Residential
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July 25, 2025
Pullman & Comley Didn't Flag 'Falsified' $16M Loan, Suit Says
Pullman & Comley LLC didn't discover that the executive director of a Connecticut municipal housing authority had allegedly forged a connected company's $16.2 million loan application before penning a letter claiming the deal appeared solid, the lender, who was not a client, has alleged in a lawsuit.
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July 25, 2025
NY Court Sides With Junior Investors In RMBS Trust Dispute
A New York state court resolved a dispute between bondholders in 34 residential mortgage-backed securities trusts about how to handle repayment of principal amounts deferred during the 2008 financial crisis, siding with junior bondholders after a 17-day bench trial.
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July 25, 2025
3 Firms Guide Canadian REIT's $410M IPO
Go Residential Real Estate Investment Trust began trading Friday after the newly created Canadian REIT priced a $410 million initial public offering at $15 per trust unit.
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July 25, 2025
Property Owner Claims Partner Failed To Develop SC Land
A South Carolina property owner sued its business partner in North Carolina federal court, accusing the company of failing to carry out its promise to develop about 75 acres of land after the county designated the area as historic.
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July 25, 2025
Towns Repeat Claims In Affordable Housing Suit, NJ Says
New Jersey urged a federal court to toss a suit brought by a coalition of nearly two dozen Garden State municipalities challenging a provision of the state's affordable housing framework, saying their claims are barred because the coalition previously brought the same claims in state court.
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July 25, 2025
Calif. County Denied Rehearing Over Timeshare Fee
A California county will not get a rehearing over a judgment that an annual fee the county charges to timeshare resort owners to give them each a value of their own properties for property tax purposes was excessive and, in fact, acted as a tax, an appellate panel ruled.
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July 25, 2025
Florida Court Blasts NY Judge's 'Shell Game' To Revive Suit
A Florida federal judge rejected a New York federal judge's two-paragraph request to revive his defamation suit against former members of a condominium board in a feud over renovations, finding that the New York judge's move to submit the brief himself while having legal counsel makes it look as if the two are "playing a kind of shell game."
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July 25, 2025
Calif. Landlord Files Ch. 11 With Over $50M In Debt
A company that owns an apartment building in California's Central Coast region has launched a Chapter 11 case with between $50 million and $100 million each in assets and liabilities.
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July 25, 2025
Feds Sell Fugitive Trader's $7M Mansion Decade After Charges
Massachusetts federal prosecutors said Friday that they have sold a $7.5 million mansion that belonged to a fugitive trader who was charged in 2015 with funneling $67 million in assets from his employer to himself.
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July 25, 2025
NAR Adds Trademark, Brand Protection Pro As Associate GC
The National Association of Realtors announced Friday that a trademark and brand protection expert will be joining the firm from AARP as associate general counsel.
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July 24, 2025
Nonprofits Secure TRO In Challenge To New HUD Grant Rules
A Rhode Island federal judge Thursday granted a temporary restraining order to a coalition of nonprofit groups challenging new conditions for U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development grants that target diversity, equity and inclusion programs; abortion access; and transgender individuals.
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July 24, 2025
Commission Inflation Suit Spurs COVID Tolling Query In Conn.
A Connecticut judge on Thursday questioned a real estate firm's argument that two antitrust suit plaintiffs misused a COVID-era executive order to enter the case after the statute of limitations would have expired, indicating she was concerned about the broad impact her ruling might have if she found the pandemic-era tolling unconstitutional.
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July 24, 2025
Magistrate Says DR Horton Refused To Hear Accessibility Ask
A magistrate judge in Texas federal court endorsed claims that homebuilder D.R. Horton refused to consider adding accessibility features to single-family houses under construction, while finding another claim brought by three plaintiffs and a fair housing group is reserved only for multifamily properties.
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July 24, 2025
Va. County Board OKs Luxury, Mixed-Use Towers Project
A three-tower, 970,000-square-foot luxury, mixed-use development project in Rosslyn, Virginia, recently received entitlement approval from the Arlington County Board, the project's developer Penzance announced Thursday.
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July 24, 2025
Judge Blocks Crypto REIT From Collecting Rent In Detroit
A Michigan state judge has barred a cryptocurrency-based real estate investment firm and affiliates from collecting rent at hundreds of Detroit properties until it brings them into compliance with city code.
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July 24, 2025
LA Wildfires Caused $52B In Damage To Homes, Report Says
The wildfires that ravaged the Los Angeles area in January caused $51.7 billion worth of damage to about 11,000 homes, according to a Redfin report released Thursday.
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July 24, 2025
Feds Can't End Bank Oversight After $3M Redlining Deal
A Pennsylvania federal judge has rejected the government's bid to release a bank it previously accused of discriminatory lending from court oversight, holding that continued enforcement was "essential" to make sure the terms of a settlement resolving the allegations were adhered to.
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July 23, 2025
Lender Seeks End To NY Developer's 2nd Ch. 11 Try
A prospective developer of a Westchester County, New York, property has filed for Chapter 11 protection in a New York bankruptcy court with more than $10 million in debt and a mortgage provider seeking to dismiss the case, saying it's an attempt to dodge a foreclosure sale.
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July 23, 2025
6th Circ. Questions Officials On Search: 'Pretty Darn Obvious'
Sixth Circuit judges on Wednesday grilled Michigan zoning and building officials seeking immunity from an improper-search lawsuit, repeatedly suggesting it was "obvious" the officials should have known they were crossing property lines to look at dwellings and areas protected by the Fourth Amendment.
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July 23, 2025
2 Firms Work On $210M Brooklyn Apt. Tower Sale, Loan Deals
Fetner Properties, MCB Real Estate and Farallon Capital Management purchased the ground lease for a 463-unit multifamily tower in Brooklyn for $209 million, simultaneously securing a $141.5 million loan from M&T Realty Capital Corp., guided by McGuireWoods LLP and Adler & Stachenfeld LLP.
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July 23, 2025
Aussie Proptech Firm Brings AI Inspection Tool To US Market
A new California law that took full effect on July 1 requires landlords to document a residential unit's condition — with photos — at move-in, move-out, and after cleaning or repairs. As it so happens, a technological solution focused on making those time-consuming inspections faster and easier just arrived from Down Under.
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July 23, 2025
Rising Star: Ropes & Gray's Anthony Mongone
Anthony Mongone of Ropes & Gray LLP has earned the trust of some of the world's largest real estate investors to guide them through complex, large-scale deals, such as Blackstone's acquisition of 20% of Signature Bank's $16.8 billion mortgage loan portfolio after the bank's failure, earning him a spot among the real estate law practitioners under age 40 honored by Law360.
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July 23, 2025
Private Equity Firm ACRE Caps $1B Real Estate Credit Fund
ACRE has announced it raised $1 billion to expand its lending platform, as the New York-based real estate-focused private equity firm goes after credit opportunities in the multifamily property sector.
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July 23, 2025
5th Circ. Finds Enclave Doctrine Blocks Asbestos Claims
The Fifth Circuit has held that the federal enclave doctrine blocks the bulk of a military family's claims in a suit alleging their housing at Randolph Air Force Base had mold and asbestos, while affirming a $91,000 damages award against the housing managers.
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July 23, 2025
Why Private REITs Are Having A Moment
Investments in private real estate investment trusts are surging, and that trend may strengthen as state regulators mull limiting investments in other, quasi-public REITs, while securities regulators have recently eased accreditation requirements for investors raising private capital.

Calif. Attys See Policy Split For Infill, Greenfield Projects
While changes to the California Environmental Quality Act approved last month could make developing infill housing easier, other legislation in the works might make building greenfield housing tougher, according to Nossaman LLP attorneys observing the legislative session.

Record Crypto Deal Sought For California Property
California's Manhattan Beach is best known for surfing and beach volleyball, but a local real estate listing is making a play for attention, as the seller's willingness to accept cryptocurrency for the $12 million asking price could set up the state's largest real estate deal closed using digital currency, according to its brokers.

Miami Mayor, Developer Discuss Crypto In Real Estate
When developer Diego Ojeda's firm closed the first-ever cryptocurrency wallet-to-wallet real estate transaction in the Miami market earlier this year, it drew a social media shoutout from one of the city's biggest crypto supporters — Mayor Francis Suarez. The two recently puzzled the pros and cons for crypto in real estate transactions.
Expert Analysis
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Wells Fargo Suit Shows Consumer Protection Limits In Mass.
The Massachusetts Appeals Court's May decision in Wells Fargo Bank v. Coulsey underscores that consumer rights are balanced against the need for closure, and even the broad protections of state consumer protection law will not open the door to relitigating the same claims, say attorneys at Greenberg Traurig.
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What Calif. Insurance Ruling Means For Smoke Damage Limits
As California continues to grapple with an increasing number of wildfire claims, a state court's recent Aliff v. California FAIR Plan decision serves as a clear directive to insurers that policy language that narrows the scope of fire coverage below the California Insurance Code's minimum standards is impermissible, say attorneys at Wood Smith.
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The Metamorphosis Of The Major Questions Doctrine
The so-called major questions doctrine arose as a counterweight to Chevron deference over the past few decades, but invocations of the doctrine have persisted in the year since Chevron was overturned, suggesting it still has a role to play in reining in agency overreach, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.
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What 9th Circ. Ruling Shows About Rebutting SEC Comments
The Ninth Circuit's June opinion in Pino v. Cardone Capital suggests that a company's lack of pushback to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission comment may be evidence of its state of mind for evaluating potential liability, meaning companies should consider including additional disclosure in SEC response letters, say attorneys at Barnes & Thornburg.
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2 NY Cases May Clarify Foreclosure Law Retroactivity
Two pending cases may soon provide the long-awaited resolution to the question of whether retroactive application of the New York Foreclosure Abuse Prevention Act violates the state Constitution, providing a guide for New York courts inundated with motions in foreclosure and quiet title actions, says Fernando Rivera Maissonet at Hinshaw & Culbertson.
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Yacht Broker Case Highlights Industry Groups' Antitrust Risk
The Eleventh Circuit recently revived class claims against the International Yacht Brokers Association, signaling that commission-driven industries beyond real estate are vulnerable to antitrust challenges after the National Association of Realtors settled similar allegations last year, says Miles Santiago at the Southern University Law Center and Alex Hebert at Southern Compass.
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A Look At Trump Admin's Shifting Strategies To Curtail CFPB
The Trump administration has so far carried out its goal of minimizing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's authority and footprint via an individualized approach comprising rule rollbacks, litigation moves and administrative tools, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.
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Rocket Mortgage Appeal May Push Justices To Curb Classes
Should the U.S. Supreme Court agree to hear Alig v. Rocket Mortgage, the resulting decision could limit class sizes based on commonality under Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Evidence as opposed to standing under Article III of the U.S. Constitution, say attorneys at Carr Maloney.
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Fla. Condo Law Fix Clarifies Control Of Common Areas
Florida's repeal of a controversial statutory provision that permitted developers of mixed-use condominium properties to retroactively assert control over common facilities marks a critical shift in legal protections for unit owners and associations, promoting fairness, transparency and accountability, say attorneys at Pardo Jackson.
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EDNY Ruling May Limit Some FARA Conspiracy Charges
Though the Eastern District of New York’s recent U.S. v. Sun decision upheld Foreign Agents Registration Act charges against a former aide to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, its recognition of an affirmative legislative policy to exempt some officials may help defendants charged with related conspiracies, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.
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Shifting DEI Expectations Put Banks In Legal Crosshairs
The Trump administration's rollbacks on DEI-friendly policies create something of a regulatory catch-22 for banks, wherein strict compliance would contradict established statutory and administrative mandates regarding access to credit for disadvantaged communities, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.
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The State Of Play In Copyright Protection For Floor Plans
With questions over copyright protections for floor plans potentially teed up in front of the U.S. Supreme Court, attorneys in the real estate industry should take steps to clarify and strengthen clients' rights and reduce the risk of litigation, says Dylan I. Scher at Quinn Emanuel.
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Florida Case Could Redefine Construction Defect Damages
If a Florida appellate court overturns the trial court in a pending construction contract dispute, the state could experience a seismic shift in construction defect damages, effectively leaving homeowners and developers with an incomplete remedy, says Andrew Gold at Akerman.