Residential

  • August 26, 2024

    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.

  • August 26, 2024

    Fla. Court Sets Contempt Hearing On Alleged Condo Demolition

    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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • August 26, 2024

    NYC Real Estate Week In Review

    Neal Gerber, Fried Frank and DLA Piper are among the law firms that handled the largest New York City real estate deals that hit public records last week, a busy period that saw two transactions above the $300 million mark become public.

  • August 23, 2024

    Property Plays: KKR, NYC, GSA

    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.

  • August 23, 2024

    PE Fund Says SEC Is Overstepping With 'Fishing Expedition'

    A large South Carolina private equity fund has sued the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for allegedly overstepping its authority by trying to regulate the business' activities through an unconstitutional "fishing expedition" investigation that threatens the building of thousands of housing units.

  • August 23, 2024

    Wire Verification Not Vital In Fla. Fraud Suit, Wells Fargo Says

    Wells Fargo urged a Florida federal court Friday to toss a lawsuit alleging the bank allowed a hacker to steal a real estate transaction's proceeds, saying there's no obligation to match a wire beneficiary to their account, and it didn't know the transfer was fraudulent because the process is automated.

  • August 23, 2024

    2 Firms Guide JV's $210M Refi For NYC Affordable Housing

    Real estate company Slate Property Group and its joint venture partner Fundamental Advisors on Friday wrapped up a $210 million refinancing deal for their 304,000-square-foot portfolio of New York City-based affordable and transitional housing properties, in a transaction guided by Seyfarth Shaw LLP and Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft LLP.

  • August 23, 2024

    Brokerage Startup Challenges NAR Listing Rules

    A Utah-based residential brokerage startup has accused the National Association of Realtors, an affiliated Utah multiple listing service and several major brokerages including Keller Williams Realty Inc. of engaging in an antitrust conspiracy that involved the defendants blocking the startup from accessing the NAR's MLS because the startup offers cheaper commission fees.

  • August 23, 2024

    Insurer Scores Coverage Win Over Retaining Wall Failure

    A contractor's insurer has no duty to help cover a $2.66 million settlement over the contractor's faulty construction of retaining walls, a Washington federal court ruled, finding an "impaired property" exclusion applicable.

  • August 23, 2024

    US Trying Illegal Property Grab For Dad's Tax Debt, Son Says

    The son of a man serving a 22-year fraud sentence told a Georgia federal court that the federal government is violating his constitutional rights in trying to take his property to satisfy his parents' tax debts, saying he had nothing to do with his father's crimes.

  • August 23, 2024

    Williams Mullen Rehires Ellis & Winter Atty In NC

    Williams Mullen has brought back a former associate, who is rejoining the firm's Raleigh, North Carolina, team as a partner to work on a range of commercial real estate-related matters.

  • August 23, 2024

    DOJ Sues RealPage For Helping Fix Rental Rates

    The U.S. Department of Justice filed an antitrust lawsuit Aug. 23 accusing RealPage of helping residential landlords across the country fix rental prices through the use of its revenue management software.

  • August 22, 2024

    Homeowner Loses Atty Fees In Suit Over HOA Fence Policy

    A Texas appeals court reversed a homeowner's win in a dispute with his neighbors over privacy fences facing a road, finding that a new state law prevents homeowners associations from enacting any covenant barring homeowners from putting up security measures, so the homeowner couldn't collect attorney fees.

  • August 22, 2024

    NY Agency Defends Real Estate Plays And Tracking Amid Review

    New York's Empire State Development pushed back against an audit from the Office of the New York State Comptroller finding that ESD filed inaccurate reports about its real estate properties and sold off a number of them for too little money.

  • August 22, 2024

    NY High Court To Hear Case Against Kingston Rent Rollback

    New York's highest court will hear a challenge from the Hudson Valley Property Owners Association and a coalition of Kingston landlords against the city's adoption of rent stabilization and a historic 15% rent reduction for tenants.

  • August 22, 2024

    Bronx Apartment Complex Settles Rental Subsidy Bias Case

    New York City Mayor Eric Adams' office announced Thursday that the owners and managers of a Bronx apartment complex have agreed to rent 850 units to those relying on rental assistance, settling claims that the complex's practices discriminated against them.

  • August 22, 2024

    Fla. Investment Firm Starts $500M Real Estate Credit Strategy

    Florida-based investment shop Morning Calm Management has formed a $500 million platform focused on mezzanine lending and preferred equity deals in commercial real estate, with a plan to capitalize on a void in the market left by a pullback in bank lending, the company said Aug. 22.

  • August 21, 2024

    Top New York Real Estate News This Summer

    Catch up on the hottest real estate news out of New York so far this summer, from office sales and foreclosures to casino projects and housing policies.

  • August 21, 2024

    Fla. Co. To Pay $5M To End CFPB's Illegal Foreclosure Claims

    Florida-based mortgage servicer Fay Servicing agreed Wednesday to pay a total of $5 million and its founder and CEO Edward Fay faces potential pay restrictions to resolve the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's claims the company violated a prior 2017 agreement and multiple federal laws that protect borrowers against illegal foreclosure practices.

Expert Analysis

  • SEC Should Be Allowed To Equip Investors With Climate Info

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's new rule to require more climate-related disclosures will provide investors with much-needed clarity, despite opponents' attempts to challenge the rule with misused legal arguments, say Sarah Goetz at Democracy Forward and Cynthia Hanawalt at Columbia University’s Sabin Center for Climate Change.

  • 8 Fla. Statutes That Construction Cos. Should Prepare For

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    In this article, Jason Lambert at Hill Ward discusses a number of recent bills out of the Florida Legislature targeting construction companies in the Sunshine State that have been sent to the governor for signature, at least some of which will have broad impacts that affected companies should prepare for ahead of the July 1 effective date.

  • Time To Fix NYC's Broken Property Assessment System

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    A New York appellate court's decision to revive Tax Equity Now New York v. City of New York may force the city to revamp its outdated and unfair real estate tax assessment system, which could be fixed with a couple of simple changes, says Seth Feldman at Romer Debbas.

  • Understanding The IRC's Excessive Refund Claim Penalty

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    Taxpayers considering protective refund claims pending resolution of major questions in tax cases like Moore v. U.S., which is pending before the U.S. Supreme Court, should understand how doing so may also leave them vulnerable to an excessive refund claim penalty under Internal Revenue Code Section 6676, say attorneys at McDermott.

  • Bankruptcy Ruling Shifts Lease Rejection Claim Calculation

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    A New York federal court’s recent ruling in In re: Cortlandt provides guidance on how to calculate a landlord's damages claim when a bankruptcy debtor rejects a lease, changing from an approach that considers the remaining rent due under the lease to one that considers the remaining time, say Bethany Simmons and Noah Weingarten at Loeb & Loeb.

  • Do Not Overstate Fla. Condo Termination Ruling's Impact

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    A close look at the unique language at issue in Avila v. Biscayne, in which a Florida appellate court deemed a condo termination to be invalid, shows that the case is unlikely to significantly affect other potential terminations, say Barry Lapides and Edward Baker at Berger Singerman.

  • Takeaways From FDIC's Spring Supervisory Highlights

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    The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s spring 2024 consumer compliance supervisory report found that relatively few institutions had significant consumer compliance issues last year, but the common thread among those that did were inadequacies or failures in disclosures to consumers, says Matthew Hanaghan at Nutter.

  • Walking With My Dog Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Thanks to my dog Birdie, I've learned that carving out an activity different from the practice of law — like daily outdoor walks that allow you to interact with new people — can contribute to professional success by boosting creativity and mental acuity, as well as expanding your social network, says Sarah Petrie at the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office.

  • What Calif. Eviction Ruling Means For Defaulting Borrowers

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    A California appellate court's recent decision in Homeward Opportunities v. Taptelis found that a defaulting borrower could not delay foreclosure with an improperly served notice of pendency of action, but leaves open a possibility for borrowers to delay eviction proceedings merely by filing lawsuits, say Anne Beehler and Krystal Anderson at Holland & Knight.

  • How 3D Printing And Prefab Are Changing Construction

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    The growing popularity of trends like 3D printing technology and prefabrication in the construction industry have positive ramifications ranging from reducing risks at project sites to streamlining construction schedules, say Josephine Bahn and Jeffery Mullen at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Wave Of Final Rules Reflects Race Against CRA Deadline

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    The flurry of final rules now leaping off the Federal Register press — some of which will affect entire industries and millions of Americans — shows President Joe Biden's determination to protect his regulatory legacy from reversal by the next Congress, given the impending statutory look-back period under the Congressional Review Act, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

  • A Deep Dive Into High Court's Permit Fee Ruling

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    David Robinson and Daniel Golub at Holland & Knight explore the U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling that a local traffic impact fee charged to a California property owner may be a Fifth Amendment taking — and where it leaves localities and real estate developers.

  • The Case For Overturning Florida Foreclosure Ruling

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    A Florida appellate court's recent decision in Desbrunes v. U.S. Bank National Association will potentially put foreclosure cases across the state in jeopardy, and unless it is reconsidered, foreclosing plaintiffs will need to choose between frustrating and uncertain options in the new legal landscape, say Sara Accardi and Paige Knight at Bradley.