October 25, 2000 September proved unkind to San Diegans who were attempting to use the Internet to sell their home. Homegain.com says that San Diego was one of three markets in the nation where price expectations declined. In San Diego’s case, the amount sought via Web sales in August was $278,000, off 10 percent from August. Nationally, “price targets” in seven of the nation’s 10 largest markets were up a combined 58 percent. The expected average sale price hit $236,000 in August. Consumers in the San Francisco Bay Area again led the nation with the highest price expectation at HomeGain with a price target of $417,000, an increase of 16 percent, or $65,000, from over August. Still, why San Diegans expected less than a month earlier, the $278,000 they sought was enough to put San Diego as the nation’s fifth highest market in terms of price expectation. The average price of the local residential real estate was $152 a square foot. "Of the 30 major markets we survey each month, cities with increases in price expectations in September only outnumbered the decliners by 16 to 14," says Bradley Inman, founder and CEO of HomeGain. "Although those increases were enough to push the national average expectation to $236,000, there's a definite softening in price targeting across the country. Online home sellers still expect to draw top dollar, but they seem to be backing off somewhat from the strong sentiments expressed during the summer months." HomeGain's Online Home Sellers Index is based on feedback provided by home sellers that registered at www.homegain.com during September. *** The 416-room Hanalei Hotel, a landmark on the western arc of Mission Valley at 2270 Hotel Circle North, will change its name to the Red Lion Hanalei Hotel, effective Nov. 17, reports Jack Giacomini, managing director of MV Partners, owners of both the Hanalei and the nearby Hilton Hotel in Mission Valley. The re-flagging will result in no major operational changes and no layoffs, says Dennis Sannes, g.m.. "The primary change will be our ability to offer our frequent guests the opportunity to join the Red Lion Club and receive exciting travel rewards, including frequent flyer miles." Red Lions Hotels & Inns operates 33 properties primarily located in the Northwest and West Coast. Originally built in 1959, the Hanalei opened as the Rancho Presidio, a 66-unit motor hotel. The Atlas Hotel chain, which operates the Town and Country Hotel in Mission Valley, acquired the property in 1966, renamed it the Hanalei and developed its trademark tropical resort motif. In July 1992, an Iowa-based general partnership, Hanalei-Mission Valley Partners Inc., acquired the Hanalei from Atlas Hotels. Then, in September 1996, the hotel was acquired by its current owners, led by Robert Payne. *** As part of a hiring binge that has increased its workforce more than 20 percent since the beginning of this year, Hughes Network Systems' San Diego operation in Sorrento Mesa is hosting an Engineering Career Night today, Oct. 25, from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Del Mar Doubletree Hotel, 11915 El Camino Real. A variety of engineering positions need to be filled immediately, says Dianne Ratzel, senior director of human resources. She says several new contracts for digital satellite communications systems will provide work for engineers through the year 2003. More than 40 engineers have been hired in recent weeks, and the search for qualified new people is taking place on several continents, Ratzel said. More than 250 employees work at the San Diego facility, located at 10450 Pacific Center Court. NS engineers in Sorrento Mesa are involved in developing satellite systems for a worldwide supplier of satellite airtime, a mobile maritime communications provider, a provider of wireless Internet services and a satellite radio company, the company said. *** Dariusz Kijanka, foreign relations officer with the Polish government is visiting San Diego today as a guest of North Island Federal Credit Union. NIFCU has been involved with the establishment of Polish credit unions since 1990. The credit union, which is the 10th largest in California, has hosted numerous interns from Poland and has helped to educate them on policies and procedures which has helped to reestablish credit unions after the fall of the communism in Eastern Europe in the late 1980s. Currently, Polish credit unions are the model for Eastern Europe, providing training for CUs in Ukraine, Czechoslovakia, Russia and Belarus. There are some 300 credit unions now operating in Poland. North Island Federal Credit Union has continued its informational exchange program with Poland, providing CUs with the latest information on technology, branding and business accounts. *** Rancho Santa Fe Technology Inc. has completed the structured cabling design and installation of a high-speed voice and data system in the new headquarters of ideaEDGE Ventures, a San Diego-based venture accelerator and management firm focused on creating a new generation of Internet companies. The new corporate headquarters building is located at 9820 Towne Center Drive in the Golden Triangle area. Trestand Conrique, president of Rancho Santa Fe Technology, says the high-speed structured cabling system for ideaEDGE will consist of more than 300 voice and data stations and a centralized data center. The AMP Category 5 cabling solution features enhanced structured cable for both voice and data transmission providing for nearly unlimited flexibility. Anticipating future growth, Greg Gamsky, ideaEDGE Information Technology v.p., also requested that RSFT provide 10 percent additional expansion cabling, which will be used as needed reducing the cost of adding additional stations. "The structured cabling infrastructure installed by Rancho Santa Fe Technology will provide an optimum level current and future support for ideaEdge, enabling the company to service high-tech incubators with state-of-the-art voice and data services and capabilities," Conrique says. The project manager from RSFT was Mark DeHart. Peterbuilt Construction is the general contractor. ***