A SPECIAL REPORT: THE VALLEY ECONOMY

Down Is Up

A new year means a crystal ball look-see. John Ashkar at Downey Savings in Encino forecasts “two more years of bank foreclosures” in the Valley as lenders work off their ‘90s recession housing inventory. . . . He’s also rejecting 20 mortgage refinances a week because “people are upside down,” i.e., their mortgage tops the market value of their home.

Test Drive a CPA

Accountants on Call in Woodland Hills fills 60 temporary jobs a week, for hospitals to auto suppliers. “A lot of our people start as temporaries, then get hired as permanent,” says Pam Cleavenger. “Companies are more leery. They want to test people . . . these days and see what they’ve got before hiring them.” Pay runs from $23 an hour for CPA temps to $8.50 for data processors.

Ticket Holders

“The local economy is not nearly as good as economists say,” contends pawnbroker Dan Ward of Sherway Jewelry & Loan in Canoga Park. . . . Fewer customers are returning to pay off loans on pawned VCRs, jewelry and fax machines. “That hurts, because now I have to wait for someone to buy it.” Pawn customers range in age from 20 to 90. They say: “I’ve got doctor bills to pay, or my gas is going to be turned off.”