Residential
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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.
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June 24, 2024
NY Warns Property Insurers Of Low-Income Renter Bias Ban
New York's Department of Financial Services warned insurers Monday that they can no longer deny coverage to owners or increase premiums for residential properties solely because they house low-income tenants.
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June 24, 2024
REIT Hits Back At Board Takeover Bid Following Ponzi Case
Texas-based United Development Funding urged shareholders on Monday to ignore a bid for control from an activist investor that nominated a slate of board candidates to run the real estate investment trust, which was previously used as a vessel for a Ponzi scheme by its former executives.
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June 24, 2024
Washington Federal Bank Sells $2.8B CRE Loan Porfolio
Washington Federal Bank announced Monday it has completed the sale of about $2.8 billion in multifamily commercial real estate loans that are set to be purchased by Pacific Investment Management Company LLC.
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June 24, 2024
Landlord Says Insurer Botched Coverage For $1M State Deal
A Colorado landlord is accusing an insurance broker and carrier of secretly adding an endorsement to its policy to bar coverage for a $1 million settlement the landlord entered into to resolve a state investigation over alleged misuse of tenant funds.
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June 24, 2024
NM Sued Over Sustainable Building Credit Award Process
A New Mexico apartment complex alleges that the state violated its due process rights after it was denied sustainable building tax credits for most of its units, according to a complaint filed in federal court.
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June 24, 2024
Mass. Tax Board Won't Trim Home Value Over Area Conditions
A Massachusetts homeowner's testimony of the poor condition of nearby properties was insufficient to lower his home's assessed value, a state tax panel said in a decision released Monday, upholding the value found by a local assessor.
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June 21, 2024
After Surfside Collapse, Safety Reform And A 'Condo Crisis'
In the three years since 98 lives were lost in the partial collapse of the Champlain Towers South condominium in Surfside, Florida, several states have worked on legislation to address building safety. But their efforts to back the pledge of "never again" are stirring up concerns that they are fostering a whole new quandary for millions of condo owners.
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June 21, 2024
Financial Advice Guru Says Timeshare Suit Must Be Arbitrated
A famous financial advice guru and his company have urged a Washington federal court to pause a proposed timeshare exit fraud class action and send it into arbitration, arguing that several of the named plaintiffs signed related agreements that include arbitration clauses.
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June 21, 2024
Dissent Is Symbolic Win For NY Garden Fighting Housing Plan
Despite a loss at New York's top court, counsel for a Manhattan neighborhood garden challenging a senior housing development plan said one judge's 24-page dissent is one "for the history books."
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June 21, 2024
Property Plays: The Mark Hotel, Oak Row, Bain Capital
Property Plays is a weekly roundup of the latest loans, leases, sales and projects around the country. Send your tips — all confidential — to realestate@law360.com.
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June 21, 2024
Vt. Lawmakers Override Veto Of Short-Term Rental Surcharge
Vermont legislators overrode the governor's veto of legislation that imposes a 3% surcharge on short-term rentals.
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June 21, 2024
DOJ Backs Antitrust Case Against Zillow, Realtors At 9th Circ.
The U.S. Department of Justice has urged the Ninth Circuit to revive antitrust claims from a defunct brokerage platform against Zillow and the National Association of Realtors based on design changes Zillow made to comply with association rules.
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June 21, 2024
King & Spalding Guides $320M Brooklyn Construction Loan
King & Spalding advised a $321 million construction loan from Texas-based Bank OZK for a three-tower residential complex developer Naftali Group is building at a site on the East River in South Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
Expert Analysis
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High Court Case Could Reshape Local Development Fees
If last month's oral arguments are any indication of how the U.S. Supreme Court will rule in Sheetz v. County of El Dorado, it's unlikely the justices will hold that the essential nexus and rough proportionality tests under the cases of Nollan, Dolan and Koontz apply to legislative exactions, but a sweeping decision would still be the natural progression in the line of cases giving property owners takings claims, says Phillip Babich at Reed Smith.
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White Collar Plea Deals Are Rarely 'Knowing' And 'Voluntary'
Because prosecutors are not required to disclose exculpatory evidence during plea negotiations, white collar defendants often enter into plea deals that don’t meet the U.S. Supreme Court’s “knowing” and “voluntary” standard for trials — but individual courts and solutions judges could rectify the issue, says Sara Kropf at Kropf Moseley.
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How 2 CFPB Advisory Opinions Affect Reporting Agencies
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued two advisory opinions last month that demonstrate a continued commitment to address inaccuracies in background check reports and consumer file disclosures through broad interpretation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, expanding on a coordinated federal agency effort, say attorneys at Cooley.
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Algorithmic Pricing Programs Caught In Antitrust Crosshairs
The Justice Department's investigation into software company RealPage follows a host of federal antitrust cases alleging that property owners and casino hotel operators use the same proprietary software programs to fix and maintain pricing, which means algorithmic pricing programs are considered a key price-fixing tool in the digital age, say attorneys at Ballard Spahr.
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A Welcome Turning Of The Page For Residential Real Estate
After one of the most challenging years on record for residential real estate, 2024 will likely be a time of transition to a stabler business climate, as sellers lose some of their excess bargaining power and the pace of sales picks up, says Marty Green at Polunsky Beitel.
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Strict Duty To Indemnify Ruling Bucks Recent Trend
A South Carolina federal court's recent decision that it lacked subject matter jurisdiction to decide an insurer's duty to indemnify prior to the finding of insured liability sharply diverges from the more nuanced or multipronged standards established by multiple circuit courts, says Richard Mason at MasonADR.
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Ill. Insurance Ruling Helps Developers, Community Orgs. Alike
The Illinois Supreme Court's decision in Acuity v. M/I Homes of Chicago, holding that commercial general liability policy exceptions did not prevent coverage for damage caused by faulty workmanship, will bring more potential insurance coverage for real estate developers and, in turn, larger payouts when community organizations sue them, say Howard Dakoff and Suzanne Karbarz Rovner at Levenfeld Pearlstein.
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NJ Foreclosure Law Will Have Multifaceted Impact On Lenders
New Jersey's A.B. 5664 introduces significant reforms to foreclosure proceedings in the state, potentially lessening the burden on lenders and servicers to maintain foreclosed properties, but also brings new limitations and time frames, say Christina Livorsi and Wael Amer at Day Pitney.
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11 Noteworthy CFPB Developments From 2023
Under Rohit Chopra’s leadership, 2023 was an industrious year for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, with developments including the release of the proposed personal financial data rights rule, publication of proposed rules involving public registries for nonbanks and the bureau's continuous battle against junk fees, all of which are sure to further progress in 2024, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.
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Insured Takeaways From 10th Circ. Interrelated Claims Ruling
The Tenth Circuit's recent ruling in American Southwest Mortgage v. Continental Casualty that multiple claims arising from consecutive audit years were interrelated — and thus subject to a per claim limit — creates a concerning precedent for policyholders, so companies should negotiate relevant policy language, says Michael Stockalper at Saxe Doernberger.
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Baking Bread Makes Me A Better Lawyer
After many years practicing law, and a few years baking bread, I have learned that there are a few keys to success in both endeavors, including the assembly of a nourishing and resilient culture, and the ability to learn from failure and exercise patience, says Rick Robinson at Reed Smith.
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NY Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q4
New York's banking and financial sector saw a number of notable regulatory and legislative changes in the final quarter of 2023, including guidance on climate risks and heightened cybersecurity protocols issued by the New York State Department of Financial Services, as well as final revisions to virtual currency listings in the state, say attorneys at WilmerHale.
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Ill. Justices Set New Standard For Analyzing Defect Claims
The Illinois Supreme Court's recent ruling in Acuity v. M/I Homes of Chicago has effectively changed the landscape for how insurers may respond to construction defect claims in the state, so insurers should carefully focus their coverage analysis on whether the business risk exclusions are applicable, say Bevin Carroll and Julie Klein at Kennedys.