
HEI lowers full-year earnings forecast
Hawaiian Electric Industries Inc., parent company of the electric utilities on most islands, has revised its earnings forecast based on a new Public Utilities Commission ruling.
HEI lowered its 2013 earnings-per-share guidance from its previous range of $1.58 to $1.68, to a revised range of $1.52 to $1.62, among other adjustments.
The decision was made based on a decision and order by the state Public Utilities Commission issued Friday regarding a Maui Electric Co. 2012 rate case. The PUC decision and order approved an increase in annual revenue of $5.3 million, which is $7.8 million less than the interim increase that had been in effect since June 1 of last year.
Hawaii home prices jumped in April
Prices for single-family homes in Hawaii rose 17 percent in April, the fourth-highest increase in the U.S., according to analytics firm CoreLogic.
The 17 percent increase includes distressed sales, but excluding distressed sales, the increase reached 13.3 percent.
Including distressed sales, Nevada tops the CoreLogic home-price growth chart with a 24.6 percent April-over-April increase; California is next at 19.4 percent, and Arizona is just above Hawaii with a 17.3 percent rise in home prices.
The national average increase including distressed sales was 12.1 percent, or 11.9 percent excluding distressed sales.
Only two states saw year-over-year home price declines: Alabama at 1.6 percent and Mississippi at 1.7 percent.
Bank grant goes to Waianae health center
Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center has received a $250,000 grant from the First Hawaiian Bank Foundation. The grant will support WCCHC’s capital campaign to build a new Emergency Medical Services Building.
The WCCHC recently completed the $17.9 million Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Adult Medical and Pharmacy Building. The two-story, 22,494-square-foot facility is in the midst of becoming operational this week and will be home to the center’s adult primary care medical clinic, which includes a pharmacy.
The first floor of the new building will serve as the temporary home for the center’s 24-hour emergency room during the construction of a new Emergency Medical Services Building to be completed in late 2014.
Delta to drop Memphis as hub airport
MINNEAPOLIS » Delta Air Lines said Tuesday that it will drop its money-losing hub in Memphis, Tenn., this fall, slashing flights there and eliminating 230 jobs.
It’s the outcome that was feared in small hubs like Memphis, Cincinnati and Salt Lake City when the wave of airline mergers began five years ago with Delta’s purchase of Northwest Airlines.
ON THE MOVE
Servco Lexus has named Kevin Yoneda service manager of its Servco Lexus Honolulu dealership. He joined the company in 2006 as a member of its management associate program and recently served as floor manager of Servco Subaru Waialae.
Coldwell Banker Pacific Properties has hired Aileen W. Ramos for the firm’s Kapolei office. She was previously a human resources specialist and escrow associate for Title Guaranty.
Kaiser Permanente Hawaii has hired Dr. Pawarthi Paniker to join the Hawaii Permanente Medical Group. She is a dermatologist and Mohs surgeon currently practicing at the Kona and Mapunapuna clinics.
