Shenandoah Valley Business Journal

A Byrd Newspapers Publication

Volume 16, No. 9, July 26, 2016

Keeping An Eye On Coverage

Spotlight

on:

s Busines ce Insuran Page 7

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SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

Inside This Issue The Shenandoah Valley Business Journal is a monthly publication of Rockingham Publishing Company, Inc., 231 S. Liberty St., Harrisonburg, VA 22801.

Editorial Staff

Focus Section: Business Insurance ■ Outdated Coverage Can Cost Out Of Pocket........Page 7

Other Business News ■ Local Ledger..................................................Page 10

Editor and General Manager: Peter S. Yates

By mail: Shenandoah Valley Business Journal P.O. Box 193 Harrisonburg, VA 22803 By email: svbjnews@dnronline.com By fax: 433-9112

Columns

Staff Writers: Vic Bradshaw, Tony Brown

■ Investments by Matthew Frakes.....................Page 3 ■ Financial Focus with Gannon Irons.................Page 4

Contributing Photographers: Austin Bachand

HARRISONBURG — Dynamic Aviation has hired Edward Lenker as its controller.

A licensed certified public accountant in Pennsylvania, Lenker has 25 years of experience in financial and accounting management. He previously was the corporate controller for Digital Intelligence Systems LLC and managed AES Corp., CyberTrust and Sprint financial teams.

Lenker’s specialty is the development and implementation of systems to provide accurate, timely financial reports.

Dynamic Aviation, headquartered in Bridgewater, provides special-mission aviation services to governmental and commercial clients around the world. It employs about 600 people and operates

Contact us

By phone: 574-6267 (news) 574-6229 (ads)

Managing Editor: Jerry Blair

Lenker Hired As New Controller

Harrisonburg, Va.

■ Business Law with Jared Burden.....................Page 5

from 18 locations in five countries.

— Vic Bradshaw

Chenery On Research Authority HARRISONBURG — Carrie Chenery, executive director of the Shenandoah Valley Partnership, has been appointed by Gov. Terry McAuliffe as a member of the Virginia Biotechnology Research Park Authority, according to a news release.

The authority — which by statute includes the Virginia secretary of commerce and trade, mayor of Richmond and president of Virginia Commonwealth University — consists of nine to 15 members that oversee the life sciences research park adjacent to the See MOVERS, Page 10

Immerge Has Grand Opening HARRISONBURG — Immerge Technologies, along with other building tenants, celebrated the grand opening of their new offices in the Hess Building, 139 N Liberty St., Harrisonburg.

The new location for Immerge, which is McClung Co.’s web development division, marked its opening June 23.

“Our new location offers a professional environment where we can foster our client relationships and grow the team,” Tom Trevillian, McClung chairman, said in a press rlease. “We’re excited for what McClung and Immerge have in store for this year and beyond.”

Immerge is a full-service web design and software development agency founded in 2004 and has been a part of McClung since 2010.

McClung, based in Waynesboro, serves

On The Cover: Austin Bachand / DN-R Greg Rion talks about his poultry house at his Elkton farm that had to be rebuilt after a fire in May 2010.

the graphic communication industry.

— Staff Reports

R.E. Michel Moves To High Street HARRISONBURG — R.E. Michel, which provides heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration parts and equipment to local contractors, is having a new warehouse and showroom built at 1811 S. High St. Modern Buildings Inc. has been contracted to erect a pre-engineered metal building at the site just north of Stoneburner Inc., according to a building permit approved by the city. The value of the work is estimated at $900,000.

The permit lists the size of the structure at 2,250 square feet for its parts and See SCENE, Page 4

Harrisonburg, Va.

SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

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Do You Know Where Your Retirement Savings Are?

B

y the time many of us reach our 40s and 50s, we’ve accumulated a slew of retirement accounts: A traditional IRA here, a rollover IRA there, and two or three scattered 401(k) accounts left in the plans of former employers.

As the accounts add up, it becomes extremely difficult to get a clear picture of your overall retirement preparedness.

If this sounds familiar, you may benefit from consolidating your retirement accounts into one central account. Consolidating accounts can help you make sure your savings are invested appropriately for your overall goals, track the performance of your holdings and, in some cases, discover more investment choices and incur lower fees.

Streamlining the account structure of your retirement savings has many potential benefits: Comprehensive investment strategy.

Over time, your investment objectives and risk tolerance may have changed.

Thus, it can be difficult to maintain an effective retirement investment strategy — one that accurately reflects your current goals, timing and risk tolerance — when your savings are spread over multiple accounts.

Once you begin the consolidation process, you can strategize potential investment options to match your current goals and objectives.

Investments Matthew R. Frakes

Greater Flexibility Often, 401(k) plans, other employer-sponsored retirement programs and even some IRAs have limited investment menus. Some IRAs may offer greater control, more options or expanded diversification when compared to employer plans and other IRAs, but on the other hand they might not offer the same options.

Whether a particular IRA’s options are attractive will depend, in part, on how satisfied you are with the options offered by your former or new employer’s plan.

Simplified Tracking It is easier to monitor your progress and investment results when all your retirement savings are in one place.

By consolidating your accounts, you will receive one statement instead of several, which will cut down on endless amounts of monthly statements from multiple plans.

vestment charges.

Generally speaking, both employer-sponsored qualified plans and IRAs have plan or account fees. Although fees associated with an IRA may be higher than those associated with an employer plan, consolidating multiple IRAs may reduce your overall expenses.

Penalty Tax-Free Withdrawals

Generally IRA owners can take distriReducing the number of accounts butions penalty tax-free once they attain may impact account fees and other inSee RETIREMENT, Page 6

Monitoring Costs

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Tuesday, July 26, 2016

SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Harrisonburg, Va.

Act Today To Avoid Financial Regrets Tomorrow

R

egrets? I’ve had a few.” – Frank Sinatra.

Mr. Sinatra, one of the most famous entertainers of the 20th century, did things his way, but he was also familiar with remorse. He’s not alone, of course. We all deal with regrets – and financial ones are among the most troublesome.

Here are the leading financial regrets, according to a recent survey by Bankrate.com, along with some suggestions for avoiding them: ■ Not saving for retirement early enough: This was the top regret expressed by survey respondents. Saving and investing early for retirement offers you two key benefits.

First, the more time you give growth-oriented investments, the greater their growth potential. And second, by saving and investing for retirement early in your career, you will likely need to put away less money each year than you would if you waited until, say, your 40s or 50s.

So, if you aren’t already doing so, contribute as much as you can afford to your IRA and your 401(k) or similar employer-sponsored plan. And increase your contributions every time your salary rises.

■ Not saving enough for emergency expenses: You can’t plan for all expenses. Your furnace might die, your car may need a major repair, you may incur a sizable doctor’s bill: the list goes on and on.

If you don’t have the money available to meet these costs, you might be forced to dip into your long-term investments.

That’s why it’s important to maintain an emergency fund, containing three to six months’ worth of living expenses, in a liquid, low-risk account.

■ Taking on too much credit card debt: If you don’t overuse your credit cards, they can be handy and helpful, in many ways. Try to keep a lid on your credit card debt, keeping in mind that your debt payments reduce the amount of money you have available to invest for your long-term goals, such as a comfort-

Financial Focus Gannon Irons

able retirement.

■ Not saving enough for children’s education: This may be perhaps the most difficult regret to address, after all, it’s not easy to save for your own retirement and simultaneously put money away for your children’s college educations. However, if you can afford to save for college, try to do so in as advantageous a manner as possible.

■ Buying a bigger house than you can afford: If you tie up too much money in

mortgage payments, you will have less to contribute to your various retirement accounts.

And while home equity certainly has some value, it generally does not provide you with the same liquidity — and probably not the same potential for growth and income — as an investment portfolio that’s appropriate for your needs and risk tolerance. So, think carefully before purSee FINANCIAL, Page 8

Warehouse At 16,470 Square Feet Scene

FROM PAGE 2

showroom area and 16,470 square feet of warehouse space.

Inquiries about the project at the company’s office at 26 Pleasant Hill Road were directed to corporate headquarters in Glen Burnie, Md. Multiple messages seeking comment were not returned.

A sign in the window of the local office lists the building as being for sale or lease.

It’s a 6,532-square-foot structure on a 0.58acre lot.

— Vic Bradshaw

Shencorp Honored For Work HARRISONBURG — Roofing services provider Shencorp Inc. has been honored by Firestone Building Products Co. with the company’s 2016 Partner in Quality Award for its excellence in installing roofing systems.

Shencorp, a Harrisonburg company, is one of 133 companies in the United States, Canada and Mexico to receive the award.

Winners must have met specific quality cri-

teria, installed a minimum number of warranted roof installations over the last five years, and maintain at least 1 million square feet of Firestone roofing products under warranty.

— Vic Bradshaw

Farm Credit Adds Three To Staff HARRISONBURG — Farm Credit of the Virginias has hired three new loan assistants for its local processing center to help farmers and ranchers apply for and obtain financing, according to a news release.

Jessie Deaver previously helped clients apply for loans as a personal banker for Wells Fargo & Co. and Sun Trust. She attended Kansas State University.

Before joining Farm Credit, Jessica Houff worked as a member services representative at DuPont Community Credit Union. She attended Oklahoma State University and is studying agribusiness from Casper College in Casper, Wyo. See STAFF, Page 11

Harrisonburg, Va.

SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

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Why Your Contract Isn’t Half A Page

W

e often hear of a world gone by where people negotiated deals with real money at stake and then stood up at the table and shook hands — and that was it. An “oral contract.”

We also hear of the oral contract’s close cousin, the “one-page contract,” or its cute baby sibling, the “half-page contract.”

It’s true that you don’t need too many things to have a contract. Stripped to its bare essentials, all that’s required are offer, acceptance, consideration, and an intention to be bound. Courts will enforce a contract that has all of these elements even if the words were spoken to the wind.

It’s pleasant to think about being able to trust another person to stick to an oral contract over time. Sometimes, many times perhaps, such trust is completely deserved. You’ve known the person or company for years. Past is prologue. Everything will work out fine.

What can’t be trusted is the quality of memory. The issue often becomes what exactly was said. Was it FOB origin or FOB destination? Black or gray? $4500 or $5400? Other times the argument is about what was meant by what was said.

“Do you really think I said yes to that?

Come on, no one would have said yes to that.”

To me, the moment a deal is struck is sort of a magic moment. Think about it.

It’s a moment when two different parties with different objectives, approaching the table from opposite directions and leaving the table in opposite directions, meet at a point in time — like the docking of two capsules in the vastness of space.

It’s too special a thing to be left to vagaries of memory.

This is not something I get pressure on every day. I have the great fortune of working with forward-thinking clients who already understand that it’s not 1893. No client has told me lately that they just want to make a deal on their complex commercial transaction by a handshake over coffee.

These days, in small business, it’s a matter of the how much is to be written

down. And so the discussion of contracts

the other party, lawyers, juries, judges,

Business Law Jared Burden

centers on the question of how much will the gravity of the allure of the prototypical “half-page contract” pull you in the direction of brevity — brevity that might throw the contract, for all practical purposes, back into the mosh pit of imperfect memories, shifting motivations, and subsequent developments.

A legal contract is not a document for the ages, like a Hemingway novel. But the journey of reading it and understanding it surely needs to be made as easy as possible.

That’s why I completely understand why in many cases “plain English” is strongly preferred. Sometimes it’s required — securities prospectuses filed with the federal government must be in “plain English.”

It all comes down to what is meant by “simplicity” in a given situation.

And that takes us to why, nine times out of 10, you enter into a commercial contract in the first place. To be sure, you do it as a reference when things are moving along smoothly and you’re wondering, for example, what you need to do at the closing of the deal. But you also do it because you might not always be shaking hands and smiling.

In some ways, this is the only reason for a contract: dropping a piling deep into the bedrock so that when the sands shift and the mud starts flowing you still have a building that’s standing.

Hopefully, things will never go south in a deal, but when they do, everyone (you,

regulators — whoever) will be focused on the paper to answer the very first question, “What did the parties agree to?”

You want there to an inescapable, clear, precise answer. The opposite of

vague.

Believe it or not, in a good 32-page contract, the lawyer who wrote it was probably striving for clarity and precision. This means that when writing a sentence like — Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Agreement, the parties agree that should the Required Documents (as defined in Section 6.3.2) not be delivered to the Buyer prior to the Document Delivery Date (as defined in Section 4.2.3), Buyer shall have the right, in its sole and absolute discretion, to terminate this Agreement, and the parties shall have no further obligations to each other under this Agreement, ” — the lawyer is actually being precise.

If you are the buyer of a strip center and you didn’t get the “Required DocuSee CONTRACT, Page 11

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Assets In IRA Are Always Accessible Retirement

FROM PAGE 3

age 59½.

Qualified plan participants between the ages of 55 and 59½, once separated from service, may be able to take penalty tax-free withdrawals from the qualified plan.

Clear Required Minimum Distributions Once you reach age 70½, having fewer retirement accounts to manage can mean having fewer RMD requirements to follow.

Comprehensive knowledge of your assets. If your employer-sponsored retirement plan is terminated or abandoned (an “orphan plan”) or is merged with or transferred to a retirement plan of another corporation after you leave, it may be difficult to locate the plan administrator to request a distribution of your benefits or to change investments.

By contrast, assets in an IRA are always accessible if you want to change your

investment strategy or need to take a distribution.

There are of course, some situations where you may not want to consolidate.

For example, while many qualified plans allow for loans, you cannot take a loan from an IRA. Assuming your qualified plan allows a loan once you’ve left the company (a very rare occurrence), it’s worth noting you will not be able to take out a loan once you roll over a qualified plan into an IRA. The case for consolidating your accounts only grows more compelling with time. By simplifying your retirement account structure, you can have a clearer picture of your financial plan and potentially expand your investment choices.

Article Written By: Wealth Management Systems Inc. and MSSB, courtesy of Matthew R. Frakes, Harrisonburg financial adviser. Contact Matthew at 540-438-7909, or online at www.morganstanleyfa.com/thefrakesgroup.

Harrisonburg, Va.

SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

7

Outdated Coverage Can Cost Out Of Pocket

By VIC BRADSHAW Daily News-Record

Austin Bachand / DN-R

Greg Rion talks about his poultry house at his Elkton farm that had to be rebuilt after a May 2010 fire. Because he’d upgraded the facility without adjusting his coverage to reflect that, he had to pay $50,000 more than his insurance gave him to rebuild the facility.

HARRISONBURG — When his turkey house burned on May 21, 2010, Greg Rion knew he had insurance coverage.

What he didn’t realize until weeks later was that he didn’t have enough to cover all his losses.

The Elkton resident said he received $250,000 for the loss of his poultry house — what it originally cost to build — but he’d spent money upgrading the facility and hadn’t adjusted his coverage. A replacement house cost him $300,000.

“The real problem with insurance is keeping up with the values,” he said.

“As a property owner, you need to keep in tune with what it would take to replace your business. Every couple of years I look at my policy, get with my insurance guy, make sure I’m on track.”

That, however, was only part of his loss. He hadn’t bought coverage for loss of income, so he had to cover his bills

himself.

“That poultry house was so big that by the time you line up all the contracts [lost], there was a long period there where I didn’t have any income,” Rion said. “But the bank still expects its payments, and you still have to pay taxes.”

Rion’s case isn’t unusual, local insurance industry professionals said, as many business owners don’t have the level of coverage they need to survive a catastrophic loss. What’s more, many also don’t have certain types of liability coverage and could be exposed to expensive lawsuits as a result.

“My suggestion to a business owner is to work with an agent that will help you identify what’s at risk, not take your existing policy and give you a quote off that,” said Steve Kemp, commercial and farm underwriting manager for Rockingham Group, the Harrisonburg company that underwrote Rion’s insurance. “Things change over See COVERAGE, Page 8

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SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

Harrisonburg, Va.

Raising Limits Important For Owners Coverage

FROM PAGE 7

time, and you’re paying his or her salary. Have them help you examine what is and isn’t covered, and ask a lot of questions.”

Raining Liability Raising limits or buying co-insurance to cover the actual value of what’s insured is important for more business owners, Kemp said, even if that means accepting a higher deductible. Though he had no firm data, he estimated that at least 1 in 10 customers is disappointed with the loss settlement after filing a claim.

“What’s important in business insurance,” Kemp said, “is that you’re able to continue the business after the loss.”

That’s also where loss of income coverage comes in. Having the money to replace the loss doesn’t do much good if a business goes under before it can reopen.

Coverage for flood and earthquake damage is commonly excluded in property insurance, Kemp said, and things

like spoilage from equipment breakdowns aren’t always part of base products. Business owners, therefore, have to ask for coverage if they think they’re at risk.

Troy Suter, commercial insurance manager for Harrisonburg-based LD&B Insurance & Financial Services, said many businesses could benefit from a commercial umbrella liability policy. Purchased in increments of $1 million, the coverage would kick in if damages from a claim exceed the limits of a business owner’s automobile or general liability policy.

A severe vehicle crash, he said, could result in damage claims that exceed the $1 million limit standard for auto policies. In cases where the damage exceeds a policy’s limit, insurance companies pay their obligation and the policy holder could face huge legal bills and be on the hook for medical and other expenses if they’re sued. As long as they have skin in the game, though, they’ll cover legal bills.

“One reason to buy an umbrella policy,” said Suter, “is to think of it as a

Hammond Insurance’s English Tsumas (right) and Amy Subblet, a real estate paralegal, meet to discuss insurance on July 18.

Austin Bachand / DN-R

prepaid legal defense fund.”

It’s rare that a wreck in this area triggers a catastrophic claim, but Suter said he knows of at least two in the last three years in which a business’s umbrella coverage was triggered.

For a very small business, an extra $1 million of umbrella coverage could cost as little as $500 a year. He said the first meeting with an attorney in such a case could cost more than the annual

premium for the additional coverage.

Financial

regrets associated with your finances, you could well increase your satisfaction during your retirement years.

FROM PAGE 4

chasing that big house: You might be better served by scaling down your home ownership and ramping up your investments.

You can’t avoid all the doubts and misgivings you’ll encounter at various stages of your life. But if you can reduce those

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Data Exposure Companies large and small are storing various types of information in myriad ways, but many businesses lack insurance to cover a data breach.

Dain Hammond, CEO of Hammond Insurance Services, said that according See COVERAGE, Page 9

This article was written by Edward Jones for use by Gannon Irons, a financial adviser with Edward Jones at 139 N. Liberty St., Harrisonburg; 540-433-1805.

574-6229

Harrisonburg, Va.

SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

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Data Breach Coverage A New Trend Coverage

FROM PAGE 8

mond said, but it can get costly for companies that handle medical or billing records.

to the National Federation of Independent Business, 55 percent of all busi- ‘Never One Size Fits All’ nesses with 50 or fewer employees have Another type of coverage becoming experienced a data breach, with half of affordable for small businesses is emthose companies being victims multi- ployee practice liability insurance. Such ple times. The average cost of a data a policy would cover a business owner if breach is $43,000. an employee claimed he were discrimiComputer hacks most often come to nated against or a customer, employee mind when people think of data breach- or vendor made a harassment claim. es, but Hammond said leaving a file The coverage started as a hedge somewhere with confidential informa- against claims by employees, Suter said, tion about customers, employees or ven- but third-party coverage is on the rise. dors also qualifies. Companies can put “In may cases, it’s literally the legal policies and procedures in place to re- defense that is the most expensive comduce their exposure. ponent of an employee practice liability Data breach coverage is an emerging claim,” he said. “In some cases they’re trend in the industry, Hammond said, only going after smaller amounts, but and has “really blown up” in the last defense costs, that’s what can get out three or four years. Hammond of control. You can almost purInsurance agents try to conchase it as a defensive move at “Liability vince clients to take the coverthat point.” age on new policies, but many insurance Hammond agreed, saying business owners who simply that even defending an unsuboften is more renew their insurance haven’t stantiated allegation can be important added the coverage. than property very costly.

A data breach, Suter said, Claims are filed against insurance.” involves two types of expenses. about 10 of his company’s A company must notify those roughly 5,000 clients annually, — STEVE KEMP exposed of the breach and often ROCKINGHAM he said, and some customers provide services, such as credit GROUP assume they’re covered but armonitoring, to help them make en’t. sure the leaked information The cost can be relatively isn’t being used by criminals, small, ranging from as little and it is liable for the cost of theft aris- as $50 a year for a very small business ing from the breach. to $3,500 annually for a 300-employ“Liability insurance often is more im- ee company, and Hammond said it’s a portant than property insurance,” Kemp worthwhile investment. said. “If you’re violating privacy, you’ve “It’s a thousand times more likely to got a real risk to continuity of business.” happen to a small business than a fire,” Once bought exclusively by large and he said, “but all companies have fire inmedium-sized companies that could jus- surance and few have this.” tify the cost of data breach coverage, The key to getting the coverage a Suter said, policies are available that business needs, the insurance profesreflect the exposure of a small business. sionals said, is to work closely with an “That coverage,” he said, “has become agent to determine what risks exist and more and more available to smaller and the level of exposure in each instance, smaller and smaller businesses from an decide which risks should be insured, economic standpoint.” and assess changes that can be made to Coverage for a very small business reduce risk. could cost as little as $50 a year, Ham“It’s a matter of working with some-

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Austin Bachand / DN-R

Greg Rion, whose poultry house burned in May 2010, said that he checks his insurance policy every couple of years to make sure everything is on track. one you trust, talking through the issues, asking questions to try to arrive together at the best solution,” Suter said. “Especially in business insurance,

it’s never one size fits all.”

Contact Vic Bradshaw at 574-6279 or vbradshaw@dnronline.com

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SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

Previously Served Movers

Local Ledger

FROM PAGE 2

VCU Medical Center in Richmond.

The 34-acre complex contains more than 60 private and nonprofit companies, research institutes, state and federal laboratories, Chenery assumed leadership of the Shenandoah Valley regional economic development organization in March 2015. She previously served as Virginia’s assistant secretary of agriculture and forestry and worked for the Virginia Economic Development Partnership.

— Vic Bradshaw

Crossroads Gets Board Member HARRISONBURG — Dustin Roderick has joined the board of trustees for Crossroads to Brain Injury Recovery, according to a news release.

Roderick, a certified public accountant, is a senior associate with Brown Edwards & Co. The Harrisonburg resident’s experience includes providing accounting services for nonprofits, and he’ll serve as the organization’s treasurer.

Crossroads to Brain Injury Recovery helps people affected by brain injury in five Virginia counties improve their Roderick quality of life and become more independent and productive. Its services include case management, community support, positive behavior support facilitation, information, and professional consultation.

— Vic Bradshaw

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Harrisonburg, Va.

Central Valley Area Home Sales Median Price Harrisonburg Rockingham Shenandoah Page Augusta Staunton Waynesboro

June 2016

June 2015

Pct. Change

$159,000 $222,000 $168,250 $167,250 $215,000 $135,000 $162,400

$163,000 $199,900 $167,500 $128,000 $229,900 $173,825 $188,450

-2.45% 11.06% 0.45% 30.66% -6.48% -22.34% -13.825

Days On Market Harrisonburg Rockingham Shenandoah Page Augusta Staunton Waynesboro

June 2016

June 2015

Pct. Change

16 32 86 134 38 82 32

30 37 105 208 58 45 74

-46.67% -13.51% -18.10% -35.58% -34.48% 82.22% -56.76%

Units Sold Harrisonburg Rockingham Shenandoah Page Augusta Staunton Waynesboro

June 2016

June 2015

Pct. Change

45 99 76 14 68 45 42

46 88 49 11 93 34 28

-2.17% 12.50% 55.10% 27.27% -26.88% 32.35% 50%

Unemployment May 2016

April 2016

May 2015

4.6% 3.4% 3.4% 4.5% 3.3% 3.6% 3.7%

3.6% 2.9% 3.0% 4.8% 3.1% 3.3% 3.5%

6.0% 4.5% 4.5% 6.5% 4.2% 4.6% 5.0%

Harrisonburg Rockingham Shenandoah Page Augusta Staunton Waynesboro

Source: Virginia Employment Commission

Labor Force Harrisonburg Rockingham Shenandoah Page Augusta Staunton Waynesboro

May 2016

April 2016

May 2015

23,289 38,854 21,241 11,514 35,815 11,693 9,778

23,734 39,607 21,010 11,431 35,717 11,690 9,783

24,231 40,897 21,480 12,056 37,437 12,104 10,131

Source: Virginia Employment Commission

Building Permits* May 2016

Sources: Funkhouser Real Estate Group; Real Estate Business Intelligence

Retail Sales (in millions) Harrisonburg Rockingham Shenandoah Page Augusta Staunton Waynesboro

May 2016

$106.5 $57.8 $37.2 $17.6 $48 $33.4 $42.9

Source: Weldon Cooper Center for Economic and Policy Studies

Harrisonburg Rockingham Page Augusta

May 2015

Permits Issued

Estimated Cost

Permits Issued

Estimated Cost

6 26 7 22

$956,315 $4.51M $845,000 $3.75M

14 53 2 19

$1.68M $12M $403,651 $3.73M

Source: censtats.census.gov/bldg/bldgprmt.shtml *Permits are for residential construction only, single- and multifamily buildings, as recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau.

SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Harrisonburg, Va.

Correct Contracts Take Some Space

Loans More Than $1.7B To Farmers

Contract

Staff

FROM PAGE 5

ments” — precisely listed in Section 4.2.3 — and they would have told you the center sits on a hazardous waste dump, wouldn’t you want it to be clear that you could walk away from the deal? Here, the buyer knows that: There is an exact list of documents, ■ He can get out of the deal in this situation, ■ No one can tell him his reasoning isn’t good enough, and ■ There is nothing else in the document that can throw his right into doubt.

Locking things down and blocking out all possible other later interpretations just takes some linguistic time and space. There’s not a whole lot of way around that. (And it shouldn’t take an experienced lawyer too much time to write it — it’s usually not her first rodeo.)

It may sound negative to say that a contract must be more than half a page because things might go wrong. But as a business lawyer, I think it’s as positive as a sunny day.

It’s there to make business easier and life easier, at the moment of the deal and down the road. In the world of small business, what could be more positive than that?

Jared Burden is an attorney practicing in business law, commercial real estate law and trademark in Virginia and the District of Columbia. He also has an outside general counsel practice.

Star Heating & Cooling Inc. Independent TRANE Comfort Specialist Sales & Service

FROM PAGE 4

Krystal Puffenbarger joins the cooperative after working as a human resources and accounting clerk for George’s Inc. She earned an associate degree in business administration from Blue Ridge Community College.

Farm Credit of the Virginias provides financing more than $1.7 billion to more than 10,000 farmers, agribusinesses and rural homeowners in parts of Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland.

— Vic Bradshaw

Credit Union Logo Wins Award HARRISONBURG — Park View Federal Credit Union has been recognized by the Marketing Association of Credit Unions for its new logo.

The association presented the local credit union with a Silver Market-

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

ing Award in the logos category. The award, presented in early June at the MACU’s annual conference in Las Vegas, recognizes outstanding marketing achievements in the industry.

— Vic Bradshaw

LD&B Buys Luray Insurance HARRISONBURG — LD&B Insurance and Financial Services has acquired Shifflett’s Insurance Services in Luray.

The company announced the deal in a news release. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.

Nancy Lee Shifflett and Carla K. Sours will continue working with LD&B from the former Shifflett’s Insurance office at 18 Second St., selling health and life insurance products.

Lorie Stoneberger will join the office to provide home and vehicle insurance.

LD&B is an independent, employee-owned company offering insurance and financial services to people, businesses and municipalities. Its more than 80 employees work out of offices in Harrisonburg, Bridgewater, Broadway, Luray, Mount Jackson, Woodstock

and Staunton.

— Vic Bradshaw

Hub Awarded For Local Impact HARRISONBURG —The Virginia Housing and Community Development Department has honored a Harrisonburg business for having a significant impact on downtown, an announcement said.

The Hub, which offers space to work to small businesses and entrepreneurs, won a Virginia Main Street Award for Outstanding Business. The award recognizes businesses that make a significant impact on a downtown area.

A sleekly renovated former manufacturing and warehouse space at 128 Bruce St., the Hub has been home to graphic designers, writers, private chefs, jewelry designers and nonprofit organizations.

The business received the award July 13 at the Virginia Main Street Downtown Intersections workshop in Staunton, according to the announcement by Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance, an effort to encourage private development in the urban center.

— Tony Brown

“SELLING THE MOUNTAIN... AND THE VALLEY”

(540) 289-6335 (800) 931-0400 www.MassanuttenRealty.com View over 2000 Properties Nick Whitelock, Realtor

540-383-9601

RE/MAX PERFORMANCE REALTY Outstanding Agents, Outstanding Results for over 24 years

2511 E Market St, Suite A • Harrisonburg, VA 22801 Phone: 540.433.7369 • 800.296.7369

• Reliable Home Comfort • Energy Saving Systems • Residential & Commercial • Get Filtered Air Up To 99.98% Clean 1169 S. High St., Harrisonburg, VA 540-433-1102 www.trane.com

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Tuesday, July 26, 2016

SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Used Hon Interactive Training Table

Harrisonburg, Va.

List Price: $ 460.00

Summer Special Pricing 48

Size: 29.5H 4D x Wx2

$75.00 Each 10 or more $60.00 Each