One-bedroom rents jump 15.2 percent
Chattanooga apartment rental rates remain nearly a third less than the average rent in America’s biggest cities, placing Chattanooga No. 82 in the price of housing among the 100 biggest cities.
But a new survey of apartment rates by the online apartment search company Zumper shows that the average price of a one-bedroom apartment in Chattanooga has jumped by 15.2 percent in the past year to $760 a month.
That price is still well below the national average monthly rate for a one-bedroom apartment of $1,209, Zumper said. The typical two-bedroom apartment in Chattanooga rents for $810 a month, compared with the U.S. monthly average of $1,442.
The most expensive city for apartment rents is San Francisco, where a one-bedroom unit rents for $3,500 a month and a two-bedroom unit costs an average $4,680 a month.
Oak Ridge Lab boasts fastest super computer
TOP500, a semiannual ranking of the world’s fastest computing systems, has officially recognized the Oak Ridge National Laboratory as housing the world’s fastest supercomputer.
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) announced earlier this month the public debut of more than $200 million Summit as the most powerful supercomputer in the world.
U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander said the recognition is “further proof that the Oak Ridge area’s scientific brainpower, energy research and technological capabilities are among the best in the world.”
“Supercomputers cost money, a lot of it,” Alexander said. “And this also would not have happened unless bipartisan majorities in Congress had for several years appropriated record levels of taxpayer dollars to make our country first in the world in supercomputing.
Facebook to release limited info on ads
Facebook says it will release more information on all advertisements running on its service. The move is part of a broader effort to encourage “transparency” in its operations.
The company said Thursday that it will let everyone see all ads run by a given Facebook “page,” which is typically the public profile of a business, organization or public figure. Facebook will also publish information on when pages were created and any name changes they’ve undergone.
Facebook did something similar with political and election-related “issue” ads following the 2016 election. Fake accounts from Russia gamed Facebook’s systems to try to influence the U.S. presidential elections, and the company is trying to avoid similar problems in upcoming contests.
Facebook, however, won’t archive general advertisements as it does with political ads.
Pilot Flying J stores to add 5,000 jobs
Pilot Flying J, one of the largest privately held companies in North America, is expanding its team this summer by more than 5,000 as it prepares for the influx of travelers throughout the company’s busiest time of the year.
“We are always looking for team members who wake up excited to be part of our team and to deliver the experience our guests know and expect from us,” said Paul Shore, vice president of talent acquisition at Pilot Flying J.
The Knoxville-based company is hiring for positions that range from entry-level up to management roles across the company’s retail, restaurant and deli operations throughout North America. The company operates more than 750 Pilot and Flying J Travel Centers across North America serve more than 1.6 million customers daily.
Mortgage rates fall for 4th week in five
Long-term U.S. mortgage rates were flat to lower this week. The benchmark 30-year rate marked its fourth decline in the past five weeks.
Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday the average rate on 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages was 4.55 percent, down from 4.57 percent last week. By contrast, the 30-year rate averaged 3.88 percent a year ago.
The average rate on 15-year, fixed-rate loans was unchanged from last week at 4.04 percent.
Long-term loan rates have been running at their highest levels in seven years. The average 30-year mortgage rate reached a high this year of 4.66 percent on May 24; the 15-year rate hit 4.15 percent that day.