In today’s edition of Rob Black’s Winners and Losers, our financial expert Rob Black and KRON4’s James Fletcher talk about gas prices, home prices, and US automakers. 

Rob also answers the viewer question, “Which is better a Home Equity Line or 401k loan?”

Here are today’s Winners and Losers:

Loser:  Fourth of July holiday gas prices hit 4-year high  . . . Fourth of July gas prices will notch their highest mark since 2014 but remain sharply lower than their all-time high for the holiday.   At about $2.86 per gallon as of Tuesday morning, the national average price of gasoline is about 63 cents higher than a year ago.   Prices have been stable over the last week but have fallen by 9 cents in the last month, as the commodity eases off its typical spring peak.The price spike since 2017’s Independence Day is likely to cause motorists about $1 billion in extra gas purchases over the usual four-day travel period.  Hawaii was in the worst shape Tuesday with prices averaging $3.90, according to GasBuddy.South Carolina had the cheapest gas at $2.52.

Winner:  Home prices make the biggest jump in four years . . . Home prices jumped 7.1 percent annually in May.   If mortgage rates were to rise further, fewer homeowners would want to move.   The supply of homes for sale has been dropping on an annual basis for the past 36 months..It is a seller’s market, undeniably. The supply of homes for sale is low, demand is high, and now prices are heating up even more. But sellers today see more reasons to stay put than to profit. Of course, all real estate is local, and certain markets are hotter than others. Seattle, Denver, and San Francisco continue to see some of the biggest price gains, as they also have the leanest supply.

Winner:  Top US automakers report higher auto sales in June . . . .Consumers continued to lap up sport utility vehicles in larger numbers. The sales reports come amid escalating tensions between the United States and its trade partners. The global trade conflict has weighed on purchase plans for big-ticket items such as automobiles.

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