National News

The Olympic and Paralympic sprinter is accused of premeditated murder in the Feb. 14 shooting death of his girlfriend. He says it was a horrible accident. Prosecutors say he knew what he was doing.

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Also: The U.K. issues Jane Austen postage stamps; in the U.S., biographer Paula Broadwell's promotion in the Army Reserves is suspended; it's Edward Gorey's birthday; and an anti-bullying poem goes viral.

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For the past several weeks we've been checking in on the real estate scene in different markets around the country. We're trying to get a fix on whether the market is truly starting to recover. The answer isn't simple. Even during the housing crisis, real estate is still all about location. So at first glance, buying a house in Florida right now may not sound like a solid investment, considering the state has the highest foreclosure rate in the country, according to RealtyTrac. That's not what you'll hear from Yoselyn Hollow, though. She's an owner and broker for RE/MAX Realty Team in Cape Coral, Fla., where she says, business is booming.

"We are experiencing a lot of appreciation in terms of prices in our market. Our inventory is a little low. We have about a three to four month supply, which is fantastic for sellers because obviously they have a little more equity. They can turn around and sell. Buyers? Maybe not so good as it was several years ago, when we were urging them to buy, because now they are paying a little bit more than they would have a couple of years ago," says Hollow.

Hollow says Cape Coral is experiencing a lot of investors coming into the market, including international buyers. She says Cape Coral is also seeing a lot of people who want to retire in the area. But compared to other cities in Florida, Cape Coral is a bit of an anomaly. According to the latest housing report from RealtyTrac, Florida has the highest foreclosure rate in the country -- it's two times the rate of anywhere else.

"Miami, Tallahassee, Jacksonville -- those are some of the ones that RealtyTrac had mentioned in terms of foreclosure. But Cape Coral, not so much any more. A few years ago, I would have said to you that probably 80 percent of our market was distressed. Now 80 percent of our market, if not a little bit more, is actually traditional sellers. To me it's an indication that market is a little bit behind us. Will we see short sales and will we see bank-owned properties coming in the market? Absolutely. But I think it's going to start trickling in. It's not going to come in the waves that it did a few years ago," say Hollow.

Hollow says she is very optimistic about the future of housing where she is. "Real estate always has healthy economy rebound and I don't think it's going to change. We're going to continue to see the prices increase. We're still going to continue to see people coming and retiring and moving to Florida, and that creates markets in and of itself. I'm highly optimistic," says Hollow.

For the past several weeks we've been checking in on the real estate scene in different markets around the country. We're trying to get a fix on whether the market is truly starting to recover. The answer isn't simple. Even during the housing crisis, real estate is still all about location. So at first glance, buying a house in Florida right now may not sound like a solid investment, considering the state has the highest foreclosure rate in the country, according to RealtyTrac. That's not what you'll hear from Yoselyn Hollow, though. She's an owner and broker for RE/MAX Realty Team in Cape Coral, Fla., where she says, business is booming.

"We are experiencing a lot of appreciation in terms of prices in our market. Our inventory is a little low. We have about a three to four month supply, which is fantastic for sellers because obviously they have a little more equity. They can turn around and sell. Buyers? Maybe not so good as it was several years ago, when we were urging them to buy, because now they are paying a little bit more than they would have a couple of years ago," says Hollow.

Hollow says Cape Coral is experiencing a lot of investors coming into the market, including international buyers. She says Cape Coral is also seeing a lot of people who want to retire in the area. But compared to other cities in Florida, Cape Coral is a bit of an anomaly. According to the latest housing report from RealtyTrac, Florida has the highest foreclosure rate in the country -- it's two times the rate of anywhere else.

"Miami, Tallahassee, Jacksonville -- those are some of the ones that RealtyTrac had mentioned in terms of foreclosure. But Cape Coral, not so much any more. A few years ago, I would have said to you that probably 80 percent of our market was distressed. Now 80 percent of our market, if not a little bit more, is actually traditional sellers. To me it's an indication that market is a little bit behind us. Will we see short sales and will we see bank-owned properties coming in the market? Absolutely. But I think it's going to start trickling in. It's not going to come in the waves that it did a few years ago," say Hollow.

Hollow says she is very optimistic about the future of housing where she is. "Real estate always has healthy economy rebound and I don't think it's going to change. We're going to continue to see the prices increase. We're still going to continue to see people coming and retiring and moving to Florida, and that creates markets in and of itself. I'm highly optimistic," says Hollow.

Marketplace Tech etiquette guru Janell Burley Hofmann is a Cape Cod Mother of five with strong opinions about how to behave with technology. Today's topic: Family tech policy.

How do you set aside electronics in order to better spend time with family? And, maybe even thornier: How do you set rules for setting aside electronics that everyone can still live with?

Hofmann has two recommendations to tackle this issue with tact:

1. Agree on guidelines ahead of time. Before that big family get together, Hoffman suggests sending out a group email asking for "screen-free" day.

2. Suggest a "screen-free" activity such as playing a board game, hiking, or another outdoor activity.

How do you manage your family's tech use? Tell us in a comment below.

At what point can you cut the tie between your cellphone and your phone company? An online petition has just raised enough signatures to get the White House to take a second look at whether unlocking a cellphone, that is, switching the phone from one carrier to another, should be against the law.

Officials say unlocking violates the Digital Millenium Copyright Act, the same way people are not supposed to break into copy protection systems for movies or music.

Slate Tech blogger Will Oremus joins Marketplace Tech host David Brancaccio to explain the pros and cons of cellphone unlocking.

The United States Olympic Committee recently sent out letters to 35 mayors around the U.S. It's looking for bids to host the 2024 Summer Olympics. Among those 35 cities were some you would expect -- New York, Chicago, and L.A. But there were also some surpises like Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Columbus, Ohio which have city budgets far below the cost of hosting the summer games.

Chicago spent $10 million just to put in a bid to host the 2016 Olympics. When it got rejected, the International Olympic Committee did not reimburse the city. So why would a city make this costly bid?

Mark Spiegel is the co-author of a paper titled "The Olympic Effect," which looked at the economic benefits of hosting mega-events like the Olympics. He says that for some cities in the developing world, the Olympics can put them on the world stage in a way that does lead to economic benefits.

But those benefits don't have the same appeal for the U.S. The cost of the 2024 Olympics are expected exceed $3 billion. So why would the USOC ask a city like Tulsa, which has a total city budget of under $1 billion, to put in a bid?

"It's pretty cheap for them to send out letters of intention to a bunch of different cities," says Victor Matheson, a sports economist.

Even if the USOC has no intention of picking a city like Tulsa, Matheson says, the more bids the better because it increases competition -- cities try to one up each other ensuring the lavish spectacle we've come to expect from the Olympic games.

The official news agency in China is reporting that the government will tax carbon emissions. The BBC's John Sudworth in Shanghai joins Marketplace Morning Report host Jeremy Hobson to explain the details of the plan and how it might trickle out to the global economy.

Boeing is meeting with the Federal Aviation Administration to hash out when it might get its grounded fleet of 787’s back in the air after some Dreamliner batteries caught fire last month. The company says it’s trying to get the issues resolved and the planes back in the air as soon as possible -- and every day counts.

You know how when somebody hits your car, their insurance has to pay for your rental while your car gets fixed? That’s kind of what Boeing has to do right now. It’s delivered 50 Dreamliner 787s to airlines who can’t use them.

“The airlines themselves are losing significant amounts of money,” says Bob Herbst with AirlineFinancials.com. “They’ve got pilots that are rather well paid and they’re sitting on the ground not earning any revenue.”

Boeing’s going to be on the hook for that -- “well into the hundreds of millions of dollars when all is said and done,” Herbst says.

Boeing’s already agreed to pay out $300 million to Qantas for delays not even relating to the battery fire issue. With this latest delay, Herbst says entire routes like Tokyo to San Jose aren’t going into service because they depended on the fuel efficient planes.

New flights like that were kind of the point of the aircraft, says Richard Aboulafia, an aviation analyst at Teal Group.

“The idea behind the 787 was point to point service so passengers could bypass major hubs” says Aboulafia. “There are really valuable markets that haven’t opened up because they’re simply not big enough. By flying directly, you’re basically able to charge these business travelers a premium fee for the privilege of traveling directly.”

Everyone who already bought tickets, is going to want their money back. The final bill, the analysts conclude, all depends on how long the planes stay on the ground. Still, we’re not talking anything that could break Boeing, according to Aboulafia.

“If you look at all their different revenue streams, they’re pretty insulated against technological risk,” says Aboulafia. “This is not a threat to their existence, but it could get painful.”

Extra painful, he says, is that some of the money Boeing pays to airlines, might get used to lease planes from its competitor Airbus.

Ahead of the 2013 Academy Awards this weekend, the Wall Street Journal’s Jason Bellini set out to calculate how long it would take someone to actually watch every film nominee before the ceremony. Plus, how much would it cost?

Time to see every Oscar nominated film: 99 hours -- just a little over four days.

Cost to see all nine Best Picture nominees this weekend: $60 at AMC.

See Bellini's calculations in the video below and check out his recommendations for where to watch this year's films.

How to Cram for the Oscars (via WSJ)

The Amish don't drive and don't connect to the electrical grid. Yet a growing number of Amish people are leaving farming for manufacturing. That means they need tools — and power.

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The Amish don't drive and don't connect to the electrical grid. Yet a growing number of Amish people are leaving farming for manufacturing. That means they need tools — and power.

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Comedian-turned-politician Beppe Grillo's populist Five Star Movement is soaring in the polls ahead of elections this weekend. His rallies have attracted tens of thousands of Italians tired of a poor economy, widespread corruption and political patronage. But there are concerns that no one knows what Grillo's movement stands for.

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Bees and flowers communicate in colors, scents and shapes. Now scientists have discovered that bumblebees can also sense flowers' electric fields. This sixth sense helps them remember and recognize nectar-rich blooms while foraging.

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Treating people for HIV isn't just beneficial for those infected but also helps the entire community. Two studies show that where HIV drugs are widely available, the risk for new HIV infections drops dramatically and overall life expectancy increases by more than a decade.

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At the height of the housing boom, condominium towers popped up on the Miami skyline faster than you'd believe. Once the market crashed, those towers sat vacant. Now, led by foreign buyers, condos are selling again as developers try new, more stringent financing rules.

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In China, authorities can send people to re-education through labor camps for years without trial. Beijing says it is considering reforms to the notorious system, though it's not clear what that might mean. The people who know the camps best — former prisoners — say closing them is long overdue.

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Today, Rowena Gore-Simmons runs a center for formerly incarcerated women. But Rowena once served time herself, when her now-teenage daughter was 4. While she was in prison, Rowena dedicated herself to being a better mother when she got out.

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Using American slavery to make a point about contemporary politics can be downright tricky business, as some public figures have recently learned firsthand.

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CNBC is far and away the ratings leader in the financial cable news business — and its executives, producers and reporters are working hard to keep it that way. They're telling some guests they can't appear on rival channels amid breaking news.

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