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1. As Housing Costs Rise, Hotels Become Homes
Thousands of working families in the metro Atlanta area have moved into extended-stay hotels as the rising costs of rent and mortgages have priced them out, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Further complicating low-income families’ housing searches are the rental application fees that run from $75 to $100, making attempts to find housing even more expensive.
United Way of Metro Atlanta reports receiving 3,000 to 4,000 calls a year from families trying to get out of hotels. A researcher at Georgia State University estimates at least 25,000 people in the area living in hotels across the area.
“For a lot of people, it’s that or homelessness,” said Lindsey Siegel, Atlanta Legal Aid’s director of housing advocacy.
2. US Job Growth Expected To Take Turn
The trajectory of job growth entering the new year indicates a possible slowing or reversal of the pace seen in 2022, Bloomberg reports. Employers added 4.31 million jobs last year through November, and payroll projections for December anticipate another 200,000 jobs.
However, certain sectors, such as government, hospitality and leisure, and nursing still have hundreds of thousands of job openings.
The latest data from the U.S. Department of Labor shows that initial jobless claims dropped in the last week of 2022, the Wall Street Journal reports. Claims fell by 19,000 to a seasonally adjusted 204,000.
3. Labor Shortage, Rising Costs Will Stymie Hoteliers
As hoteliers enter the new year, they continue to face a number of challenges to their recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, chief among them labor shortages, recession fears and rising costs, reports HNN’s Dana Miller.
One of the top concerns for hotel owners is the rising cost of capital, both for transactions and new development.
"Construction loans to begin with have a higher interest rate because there's more risk, so we certainly see a slowdown in development but more importantly, it's going to weed out the premium projects from the weaker projects that won't get funded," Twenty Four Seven Hotels' CEO David Wani said.
4. US Trade Deficit Shrank in November
U.S. imports fell more than exports in November, resulting in its trade deficit to drop by 21% to $61.51 billion, the steepest monthly rate in almost 14 years, the Wall Street Journal reports. The decrease is another sign of a potential global economic slowdown.
U.S. imports dropped 6.4% to $313.37 billion as Americans reduced spending. Exports fell by 2% to $251.86 billion, showing a weaker demand for U.S. goods abroad.
5. UK Hospitals Move Patients to Hotels
To free up hospital beds, National Health Service hospitals in the United Kingdom are moving some patients to hotels, the BBC reports. Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire trusts are transferring patients who do not need urgent treatment.
A spokesperson for the Integrated Care Board for the three trusts said the hospitals are under a great deal of pressure.
"This temporary care facility delivered at a local hotel will help us to improve the flow of patients through our hospitals by ensuring more people can be discharged as soon as they are medically fit to leave the hospital," the spokesperson told the BBC.