Homebuyers’ costs top $3,000

Closing costs – the money consumers pay to cover title searches, application fees and other expenses when buying a home – average more than $3,000 nationwide, according to a survey being released Thursday.

The study by Bankrate.com looked at the closing costs charged by lenders in major cities in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The closing costs included origination fees charged by lenders such as application fees and document processing fees as well as title search and appraisal costs that are paid to third parties.

The average nationwide was $3,024, the study found.

The cities with the highest closing costs were Buffalo, N.Y., $3,887; Houston, $3,578; Honolulu, $3,407; Cleveland, $3,354; and Miami, $3,349, Bankrate.com said.

Houston

Lay lawyers seek to erase felonies

Lawyers for Enron Corp. founder Kenneth Lay took their first official step Wednesday toward erasing his felony convictions in light of his death last month.

Lay, 64, was convicted May 25 of fraud and conspiracy in the federal government’s foremost criminal trial to emerge from the disgraced company’s flameout. His co-defendant, former Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling, 52, was convicted of 19 counts of fraud, conspiracy, insider trading and lying to auditors.

Jurors determined both repeatedly lied about Enron’s financial health when they knew complicated and ultimately unsustainable financial structures hid debt and inflated profits. Lay and Skilling insisted they didn’t lie.

Spokane

Columbia Paint plans expansion

Columbia Paint & Coatings is leasing 26,000 square feet of warehouse space at the Spokane Business & Industrial Park.

The nearly 60-year-old Spokane company, which manufactures and sells paint and industrial coatings, is growing at a rate that requires the expansion, said Lori Nelson, director of marketing.

Columbia Paint’s headquarters are located on the north side of Interstate 90, at 112 N. Haven St. The company employs 320 and has 40 retail locations throughout the West.

New York

Attendants’ strike ruling expected

A federal bankruptcy judge could rule by Monday on whether to bar Northwest Airlines flight attendants from a planned strike that could disrupt flights, a spokesman for the flight attendants union said Wednesday.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Allan Gropper heard arguments over a preliminary injunction to prevent any type of strike action, which the flight attendants plan to begin on Tuesday. He also considered a request by the union to change the terms of a concessions deal the airline imposed.

Rick Thornton, a spokesman for the Association of Flight Attendants, said the judge might issue his ruling in the case by Monday.

A Northwest Airlines labor executive said that strike actions by its flight attendants could cripple it to the point of shutting down.