Residential
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June 26, 2024
Conn. Firm Settles Suit Against Insurer Over Office Damage
A Connecticut law firm and a real estate company on Wednesday agreed to drop a federal lawsuit accusing their insurer of failing to fully cover damage from a leak at their New Haven offices, less than two weeks after the insurer notified the court of a pending settlement, court records show.
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June 26, 2024
NJ, Pa. Apartment Co. Accused Of Migrant Discrimination
A Guatemalan immigrant who has received protections under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program accused a real estate development and management company of alienage discrimination on Wednesday after she was informed that the company could not accept her housing applications without a valid permanent resident card or visa.
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June 26, 2024
Mack Real Estate Faces $189M NYC Apt. Foreclosure Suits
Mack Real Estate Group is facing a spate of foreclosure suits covering 37 multifamily buildings in Manhattan's East Harlem neighborhood, which allege the property owner is on the hook for $189 million in Freddie Mac loans.
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June 26, 2024
Orbital Witness Offers Property Diligence AI With Confidence
London-based Orbital Witness has built an AI assistant focused on the laborious task of property due diligence and backed it with what it calls a first-of-its-kind AI insurance.
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June 26, 2024
Tenants Say REIT Owes $26M For Illegal Late Fees
A certified class of about 190,000 tenants urged a California federal court to grant them a final judgment of more than $26.1 million in their class action accusing real estate investment trust Equity Residential of charging them excessive fees for late rent.
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June 26, 2024
$10B AIR-Blackstone Deal Set To Close After Investor Nod
Denver-based Apartment Income REIT Corp.'s shareholders have approved an agreement to sell off the real estate investment trust to private equity giant Blackstone for $10 billion, paving the way for its close within the next several days.
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June 26, 2024
HUD Official On 'Exploitative' Plays In Manufactured Housing
Private equity owners of manufactured home projects sometimes take advantage of the affordable housing crunch by raising rents, so the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is offering financing to give those communities a chance to run themselves, a senior staffer said.
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June 26, 2024
HUD Unveils $185M Program To Bolster Housing Production
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced Wednesday that the agency has earmarked $85 million in grants to help 21 cities remove barriers to building new housing stock, adding that another $100 million will be awarded later this summer.
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June 25, 2024
Warhol, Monet Artwork Forfeited To US In 1MDB Clawback
Andy Warhol and Claude Monet paintings are among the items that will be forfeited to the United States as part of a deal resolving the government's civil complaints looking to recover assets allegedly related to money laundering by a Malaysian state-owned investment fund, according to a consent judgment entered Monday.
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June 25, 2024
Va. Judge Tosses Bulk Of Brookfield Homebuyer Class Claims
A Virginia federal judge on Tuesday dismissed most of a proposed class action filed by homebuyers who allege Brookfield Asset Management Inc. entities built their homes without being licensed and left them with construction problems and invalidated warranties.
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June 25, 2024
$3M Broker Commission Deal Stayed To Await NAR Settlement
A Massachusetts federal court will not consider a $3 million settlement reached between home sellers and a multiple listing service over broker commission rules until after a decision on a much larger settlement in the separate sprawling case against the National Association of Realtors.
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June 25, 2024
LaVie Creditors Object To Landlord-Backed DIP Package
Unsecured creditors in the Chapter 11 case of nursing facility operator LaVie Care Centers have told a Georgia bankruptcy judge they oppose a proposed debtor-in-possession funding package, saying one of the lenders is the debtor's biggest landlord and would be getting an inappropriately advantageous deal.
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June 25, 2024
DC Council OKs Tax Hikes On High-End Property, Payroll
Washington, D.C., would impose a special tax rate on high-end residential properties, boost the premium for the district's paid leave program and make other tax and spending changes under legislation passed Tuesday by the district council.
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June 25, 2024
Military Families, Army Housing Managers Reach Settlement
A putative class of service members and their families, and a military housing landlord and the property managers urged a Virginia federal court on Tuesday to approve the global settlement of the putative class's claims alleging that the landlord and the property managers neglected the conditions of their military housing in a U.S. Army base in Fairfax, Virginia.
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June 25, 2024
Gibson Dunn, Troutman Rep $2.1B Multifamily Deal
KKR & Co. Inc., advised by Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP, paid $2.1 billion to buy a portfolio of 18 apartment properties from Quarterra Multifamily, guided by Troutman Pepper Hamilton Sanders LLP, the private equity giant announced Tuesday.
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June 25, 2024
Ariz. Court Slashes Value Of Low-Income Housing Complex
An Arizona housing complex subject to restrictions related to federal low-income housing tax credits was overvalued by a local assessor, the Arizona Tax Court said, slashing the valuation of the property by about three-fourths.
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June 25, 2024
Meadow Partners Raises $530M For Latest Real Estate Fund
Real estate investment manager Meadow Partners announced Tuesday it raised $530 million for the sixth installment of its flagship real estate fund, with capital commitments from a mix of new investors and longtime partners.
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June 25, 2024
How Real Estate Attys Should Prep For Possible Chevron Shift
The U.S. Supreme Court is likely only days away from deciding on the future of Chevron deference, a potential change that Holland & Knight LLP partner Lynn Calkins and her team expect to have widespread real estate ramifications touching everything from federal policy to local zoning.
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June 24, 2024
Lloyd's Seeks To Avoid Coverage For Beach Umbrella Death
Certain underwriters at Lloyd's, London told a South Carolina federal court Monday they should have no coverage obligations to a vacation rental owner over a wrongful death suit alleging that a woman was impaled by a "wind-driven" beach umbrella.
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June 24, 2024
HUD, VA Want Early Win In Homeless Vets' Los Angeles Suit
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development pushed for a quick win in California federal court against a certified class action that claims the federal government failed to build supportive housing on Los Angeles land for homeless, disabled military veterans.
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June 24, 2024
Ill. Landowners Challenge FERC Moves On $7B Power Line
Illinois residents, farmers and landowners launched a fresh challenge to the $7 billion Grain Belt Express high-voltage power line, telling the D.C. Circuit that when the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved an amended negotiated rate authority, it ignored clean energy giant Invenergy's unsanctioned purchase of the project in 2020.
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June 24, 2024
NJ Fund Gets $169M Loan For Mixed-Use Project
A development fund that's working on a 477-unit, mixed-use project in Jersey City, New Jersey, agreed to a loan agreement where its nominee entity borrowed $169.3 million, according to an official Monday announcement.
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June 24, 2024
Ex-Chicago Alderman Gets Two Years For Boosting Law Firm
An Illinois federal judge on Monday sentenced former Chicago Alderman Ed Burke to two years in prison and fined him $2 million for using his official position to steer tax business to his personal law firm, closing what prosecutors called "another sordid chapter" in the city's history of public corruption.
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June 24, 2024
IRS Finalizes Limits To Partnership Conservation Easements
The Internal Revenue Service finalized rules Monday that curb the conservation easement tax deduction claimed by certain partnerships, with some changes to last year's proposed version, such as limiting the opportunity for entities to adjust their tax returns to avoid the new restrictions.
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June 24, 2024
Mortgage Co. Fights To End Borrowers' RICO 'Smear' Suit
United Wholesale Mortgage has urged a Michigan federal judge to toss a putative class action claiming it violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act by forcing brokers to originate loans through UWM, arguing the suit is an illegitimate "smear" attempt to tarnish UWM's reputation to benefit hedge fund short-sellers.
Expert Analysis
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Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: March Lessons
In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy discusses four notable circuit court decisions on topics from consumer fraud to employment — and provides key takeaways for counsel on issues including coercive communications with putative class members and Article III standing at the class certification stage.
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Spartan Arbitration Tactics Against Well-Funded Opponents
Like the ancient Spartans who held off a numerically superior Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae, trial attorneys and clients faced with arbitration against an opponent with a bigger war chest can take a strategic approach to create a pass to victory, say Kostas Katsiris and Benjamin Argyle at Venable.
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How FinCEN Proposal Expands RE Transaction Obligations
Against a regulatory backdrop foreshadowing anti-money laundering efforts in the real estate sector, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network's proposed rule significantly expands reporting requirements for certain nonfinanced residential real estate transfers and necessitates careful review, say attorneys at Fried Frank.
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How Calif. Video Recording Ruling May Affect Insured Exams
A recent California appellate decision, Myasnyankin v. Nationwide, allowing policyholders to video record all parties to an insurance examination under oath, has changed the rules of the road for EUOs and potentially opened Pandora's box for future disputes, say John Edson and Preston Bennett at Sheppard Mullin.
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Unpacking FinCEN's Proposed Real Estate Transaction Rule
Phil Jelsma and Ulrick Matsunaga at Crosbie Gliner take a close look at the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network's recently proposed rulemaking — which mandates new disclosures for professionals involved in all-cash real estate deals — and discuss best next steps for the broad range of businesses that could be affected.
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Texas Insurance Ruling Could Restore Finality To Appraisal
The Texas Supreme Court's decision in Rodriguez v. Safeco, determining that full payment of an appraisal award precludes recovery of attorney fees, indicates a potential return to an era in which timely payment undoubtedly disposes of all possible policyholder claims, says Karl Schulz at Cozen O'Connor.
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Contractors Need Protection From NJ Homeowner Protections
A recently passed New Jersey law, combined with the state's Consumer Fraud Act, is intended to protect innocent homeowners, but legislative action must be taken to prevent homeowners from abusing the law to avoid paying hardworking contractors, say Gary Strong and Madison Calkins at Gfeller Laurie.
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NY Shouldn't Pair 421-a Restoration And Good Cause Eviction
The good cause eviction system of rent control should not be imposed in New York, nor should its legislation be tied to renewal of the 421-a tax abatement program, which New York City desperately needs, says Alexander Lycoyannis at Holland & Knight.
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Setting The Stage For High Court BofA Escrow Interest Case
Dori Bailey and Curtis Johnson at Bond Schoeneck examine relevant legislation and case law dating back 200 years ahead of oral arguments at the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday in Cantero v. Bank of America, the outcome of which will determine whether state laws governing mortgage escrow accounts can be enforced against national banks.
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DC's Housing Tax Break Proposal: What's In It, What's Missing
Proposed Washington, D.C., rules implementing the Housing in Downtown Tax Abatement program — for commercial property owners who convert properties into residential housing — thoroughly explain the process for submitting an application, but do not provide sufficient detail regarding the actual dollar value of the abatements, says Daniel Miktus at Akerman.
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Assessing The Future Of Colorado's Economic Loss Rule
The Colorado Supreme Court's decision to review a state appellate court's ruling in Mid-Century Insurance Co. v. HIVE Construction will significantly influence the future of Colorado's economic loss rule, with high stakes for the cost of doing business in the state, says David Holman at Crisham & Holman.
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How Recent Laws Affect Foreign Purchase Of US Real Estate
Early diligence is imperative for U.S. real estate transactions involving foreign actors, including analysis of federal and state foreign investment laws implicated by the transaction, depending on the property's nature and location, the parties' citizenship, and the transaction's structure, say Massimo D’Angelo and Anthony Rapa at Blank Rome.
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What Shareholder Approval Rule Changes Mean For Cos.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission recently approved proposed rule changes to shareholder requirements by the New York Stock Exchange, an approval that will benefit listed companies in many ways, including by making it easier to raise capital from passive investors, say attorneys at Baker Botts.