Rises of Interest Rate is Affecting the Housing Affordability Essay

Rises of Interest Rate is Affecting the Housing Affordability - Essay Example As the interest rates rise, the mortgage payments amounts also escalate. This poses as an unfavourable situation for the homebuyers, and causes a decline in the housing affordability. Empirical evidence suggests that this has been the case in the years whenever the interest rates rose. When such is the situation, the homebuyers can be offered such financial products by the banking sector that they can conveniently make the home buying decision, thus supporting the housing affordability. The huge majority of Australians desire to own a home and housing assets form the leading fraction of wealth for a good number of Australians. Australian house prices have been mounting discordantly in recent times. This price growth has been well in surplus of average weekly earnings growth over the same period, and as such the ratio of house prices to average earnings is now soaring. The Australian property market is basically comprised of many markets of separate sectors and geographical locations. This is the fact that must be considered as many various forces may contribute in shifting prices in separate markets, and the overall Australian property market's price gains or falls may disguise the actual micro market price shifts. Residential housing is determined by two markedly separate sources of demand; owner-occupiers and owner-investors. Both sources of demand are determined by diverse (but connected) aspects and the payback that accrues to the owner can take a collection of shapes depending on their standing. Payback can be the accredited rent that owner-occupiers get hold of by living in a house, or it can be the takings resulting from renting out an investment property or it can be (in both cases) the capital gain that is realised upon selling of the hothirty percent of income. The level of nominal interest rates and their rate of change are major determinants of the demand for home finance, along with levels of consumer confidence. (http://www.dhw.wa.gov.au/housingstrategywa/hswa_finance.pdf) Affordability of access and servicing of payments becomes an increasing issue as interest rates rise. Any rise in interest rates is probable to upset borrowers with diminutive equity and make it further difficult for would-be first homebuyers. Simply speaking, housing finance is the system of money and credit that works to offer housing affordability. In that sense, it is quite similar to finance for any other shape of investment. The established level of interest rate also affects the demand for and supply of home finance. The customary economic conditions very much affect the interest rates, over which the housing sector has very little control. Research Questions Aims and Purpose This research paper will aim to provide an insight to the effect of a rise in interest rates on the housing affordability of Australia. The close link of these two aspects, that is the interest rate levels and the housing affordability will be proved and the various other driving forces will be identified. The historical data and figures will be used to establish the empirical trend. In addition, why such a link exists and what are the reasons that the housing affordability is connected to the prevailing levels of interest rates will be illustrated in this paper. Objectives This

ASSIGNMENT 1-POLSC 440 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

ASSIGNMENT 1-POLSC 440 - Essay Example The constituent states of Yugoslavia on the other hand were determined to ensure that they pursued their own nationalist agenda through the acquisition of complete independence from Belgrade. Many of the individuals in these states felt that they were marginalized in the Serb dominated Yugoslavia and wanted to ensure that their own interests were protected and to achieve this, they all wished to have their own independence. The war which developed as a result, especially after the coming to power of Slobodan Milosevic as the Yugoslav president, was extremely complex with many of those involved included the members of various ethnic groups either making alliances or fighting against each other to ensure that they achieved their aims and objectives, however obscure they were. When these wars finally came to an end in the late 1990s, they left the successor states of Yugoslavia in dire economic hardships from which it took them years to recover. There is wide agreement, however, that th e cause of the Yugoslav war was as a result of the development of Serbian nationalism in a state which was ethnically diverse hence the wars of self-determination that resulted. One would suggest that it was the Serbian religious mythology, extreme nationalism, and racist theories which contributed to the occurrence of the war in Yugoslavia. ... The Serbians were the dominant people within the Yugoslav federation and if this state were to collapse, then they would be the biggest losers since their influence over the other ethnic groups in the federation. After Slobodan Milosevic became the Serb leader and by default the leader of the Yugoslav federation in 1987 after a difficult struggle against more powerful member of his party, he encouraged Serb nationalism not only in Serbia but also in the other states in which large Serb communities lived (Vladisavljevic 183). When Croatia, Slovenia, and Macedonia declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1991 these three states came to be recognized at the international level and this did not sit well with the government in Belgrade. In the same year as these states declared their independence, there followed fierce fighting between the mainly Serb Yugoslavian army and Croatia in Belgrade’s attempt to hang on to some of the territories in Croatia and when this was not successful , it turned its attention to territory in Bosnia. A sign of the escalation of war took place in 1992 when the Serb army started shelling the National Library of Bosnia-Herzegovina in Sarajevo and in the process, over a million books, more than a hundred thousand manuscripts and rare books, and centuries of historical records were destroyed. Many historians who have studied this period consider this move to have been a systematic campaign of cultural eradication. In one of the events that took place during the war, Serb troops and paramilitary units descended on the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia and began shelling it besieging civilians within it. The United Nations peacekeeping mission in the town which consisted of French

The Treaty of Versailles to the rise of Nazism in Germany Research Paper

The Treaty of Versailles to the rise of Nazism in Germany - Research Paper Example The allies crafting the treaty at the Paris Peace Conference were more interested in punishing Germany than securing long lasting peace. Ironically, the Treaty of Versailles was intended to make sure Germany was rendered too weak to wage war but due to its restrictive nature served to enrage and embolden factions within the beaten nation which fanned the flames of an emerging fanaticism. Germany not only lost massive amounts of land, economic sanctions caused severe hardships to a people trying to recover from the devastation of war. The worldwide depression in the 1930’s worsened the already desperate situation. In addition, German’s greatly resented foreign troops occupying parts of their country. The German government was weakened as a consequence of the ill conceived Treaty of Versailles which allowed for a fanatical form of fascism led by Adolph Hitler to flourish in Germany following World War I. (Henig, 2010). These issues, which were instigated by the Treaty of Versailles, caused Germany to again become aggressive against its neighboring countries which started WWII. The Treaty of Versailles was designed specifically to weaken Germany in many vital areas. Large sections of German territory were taken away and given to surrounding countries. France and Poland especially received lands that had been important to the Germany economy. Germany also lost all of its worldwide outposts to various allied nations. The new country of Austria was carved from previously held German lands as was the former Czechoslovakia, now called the Czech Republic. The allies were given all of Germany’s mercantile marine ships, another severe blow to the German economy. On top of that, the Treaty required Germany to construct civilian and war ships for selected Allied countries. The Treaty also placed stringent restrictions on the Germany’s capacity to defend itself or to wage war. Germany was not permitted to possess heavy guns, tanks, armored cars, u -boats, Zepplins or airplanes, no air force of any type was allowed. The defeated nation could keep no more than one hundred thousand troops in its army and fifteen thousand sailors in its navy. Germany was forbidden by the Treaty to import materials used for war and was made to pay steep reparations to the Allied nations as well as to the territories it ceded. All types of valuables were seized to make these payments such as precious metals, building materials, vehicles and ships. On top of that cash payments were mandated on an annual basis for years to come. The Treaty also greatly diluted Germany’s transportation system. It gave control of Germany’s railroads to Poland and placed Germany’s river system, an important transportation artery at that time, under foreign management. Poland also gained free use of Germany’s northern ports. (Bell, 1986) Though the Treaty of Versailles accomplished its intended purpose by crippling Germany’s military an d economy ensuring it too weak to wage war, this tactic caused the next great world war just 20 years later. The Allied delegation in Paris assumed they had been successful in both ending the â€Å"war to end all wars† and preventing Germany from ever again waging war against its neighbors in Europe. They were tragically mistaken. The Treaty contained strong language but weak enforcement characteristics. Many military and political leaders understood this from its inception and predicted the horrific consequences. The Treaty was â€Å"the peace to end peace†

Assessment and decision making regarding depresion in dementia Assignment

Assessment and decision making regarding depresion in dementia - Assignment Example Among the signs and symptoms of dementia are despaired cognitive capabilities in memory, language, depression and poor problem-solving attention (Wang et al., 2007). The depressive nature of dementia makes it a rather delicate condition, requiring medical practitioners such as psychotherapists and physicians to make certain critical decisions regarding its management and treatment (Weiner et al., 2007). Consequently, guidelines for the evaluation of and decision-making on depression in dementia patients have since been developed. It is the prevalence, the depressive nature of dementia and its increased importance as a psychological concern in the health industry that has prompted stakeholders in psychology to establish certain guidelines for dementia evaluation and decision-making by psychotherapists (Hasegawa et al., 2005). An important aspect of these guidelines is that they conform to the ethical principles and codes of conduct most of the world’s psychological professions and associations such as the American Psychological Association. Decision-making by health care professionals while attending to depressed dementia patients is one of the core areas targeted by the guidelines. In this regard, professional conduct and endeavors by psychotherapists while making decisions on dementia treatment have been emphasized in most of the guidelines (McKellar & Gauthier, 2005). These guidelines on decision-making and engagement with dementia patients are particularly important given the role psychotherapists play in evaluating the memory changes and complaints that are characteristic of dementia (Stanley, 2008). However, the fact that most of the reduced cognitive performances occur in older people does not imply that the performance lapses are more pathological than they are physiological (Fago 2011). Instead, the decreased cognitive performances are directly proportional to the decrease in older peoples’ physiological functions (Wakisaka et al., 2003). Fortunately, psychologists are trained and equipped with skills in decision-making on dementia, supported by specialized neuropsychological tests that evaluate lapses and changes in dementia patients’ cognitive functioning (Barker, 2003). The main objective of the decision-making guidelines, however, remains the identification and specification of the most appropriate cautions, concerns and course of action for all clinicians. While engaging in decision-making on dementia treatment, psychotherapists are also advised to employ their expertise, uphold ethical values and consider patient choices and frames of mind/thought (Anthea & McCabe, 2006). In addition, various decision-making approaches such as categorical and probabilistic reasoning should be applied by psychotherapists when handling dementia patients. This paper thus explores the expertise, values, choices, probabilistic judgment and ethical engagement in decision-making for caring for depressed dementia patients. Decis ion-Making in Dementia Management Recent times have realized the replacement of the hitherto applied traditional approach of basing all medical decision-making processes on professional paternalism with more viable decision-making methods (Monahan, 2000). In the contemporary medical profession, most decisions made regarding the management of depression in dementia patie

Demand and price elasticity of demand Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Demand and price elasticity of demand - Essay Example In the case of Bordeaux, the consumers had proposed a low wine price. This implies that reducing the price of the wine will make the commodity be more affordable to the consumers (Sheffrin, B. 2003). This would increase the demand of the product thus increasing its supply. Increase in the supply of Bordeaux wine would increase the number of sales. Price elasticity of a commodities demand involves a measure that is used in economies in showing the elasticity responsiveness of the quantity of the product that is demanded towards a change in the product’s price. In this respect, it provides the percentage change of the quantity of the product that is demanded to follow a response to a change in the price. Price elasticity can be considered to be negative despite the fact that analysis would always ignore the negative sign leading to ambiguity (Peters, K. 2006). A positive price elasticity of demand occurs in a case where the products do not satisfy the law of demand. In this resp ect, the demand of the wine would be said to be inelastic when the price elasticity of demand (PED) is below one. This implies that the price changes have a significantly smaller effect on the amount of wine that is demanded. On the other hand, the demand of Bordeaux wine would be said to be elastic whenever the price elasticity of is more than one. This means that the changes in the commodities price would greatly influence the amount of the wine that is demanded. In the case of Bordeaux wine, the demand of the product could be said to be elastic. This is so because the demand of this wine is strongly affected by changes in price. Therefore, increasing the price of the product would reduce the demand of the product where as reducing the price of the product would have an effect of increasing demand of the product (Knugman, R. 2005). It is for this reason that the merchants who were contacted through The Times argue that they could only accept the wine when the price of the wine is reduced to about ?95 in 2008 for the best brands compared with the ?318 in 2007 vintage (Sage, A. & Pavia, W. 2009). These investors argue out that when the price of wine is higher than the proposed one, there would be no customers. This is a clear indication that the demand of Bordeaux wine was elastic. Part B. The amount of the wine demanded is normally a strong component of its price. A case study done to find out the quantity of the wine demanded at various price levels with all the other factors kept constant, would result into the table 1. Table 1. Demand schedule. year price Average price quantity 2002 95 95 170 133 700 2003 192 192 253 223 500 2004 141 145 190 159 600 2005 472 480 622 523 300 2006 450 450 622 536 200 2007 318 318 466 392 400 Graph 1. The graph represents the quantity of the wine that is demanded as the variable that is Independent (x-axis) and the price as the variable that is dependent (y-axis). According to the law of demand the quantity of the product tha t is demanded will always move towards the opposite price direction. This is observed in the graph above through the downward demand curve slope. When one moves along the curve, a change in the price of the wine would result into a change in the quantity that is demanded. Whenever there exists a change in the influencing factor besides price there could be a shift in the demand curve either towards the right or the left,

The influence of women's wear on American fashion and design Research Paper

The influence of women's wear on American fashion and design - Research Paper Example Donna Karan and her influence- Donna Karan’s influence was especially manifested in the sportswear designs, which came to prominence in the American fashion and design industry during the latter years of the 20th century. Other women’s wear influencers - These include Claire McCardell, Bonnie Cashen, Tina Lesser, Clare Potter, Tina Lesser as well as Emily Wilkins. These women and others are explored and the role they played in setting free the American fashion design from the strongholds of the Parisian design, with a new standards of designs, for example corsets and new girdle designs. Women’s wear has dominated the American fashion and design for a long time, and the influence they have is an important subject that designers should embrace and understand well. The American fashion industry is awash with big names from Clare McCardell to Donna Karan, among others, iconic fashion designers who have left a big mark to the industry in not just the American but also the International sphere. The following paper is an assessment of ways through which women’s wear has influenced American fashion and design. The paper will explore the following three influencing factors. Firstly, the works of Claire McCardell and their influence to the American fashion and design industry are explored. The influential work of Donna Karan is also examined. The other influences examined in detail are the influences of various women’s wear during the 1920s and the 1930s, a period when the works of big names at this time made an indelible mark to the American fashion ind ustry as well. The influence of Claire McCardell to the American fashion and design is immense. Together with other women, for example Elizabeth Hawkes, Vera Maxell and Bonnie Cashin, McCardell is recognized as one of the major icons of American fashion. Claire McCardell was a rising star during the 1930s, and Buxbaum writes of her influence

Demand and price elasticity of demand Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Demand and price elasticity of demand - Essay Example In the case of Bordeaux, the consumers had proposed a low wine price. This implies that reducing the price of the wine will make the commodity be more affordable to the consumers (Sheffrin, B. 2003). This would increase the demand of the product thus increasing its supply. Increase in the supply of Bordeaux wine would increase the number of sales. Price elasticity of a commodities demand involves a measure that is used in economies in showing the elasticity responsiveness of the quantity of the product that is demanded towards a change in the product’s price. In this respect, it provides the percentage change of the quantity of the product that is demanded to follow a response to a change in the price. Price elasticity can be considered to be negative despite the fact that analysis would always ignore the negative sign leading to ambiguity (Peters, K. 2006). A positive price elasticity of demand occurs in a case where the products do not satisfy the law of demand. In this resp ect, the demand of the wine would be said to be inelastic when the price elasticity of demand (PED) is below one. This implies that the price changes have a significantly smaller effect on the amount of wine that is demanded. On the other hand, the demand of Bordeaux wine would be said to be elastic whenever the price elasticity of is more than one. This means that the changes in the commodities price would greatly influence the amount of the wine that is demanded. In the case of Bordeaux wine, the demand of the product could be said to be elastic. This is so because the demand of this wine is strongly affected by changes in price. Therefore, increasing the price of the product would reduce the demand of the product where as reducing the price of the product would have an effect of increasing demand of the product (Knugman, R. 2005). It is for this reason that the merchants who were contacted through The Times argue that they could only accept the wine when the price of the wine is reduced to about ?95 in 2008 for the best brands compared with the ?318 in 2007 vintage (Sage, A. & Pavia, W. 2009). These investors argue out that when the price of wine is higher than the proposed one, there would be no customers. This is a clear indication that the demand of Bordeaux wine was elastic. Part B. The amount of the wine demanded is normally a strong component of its price. A case study done to find out the quantity of the wine demanded at various price levels with all the other factors kept constant, would result into the table 1. Table 1. Demand schedule. year price Average price quantity 2002 95 95 170 133 700 2003 192 192 253 223 500 2004 141 145 190 159 600 2005 472 480 622 523 300 2006 450 450 622 536 200 2007 318 318 466 392 400 Graph 1. The graph represents the quantity of the wine that is demanded as the variable that is Independent (x-axis) and the price as the variable that is dependent (y-axis). According to the law of demand the quantity of the product tha t is demanded will always move towards the opposite price direction. This is observed in the graph above through the downward demand curve slope. When one moves along the curve, a change in the price of the wine would result into a change in the quantity that is demanded. Whenever there exists a change in the influencing factor besides price there could be a shift in the demand curve either towards the right or the left,