Mortgage rates drop; Maui fires: One year later

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Good morning,

After news that the Eras Tour Vienna shows were canceled following a foiled terror attack, Swifties are trying to shake it off. Tens of thousands of people from around the world flew in to see the show — and many are now trying to make the most of it.

About 65,000 fans were expected to pack into the stadium each night and another 30,000 or so non-ticket holders were expected to soak up the atmosphere outside.
- Americans have been flocking to her European leg as tickets —with fewer fees and better resale options— along with flights and hotels were about the same price or cheaper as US tickets last summer.
Fans gathered Thursday to trade friendship bracelets and commiserate about the cancellations. Others had dance parties and sang her songs.
THE PLOT: We also learned more about the two young men who allegedly planned the terror attack. One of them had a job at the concert venue. Here’s the latest.

Have a good one!

Mosheh, Jill, & Lauren

PS: Don’t forget to refer friends & family to subscribe to the Mo Newsletter… you could get free Mo News merch — DETAILS at the bottom of this newsletter!

📌 ON YOUR MARKS, GET SET, DEBATE TIME!

Former President Donald Trump agreed yesterday to debate Vice President Kamala Harris on ABC on September 10th. He is also offering two additional face-offs next month on FOX and NBC.

Harris has rejected the Fox offer, but will consider the additional NBC debate after September 10th. Rules are still being figured out. It’s unclear if this debate will be like CNN’s in June with mic muting and no studio audience.

The news came as Trump held a roughly one-hour press conference from his estate in Mar-a-Lago, Florida .

Trump went on to criticize Harris for not answering questions from the media (she hasn’t done an interview in 19 days), and picking a liberal running mate, among other topics.
Trumps also said she wasn’t smart enough to debate him, and was adamant that his rallies have more energy and bigger crowds than Harris—claiming that he has spoken before the largest rallies in world history. (He also claimed that his Jan. 6, 2021 rally was bigger than MLK Jr’s March on Washington).

VIBE CHECK
Now that both tickets are set, and Americans have had time to digest presidential candidate Kamala Harris, we asked our audience on Mo News Instagram for their feelings on the state of the race with less than 90 days to go.

What we found: Mo News community Trump fans are telling us they are getting nervous, after expressing confidence about an election win before Biden dropped out. Dozens of them told us that they wished that Trump will focus on issues, and avoid distractions and personal attacks on Harris.
Meanwhile, Democrats said they are excited for the first time in this race, and optimistic Harris can win in November. Undecided voters mainly said they were stuck between feeling that Harris is too far left and Trump is too far right.
- Here were the general vibes: [Top row are Trump voters, Middle row are Harris voters, Bottom row are undecided voters.]. We are featuring more of your messages on our Mo News Instagram Stories.

📌 US MORTGAGE RATES DROP TO LOWEST IN 15 MONTHS

The 30-year mortgage rate fell to 6.47% Thursday — the lowest level since May of last year, after the Federal Reserve indicated that an interest-rate cut was on the table. It’s a relief for home buyers and sellers who have stayed put due to lower rates they locked in during COVID — or the lock-in effect.

THE NUMBERS
Fannie Mae reported this week that refinance applications rose by 21% from the previous week and activity jumped to the highest level since September 2022.

Where we were: Back in October, the average rate topped out at 7.9%.
Where we’re going: With a Fed interest rate cut likely next month, the housing market is coming out of its funk.

Supply please: Purchase activity edged up less than 1%. That’s because there’s still not a lot of inventory of homes for sale. That lack of supply has pushed up prices. But with lower rates, there could be more turnover soon. Homeowners who want to sell, but don’t want to give up their low interest rates, have been staying put. That could change.

And that’s good for the overall economy. Thomas Ryan, an economist at Capital Economics, said the decline in rates “should set the stage for a modest recovery in transactions in the rest of the year, providing that recession fears prove unfounded as we expect.”

📌 A YEAR AFTER MAUI FIRES, ISLAND STRUGGLES TO REBUILD

A year has passed since fires began to engulf West Maui — taking the lives of 102 people and destroying nearly 4,000 properties. They were the deadliest wildfires in modern American history and caused damages estimated at $5 billion.

Lahaina, the former capital of the Kingdom of Hawaii, was burned beyond recognition in the weeklong series of fires last August.

ROAD TO RECOVERY
Debris from 95% of the 2,200 structures destroyed in Lahaina have been cleared. However, only 47 building permits have been approved to start the rebuilding, according to Maui County.

Prior to the fires, the community, which depends on tourism, already struggled with an affordable housing crisis. It is now even worse.
- Maui has historically relied on tourism for 70% of its local economy. But this year there was about a 25% drop in tourism with visitors questioning if they should visit.
The state, its biggest power utility, and others recently reached an agreement to pay more than $4 billion to settle approximately 450 lawsuits from homeowners and businesses impacted by the wildfires, Gov. Josh Green said.
- Payments are expected to begin in mid-2025.

⏳ SPEED READ

🚨NATION

📌 New bodycam video shows moment police saw shooter just before Trump assassination attempt (CNN)

📌 RFK Jr. and his gradually disappearing campaign (NBC)

📌 Georgia State Election Board passes new rule allowing county boards to demand more information before certifying an election (CNN)

📌 Tropical Storm Debby makes second U.S. landfall in South Carolina (NBC NEWS)

📌 Romanian oligarch hired Hunter Biden to influence US policy, special counsel says (ABC NEWS)

🌎 AROUND THE WORLD

📌 Hindus in Bangladesh facing mob violence, some trying to flee to India (MO NEWS)

📌 Russia seeks 15-year sentence for US-Russian ballerina (BBC)

📌 Strong earthquake with 7.1 magnitude hits off southern Japan, sparking new concern over major quakes (CBS NEWS)

📌 Why Ukraine is now invading Russian territory (MO NEWS)

🎧 A breakdown of the latest global threats, the war in Ukraine and how a Chinese invasion of Taiwan would take place on the latest edition of the Mo News Interview podcast. (MO NEWS INTERVIEW | Apple | Spotify)

📱BUSINESS, SCIENCE & TECH

📌 A look at Boeing’s new outsider CEO (CNBC)

📌 Nasdaq, S&P 500 end 2% higher in rally after US jobless data (REUTERS)

📌 Covid fell to 10th leading cause of death in the U.S. last year, down from 4th (NBC NEWS)

📌 Paramount cuts 15% of US staff, writes down $6 billion in latest sign of TV troubles (CNN)

🎬 SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT

📌 Pregnant Cardi B details "freak accident" that nearly left her paralyzed (E!)

📌 A 16-year-old is set to become the youngest male U.S. track Olympian in history (NBC NEWS)

📌 Noah Lyles reveals covid diagnosis after winning bronze in 200 meters (ESPN)

📌 Steph Curry, LeBron James dominate as Team USA pulls off miraculous comeback to advance to gold medal game (FOX NEWS)

🎉 CHEERS TO THE FREAKIN WEEKEND

WHAT WE’RE WATCHING: Mosheh: Veep reruns ~ HBO; Jill: Bad Monkey ~ Apple TV.
WHAT WE’RE READING: Mosheh: Our Home (Kids book)~ Lori Sugarman-Li; Jill: The Emotion I Didn’t Expect as a New Parent: Regret ~ Miguel Macias for the NY Times.
WHAT WE’RE EATING: Mosheh: Ice cream from Brooklyn Farmacy & Soda Fountain (last hoorah in Brooklyn) ; Jill: Claudio's Waterfront in Greenport