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HAWAII

Homebuilder plans 2 projects

A Dallas-based homebuilder plans 174 condominium villas at Ko Olina in West Oahu and 192 villas at the Waikoloa Beach Resort on the Big Island.

Sales start May 24 for the Ko Olina Hillside Villas and construction will begin in July on the Halii Kai at Waikoloa. The developments are the third and fourth Hawaii projects for a subsidiary of Centex Corp., the nation's fourth-largest homebuilder.

S&P downgrades Hawaiian Electric

Standard & Poor's Ratings Services downgraded its outlook for Hawaiian Electric Industries Inc. and its subsidiaries to negative from stable.

S&P blames a decline in Hawaiian Electric's financial condition caused by rising expenses, investments that have not recovered and a lack of rate relief. Subsidiary Hawaiian Electric Co. is seeking approval from the state Public Utilities Commission to raise base electricity charges on Oahu by about 7.3 percent.

NATION
Proposal aims at discount brokers

HOUSTON » A proposal that could reduce discounts offered by limited-service real estate brokers by requiring them to do more for clients, is up for a vote Monday by the Texas Real Estate Commission.

In a letter to the state agency, the Federal Trade Commission and the Justice Department criticized the proposed rule, which they said is anticompetitive. The agencies charged with enforcing antitrust laws, said the rule would raise prices for consumers by forcing home sellers to purchase additional services they may not want or need.

"You have the right to represent yourself in a court of law. It's kind of odd for you if don't have the right to represent yourself in the sale of your own home," said Tom Barnett, a deputy assistant attorney general in the Justice Department's antitrust division.

The target of this rule is discount, or limited-service, agents who are able to charge lower fees because they provide fewer services than traditional real estate agents.