Feds extend re-fi program

WASHINGTON » The government is giving homeowners another year to refinance their loans under a little-used program designed to help borrowers whose homes have plummeted in value.

The Home Affordable Refinance Program had been scheduled to end June 10 but will now run to June 30, 2011, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said yesterday.

The program allows borrowers who owe up to 25 percent more than their homes are worth to refinance to lower interest rates. It was originally projected to help up to 5 million homeowners with loans owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. So far, it has helped around 220,000, according to the Treasury Department.

Bulletin's Schaefers wins award

Honolulu Star-Bulletin business reporter Allison Schaefers has been chosen as one of three national winners in the annual Society of American Business Editors and Writers' Best in Business Contest.

Schaefers, 39, won in the breaking news category for under-125,000 circulation newspapers for her story titled “;The last haul,”; which provided a historic look at the last harvest at Gay & Robinson, Kauai's last sugar plantation. She was the only writer in the state to win a SABEW award for a newspaper of any size.

The other newspapers to share the award with the Star-Bulletin and Schaefers were the Sarasota (Fla.) Herald Tribune for a Ponzi scheme story and the Daily Herald in Everett, Wash., for a story about the first flight for a new Boeing aircraft. The SABEW contest draw nearly 800 entries, the second-highest total ever, from newspapers across the nation.

Schaefers' award will be presented March 20 at SABEW's three-day annual conference in Phoenix.

Hawaiian Electric changes auditors

After 30 years Hawaiian Electric Industries Inc., parent company of Hawaiian Electric Co., has changed its contracted auditor.

On Feb. 23 the audit committees of the HEI and HECO board of directors voted to dismiss KPMG LLP as the company's independent registered public accounting firm. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP was selected as its new auditor.

It had nothing to do with the company's relationship with KPMG, who it had worked with for more than 30 years, said Shelee Kimura, HEI manager for investor relations and strategic planning.

“;Just as a matter of good corporate governance, we decided to survey the market and see the options that might be available,”; she said. “;Through that process we made a decision to change our auditors to PWC.”;

AIG to sell Asian life insurer

American International Group Inc. is selling a cornerstone of its business, Asia-based life insurer AIA Group, in a government-approved $35.5 billion deal. The sale to British insurer Prudential PLC could reduce by nearly one-fifth the amount of federal bailout money still invested in struggling AIG.

But officials and analysts say it's not clear whether taxpayers will eventually recoup all the money AIG drew from a $182.5 billion rescue package the government committed to at the height of the 2008 credit crisis. In return for that package, the government got a nearly 80 percent stake in the insurer.

ON THE MOVE

The First Insurance Co. of Hawaii board of directors has elected Roger Buss vice president and chief information officer. He was previously head of the ESP project management office as well as a technology leadership partner with Tatum in Dallas and vice president of IT for Unitrin Multi Line Insurance.

Aloha Pacific Federal Credit Union has promoted Ethlyn Kanemura to branch supervisor at the Fort Street branch. Her experience includes being receptionist, teller, Waimalu branch sales associate and Fort Street senior branch sales associate.

Benchmark Hospitality International has named Michael Blaksteen director of food and beverage for Makena Beach & Gold Resort. He has 15 years' experience in the food and beverage industry and was previously an assistant food and beverage director for Hilton Waikoloa Village on the Big Island as well as for Hotel Laguna of Laguna Beach, Calif.

Hawaii Kai Retirement Community has promoted Stephanie C. Kanoa to co-manager, adding to her current title of marketing manager. She has 12 years' experience in the retail industry and was previously an associate buyer at Liberty House Hawaii.