What makes them stand out is that you can reach people who are online at the same time as you, so there is no need to wait for the other person’s response. The authors want to keep the community a community, where people know each other not only in a superficial way, but feel like they want to visit the website frequently and keep coming back to talk to their new friends.Ĭhat Avenue was launched in 1999 and the layout is pretty traditional and simple.
It’s a great tool to let you get acquainted with strangers, to learn new things about people, to get to know those that share your interests or views, and it’s easy to find those who are similar to you! But Chat Avenue is more than just a chatting site. All races, genders and nationalities are welcome and can be sure to not be discriminated against. The general requirement that applies to all of them is that you need to be at least 13 years old to participate. You can choose whichever way you want to become one of the users - make use of your webcam, microphone or neither and stick to texting!Įach chat room has a different set of rules, so be sure to read them, as that’s crucial in letting each room stay what it is. You either get a response or you find a new user. You can have private conversations with people that are chosen for you in a chat roulette style - so you are randomly paired with a stranger and you can either skip and keep skipping until you find someone you want to talk to or chat with this person and see where the conversation goes! You don’t need to wait and wonder if the other person likes you. The site has a very inviting vibe, seemingly focusing on keeping it safe and fun for everyone. NAR expects existing-home sales to contract by 9% in 2022.The feature that makes them stand out is their selection of chat rooms made specifically for chosen demographics and the range is wide, being based on people’s gender, preference, occupation (college), hobbies or the device being used. Households need about $1,000 more just to be able to maintain the same level of consumer spending as one year ago and to be able to afford a higher mortgage. The decline in consumer spending and overall economic growth portends a decline in housing demand in the coming months, as households are hit with the triple whammy of rising mortgage rates that are expected to keep rising as the Fed clamps down on inflation, sustained house price increases amid tight supply, and higher inflation. What does this mean for the housing market?
On the whole, housing and utilities and investment spending on residential and non-residential structures accounted for a higher share of GDP at 19.3%, up from 19% in the prior quarter.
Investment in non-residential structures (commercial buildings) was down 0.9%, with the decline likely coming from office construction which is still suffering from an elevated vacancy rate. March housing permits and starts figures indicate that housing construction is ramping up for multi-family housing (which is good news for renters) but declining for single-family housing (not good news for potential homeowners). On the positive side, investment in residential structures bucked the decline and is up 2.1% on an annualized rate. Some of this increase in spending for recreational services and for accommodations may have been planned before inflation hit, but it is not likely that these will be sustained if consumers are cutting back on essential items. However, spending on services like housing and utilities increased from the prior quarter (+15% q/q) and transportation (5% q/q), recreational services (5% q/q), and food services and accommodations (10% q/q). The personal savings rate further decreased to 6.6%, which is already below the pre-pandemic rate of 9.7% in 2020 Q1. My projection is that with consumer spending taking a hit from inflation, the Fed will stick to its plan to raise interest rates to control inflation.Ĭonsumers are already pressed to dip into their savings as well. This is a clear indication that consumers are tightening their belts with inflation eroding purchasing power. However, consumers cut back on essential basic items like gasoline (-18% q/q), clothing (-8% q/q), food /beverage (-4% q/q), and furnishings/household equipment (-6% q/q). What is more alarming is that even as personal consumption spending rose at a faster pace of 2.7%, the increase was due to one-off purchases like recreational vehicles (13.4% quarter over quarter or q/q) and motor vehicles and parts (14.3% q/q). The economy, measured by gross domestic product, contracted at an annual rate of 1.4% in the first quarter of 2022.