Residential
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August 28, 2024
Colo. House OKs Additional Property Tax Rate Cuts
The Colorado House approved a legislative package Wednesday aimed at limiting property tax increases by lowering assessment rates and capping local revenue growth, sending the measures to the state Senate.
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August 28, 2024
BofA Hit With Suit Alleging 'Exploitative' Trust Insurance Costs
A trust beneficiary accused Bank of America in Georgia federal court of charging a trust it manages "unnecessarily expensive" insurance coverage for a residential property, arguing the bank breached its duties both as a trustee and a fiduciary.
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August 28, 2024
Ohio Justices To Weigh School Board Tax Appeal Rights
The Ohio Supreme Court agreed Wednesday to hear a school board's claims that a law that limited the rights of school boards to appeal certain property valuation decisions to a state tax board offered them a path to appeal to county courts instead.
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August 28, 2024
Fried Frank Guides $793M Refinance On High Line Condo
Michael Barker, a real estate partner at Fried Frank Harris Shriver Jacobson, worked on a $793 million refinancing for a once-troubled luxury condominium in West Chelsea, Manhattan, according to recent mortgage filings.
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August 28, 2024
Petersen Health Care Delays Hearing On Ch. 11 Exec Bonuses
Bankrupt nursing home operator Petersen Health Care told a Delaware judge Wednesday that it wanted more time to work towards a resolution with creditors and the U.S. Trustee's Office on its proposed executive incentive bonuses.
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August 28, 2024
NFL Concussion Litigation Funder's Case Heading For Trial
A New Jersey federal judge has advanced a case for trial in which a litigation funder accuses a solo practitioner in the NFL concussion case of unfairly shielding assets by buying and transferring himself a house through his firm.
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August 28, 2024
Treasury To Require Reports On All-Cash Real Estate Deals
Anyone who transfers real estate to a legal entity in an all-cash transaction, including attorneys, will be required starting Dec. 1, 2025, to inform the U.S. Treasury Department about that entity's beneficial owners and their identification numbers under a final rule issued Wednesday.
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August 28, 2024
Riemer Braunstein Guides $105M NYC Tower Financing Deal
Rockrose Development Corp. entity 27-34 Jackson LLC has borrowed a combined $105 million in mortgage loans from Wells Fargo for a Queens, New York, residential development project, in a mortgage loan transaction led by Riemer Braunstein LLP, according to official property records.
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August 27, 2024
Wells Fargo Says 'Good Faith' Efforts Ax Investors' Bias Suit
Wells Fargo & Co. urged a California federal judge Tuesday to toss a derivative lawsuit filed for by putative class of shareholders claiming the bank's board of directors failed to address its discriminatory lending and hiring practices, saying there's evidence of "good-faith" efforts to monitor compliance in those areas.
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August 27, 2024
2nd Circ. Urged To Reject Preemption Defense In BofA Row
The Second Circuit should join fellow federal courts in finding that a New York statute requiring all banks to pay at least 2% interest on mortgage-escrow accounts isn't preempted, a former Bank of America mortgage customer has told the appeals court following the U.S. Supreme Court's remand of the matter.
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August 27, 2024
Colo. House Advances Further Cuts To Property Tax Rates
The Colorado House advanced legislation Tuesday to limit property tax growth, a move supporters hope will also stave off a pair of ballot initiatives that critics say would devastate schools and other local services.
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August 27, 2024
Madison Ave. Condo Owners File New Ch. 11
The corporate owner of a luxury Manhattan condominium complex has filed for Chapter 11 in a New York bankruptcy court in what it says is an attempt to resolve the disputed bankruptcy filing of the partnership that owns the corporation.
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August 27, 2024
Citadel's Griffin Unveils Plans For Bayfront HQ Tower In Miami
Billionaire Ken Griffin has revealed his highly anticipated plans to develop a waterfront supertall tower in Miami's Brickell Financial District to house the future headquarters of his hedge fund Citadel LLC, which he moved to the city in 2022.
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August 27, 2024
New Jersey Laws Attorneys Need To Know In 2024
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy has signed contentious new bills into law recently that attorneys and business owners are adjusting to, including updates to the state's Open Public Records Act that make "fee shifting" more difficult, and a new wage requirement for temporary workers.
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August 26, 2024
LA To Pay $38.2M In FCA Suit Alleging Inaccessible Housing
The city of Los Angeles will pay $38.2 million to settle allegations it knowingly failed, for over a decade, to ensure federally funded affordable multifamily housing properties were accessible to people with disabilities, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday.
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August 26, 2024
Businessmen Say Feds' Ky. Tower Seizure Suit Can't Proceed
Two Miami businessmen have objected to a federal magistrate judge's recommendation opposing their attempt to toss litigation by the U.S. government as it looks to seize about $9.1 million from the sale of a Kentucky office tower, saying the United States can't prove its case.
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August 26, 2024
Zillow Investors Gain Class Cert. In Suit Over Home-Flipping
A Washington federal judge has certified a proposed class of investors suing Zillow, alleging they were misled about the performance of the real estate marketplace's home-flipping program, and has appointed two firms as lead and local counsel.
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August 26, 2024
Tetra Tech Accuses Atty Of Mistreating Witness In FCA Row
Tetra Tech EC Inc. claimed that an attorney representing a developer accusing it of fraud had mistreated a witness during a deposition hearing, pressing a California federal court to order the release of recordings capturing the alleged misconduct.
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August 26, 2024
Fla. Court Sets Contempt Hearing On Alleged Condo Demo
A Florida state court has scheduled a Sept. 12 evidentiary hearing after a group of Miami condominium unit owners sought to hold a developer in civil contempt for allegedly flouting a stay order by still trying to demolish the condo.
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August 26, 2024
11th Circ. Won't Revive JPMorgan Chase Whistleblower Suit
The Eleventh Circuit on Monday refused to revive a whistleblower suit against JPMorgan Chase Bank NA for allegedly forging mortgage loan documents and submitting false reimbursement claims to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, finding the allegations had already been publicized prior to the lawsuit.
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August 26, 2024
9th Circ. Won't Renew Seattle Homeowners' Insurance Row
A group of Seattle homeowners cannot force Security National Insurance Co. to help cover a nearly $617,000 default judgment in an underlying construction defect dispute against its insured, the Ninth Circuit ruled, finding exclusions barring coverage for new construction applicable.
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August 26, 2024
Fox Rothschild Lands Condo Team From Armstrong Teasdale
A team of 10 real estate attorneys from Armstrong Teasdale LLP have jumped to Fox Rothschild LLP, where they'll form the core of a new practice, the firm said Monday.
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August 26, 2024
At Bradley Arant, Ex-Healthcare GC Heeds 'No Surprises' Rule
A former general counsel at home health provider Aveanna Healthcare has returned to private practice as a partner in the healthcare and real estate practices at Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP, and is vowing not to surprise his in-house clients with surprise legal bills — now that he's on the other side of the business.
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August 26, 2024
Haber Law Continues Growth With Team From Beloff Law
Miami's Haber Law is continuing its growth spurt with the addition of a team from Beloff Law PA, including its founder, with 50 years of experience in real estate law.
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August 26, 2024
NY Nursing Homes Can't Duck AG's $83M Fraud Suit
A New York judge shot down a bid by four nursing homes and their operators to dismiss the state attorney general's claims that they defrauded Medicare and Medicaid and neglected residents.
![The Miami-based Beycome is a licensed brokerage that offers an innovative way of working with clients. Instead of employing agents, the company provides access to an online platform that centralizes the entire home-selling process, allowing users to navigate deals themselves. (iStock)](https://assets.law360news.com/1873000/1873392/c64df9f4ed8b89a3846d082cc84542d2fd2ea290-proptech.jpg)
Beycome Alters Home-Sale Landscape With AI, Other Tech
Years before recent litigation produced a $418 million settlement and revisions to the National Association of Realtors' broker rules, property technology company Beycome was already laying an alternative path to traditional real estate agent commission models to help sellers and buyers reclaim money and control in the transaction process.
![The 100-plus-page DOJ complaint includes comments from unnamed industry participants but does not allege criminal wrongdoing, nor does it name landlords as defendants. (Photo by Kristoffer Tripplaar, Sipa via AP Images)](https://assets.law360news.com/1873000/1873070/93018b55518438939946f1340de611dd58fb5cbf-tx__corporations_in_texas_35627.jpg)
Attorneys Break Down DOJ's RealPage Antitrust Suit
The U.S. Department of Justice's lawsuit alleging RealPage, a commercial real estate services company favored by institutional landlords, helped manipulate the rental market contains several positive developments for landlords named in price-fixing suits brought by tenants.
![Grosse Point Lighthouse in Evanston, Illinois, is pictured. The city is facing a proposed class action challenging its housing discrimination reparations program for Black or African American people. (iStock)](https://assets.law360news.com/1863000/1863858/19a865555cd6eb9dd1b958f48b0311227f84b5a8-evanston.jpg)
Residential Real Estate Cases To Watch In 2024's 2nd Half
A housing bias suit against an Illinois city, ongoing litigation surrounding the National Association of Realtors and the government's related antitrust probe, and a legal malpractice suit stemming from a foreclosure are among the residential cases real estate attorneys should be tracking during the second half of 2024.
Expert Analysis
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Assessing The Practicality Of Harris' Affordable Housing Plan
Vice President Kamala Harris' proposed "Build the American Dream" plan to tackle housing affordability issues takes solid recommendations into account and may fare better than California's unsuccessful attempt at a similar program, but the scope of the problem is beyond what a three-point plan can solve, says Brooke Miller at Sheppard Mullin.
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RealPage Suit Shows Growing Algorithm, AI Pricing Scrutiny
The U.S. Department of Justice's suit against RealPage for helping fix rental rates, filed last week, demonstrates how the use of algorithmic and artificial intelligence tools to assist with pricing decisions is drawing increasing scrutiny and action across government agencies, and specifically at the Federal Trade Commission and the DOJ, say Andre Geverola and Leah Harrell at Arnold & Porter.
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What To Expect From Evolving Wash. Development Plans
The current round of periodic updates to Washington counties' growth and development plans will need to address new requirements from recent legislation, and will also likely bring changes that should please property owners and developers, says Jami Balint at Seyfarth.
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Playing Golf Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Golf can positively affect your personal and professional life well beyond the final putt, and it’s helped enrich my legal practice by improving my ability to build lasting relationships, study and apply the rules, face adversity with grace, and maintain my mental and physical well-being, says Adam Kelly at Venable.
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Brownfield Questions Surround IRS Tax Credit Bonus
Though the IRS has published guidance regarding the Inflation Reduction Act's 10% adder for tax credits generated by renewable energy projects constructed on brownfield sites, considerable guesswork remains as potential implications seem contrary to IRS intentions, say Megan Caldwell and Jon Micah Goeller at Husch Blackwell.
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Law Firms Should Move From Reactive To Proactive Marketing
Most law firm marketing and business development teams operate in silos, leading to an ad hoc, reactive approach, but shifting to a culture of proactive planning — beginning with comprehensive campaigns — can help firms effectively execute their broader business strategy, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.
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Bank M&A Continues To Lag Amid Regulatory Ambiguity
Bank M&A activity in the first half of 2024 continued to be lower than in prior years, as the industry is recovering from the 2023 bank failures, and regulatory and macroeconomic conditions have not otherwise been prime for deals, say Robert Azarow and Amber Hay at Arnold & Porter.
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How High Court Ruling Is Shaping Homelessness Policies
The U.S. Supreme Court’s June decision in Grants Pass v. Johnson to allow enforcement of local ordinances against overnight camping is already spurring new policies to manage homelessness, but the court's ruling does not grant jurisdictions unfettered power, say Kathryn Kafka and Alex Merritt at Sheppard Mullin.
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Playing Dungeons & Dragons Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Playing Dungeons & Dragons – a tabletop role-playing game – helped pave the way for my legal career by providing me with foundational skills such as persuasion and team building, says Derrick Carman at Robins Kaplan.
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After Chevron: Don't Let Loper Lead To Bank Compliance Lull
Banking organizations are staring down a period of greater uncertainty over the next few years as the banking agencies and industry navigate the post-Chevron world, but banks must continue to have effective compliance programs in place even in the face of this unpredictability, say Lee Meyerson and Amanda Allexon at Simpson Thacher.
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Maryland 'Rain Tax' Ruling May Offer Hope For Tax Credits
A Maryland state appellate court's recent decision in Ben Porto v. Montgomery County echoes earlier case law upholding controversial stormwater charges as a valid excise tax, but it also suggests that potential credits to reduce property owners' liability could get broader in scope, says Alyssa Domzal at Ballard Spahr.
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Teaching Scuba Diving Makes Me A Better Lawyer
As a master scuba instructor, I’ve learned how to prepare for the unexpected, overcome fears and practice patience, and each of these skills – among the many others I’ve developed – has profoundly enhanced my work as a lawyer, says Ron Raether at Troutman Pepper.
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Decoding CFPB Priorities Amid Ramp-Up In Nonbank Actions
Based on recent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau enforcement actions and press releases about its supervisory activities, the agency appears poised to continue increasing its scrutiny over nonbank entities — particularly with respect to emerging financial products and services — into next year, say attorneys at Wiley.