Residential
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January 15, 2025
What Real Estate Attys Should Expect From New SEC
Real estate lawyers should anticipate a meaningful shift in policy from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission under President-elect Donald Trump's leadership, including a reduced focus on climate risk disclosures, according to speakers at a Practicing Law Institute panel.
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January 15, 2025
Cost Concerns Keep Real Estate Atop Florida Policy Agenda
This year sees new leadership in the Florida Legislature, a change that can shift priorities, but with housing affordability, condominium reforms and property insurance presenting significant challenges even after recent legislative actions, the incoming House speaker and Senate president have indicated that they will pay close attention to these real estate-related issues in 2025.
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January 15, 2025
Connecticut Town Accused Of Fumbling Affordable Condo Plan
The planning and zoning commission in Greenwich, Connecticut, attached conditions to a housing project that threaten the "viability" of the plan, which is meant in part to increase the availability of affordable units in the affluent town, a developer has said in an appeal to the state Superior Court.
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January 15, 2025
FCC Warns Convincing Mortgage Lender Scam Afoot
The Federal Communications Commission is putting the word out about a new scheme aimed at tricking people into thinking their homes will be foreclosed on unless they make emergency payments into an account controlled by the scammers.
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January 15, 2025
Texas Development Projects To Watch In 2025
The Texas development boom is showing no signs of slowing in 2025, with major projects from office campuses to mixed-use and industrial all set to create ripples throughout the state's real estate industry.
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January 15, 2025
Real Estate Attys Eye Busy Texas Legislative Session
With Texas' biennial legislative session underway, the housing and development issues that gummed up 2023 to the tune of multiple special session extensions appear poised to come back fresh in 2025.
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January 15, 2025
California Real Estate Policy To Watch In 2025
Municipal mansion taxes, clunky permitting processes and a recently passed law enacting building and design standards for logistics facilities are among the real estate policies teed up for review in California in 2025.
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January 15, 2025
Casino Bids, Zoning Reform To Shape NYC Real Estate In 2025
The world of New York City real estate is anticipating major changes in 2025, including advancing casino proposals, implementing a major zoning reform and considering a new hotel licensing law.
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January 15, 2025
Beacon Roofing Rejects $11B Takeover Offer Lobbed By QXO
QXO Inc. said Wednesday it has offered to purchase Beacon Roofing Supply Inc. for about $11 billion in cash, prompting Beacon to announce that it rejected the offer because it "significantly undervalues" the company.
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January 15, 2025
Midwest Real Estate Projects To Watch In 2025
While Chicago developers are eyeing a host of new skyscraper projects, various other Midwest cities are primed to see big changes to their skylines over the coming years.
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January 14, 2025
Experts See Long Road To LA Rebuild Despite CEQA Freeze
With the wildfires continuing in Los Angeles, Mayor Karen Bass and California Gov. Gavin Newsom moved to suspend environmental and other permitting rules in an early step to ease the regulatory burden once rebuilding starts from the disaster, expected to be one of the costliest in U.S. history.
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January 14, 2025
Ackman Retracts Sullivan Dig In $1.5B Howard Hughes Offer
Pershing Square Holdings founder Bill Ackman has leaked a $1.5 billion proposal on social media that calls for merging his hedge fund and real estate developer Howard Hughes Holdings, and appeared to blame Sullivan & Cromwell LLP in a post for the informal release before he walked back that comment.
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January 14, 2025
Resort Developer Asks To Wind Up Chinese Co. In Bahamas
The developer of the Baha Mar resort in the Bahamas filed a petition Tuesday to liquidate a Chinese-owned construction firm that was hit with a $1.6 billion judgment last year by a New York court over its fraud tied to the construction of the resort project.
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January 14, 2025
Retroactive Foreclosure Rule Bars Suit, Mich. County Says
A Michigan county has urged a federal judge to toss a proposed class action alleging that it kept surplus proceeds from tax-foreclosed home sales, saying the homeowner bringing the claims hasn't yet used the state's process for securing the proceeds.
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January 14, 2025
DOI Greenlights Calif. Tribe's $700M Casino, Housing Project
A California tribe is set to build a $700 million project near the San Francisco Bay area that is proposed to include a casino and resort, two dozen homes and a biological preserve, following years of litigation and controversy surrounding the endeavor.
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January 14, 2025
Mo. House Bill Seeks Deduction For Property Tax Payments
Missouri would allow taxpayers to claim an income tax deduction for property tax payments under a bill introduced in the state House of Representatives.
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January 14, 2025
Buchanan Ingersoll Grows In Fla. With Nason Yeager RE Atty
Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC has strengthened its real estate capabilities in Tampa, Florida, with the addition of a Nason Yeager Gerson Harris & Fumero PA attorney.
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January 14, 2025
Expert Sees Land Use, Building Codes As Key To LA Rebuild
Kimiko Barrett, senior wildfire policy analyst at nonpartisan research organization Headwaters Economics, told Law360 Real Estate Authority that because California has been a leader in crafting wildfire policy, the state's decision-makers are now venturing into new territory to assess the successes and failures of those innovative measures.
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January 13, 2025
On Cross, Madigan Says He Merely Helped Job-Seekers
Former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan distanced himself Monday from political allies who prosecutors say bribed him for jobs and other benefits, saying his recommendations were just that, and that he thought he was effective in shutting down a former alderman's quid pro quo suggestion.
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January 13, 2025
SoCal Edison Hit With Flurry Of Suits Over Eaton Fire
Southern California Edison was hit with multiple lawsuits by Altadena fire victims in California state court Monday, accusing the investor-owned public utility of negligently managing power-line equipment that on Jan. 7 purportedly sparked the Eaton Fire, which has already damaged over 7,000 structures and killed at least 16 individuals.
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January 13, 2025
Newsom Waives Permits, Enviro Rules To Rebuild LA Faster
California Gov. Gavin Newsom in an executive order Sunday suspended state environmental rules and permitting in coastal areas, a move intended to help rebuild from wildfires causing extensive destruction in Los Angeles.
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January 13, 2025
Manufactured Housing Groups Seek Early Win Against DOE
Two manufactured-housing trade groups pushed for an early win in Texas federal court in their suit against the U.S. Department of Energy over an energy conservation rule for manufactured housing that the groups claimed failed to hit "a rational balance between energy conservation and affordable housing."
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January 13, 2025
REITs Warned To Eye Regulatory Response To LA Fires
Investment bank Piper Sandler Cos. is warning of regulatory fallout from the still-blazing Los Angeles fires that may harm real estate investment trusts, adding it expects to see REITs voluntarily take steps to ameliorate pressure on renters.
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January 13, 2025
Ind. Senate Bill Seeks To Cap Local Property Tax Hikes
Indiana would not allow a political subdivision to increase its property tax levy if there is not an increase in the subdivision's assessed value under a bill introduced Monday in the state Senate.
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January 13, 2025
NYC Real Estate Week In Review
Greenberg Traurig LLP and DLA Piper are among the law firms that handled the largest real estate deals to hit New York City public records last week, a period that saw a number of transactions that signed and closed near the year-end deadline become public.
Expert Analysis
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How 3D Printing And Prefab Are Changing Construction
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.
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Wave Of Final Rules Reflects Race Against CRA Deadline
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.
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A Deep Dive Into High Court's Permit Fee Ruling
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.
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The Case For Overturning Florida Foreclosure Ruling
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.
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Bracing For The CFPB's War On Mortgage Fees
As the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau homes in on the legality of certain residential mortgage fees, the industry should consult the bureau's steady stream of consumer lending guidance for hints on its priorities, say Nanci Weissgold and Melissa Malpass at Alston & Bird.
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DOJ Consent Orders Chart Road Map For Lending Compliance
Two recent consent orders issued by the U.S. Department of Justice as part of its efforts to fight mortgage lending discrimination highlight issues that pose fair lending compliance risks, and should be carefully studied by banks to avoid enforcement actions, says Memrie Fortenberry at Jones Walker.
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Reverse Veil-Piercing Ruling Will Help Judgment Creditors
A New York federal court’s recent decision in Citibank v. Aralpa Holdings, finding two corporate entities liable for a judgment issued against a Mexican businessman, shows the value of reverse veil piercing as a remedy for judgment creditors to go after sophisticated debtors who squirrel away assets, says Gabe Bluestone at Omni Bridgeway.
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Calif. Housing Overhaul May Increase Pressure On Landlords
Two recently enacted California laws signal new protections and legal benefits for tenants, but also elevate landlords' financial exposure at a time when they are already facing multiple other hardships, says Laya Dogmetchi at Much Shelist.
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New Proposal Signals Sharper Enforcement Focus At CFIUS
Last week's proposed rule aimed at broadening the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States' enforcement authority over foreign investments and increasing penalties for violations signals that CFIUS intends to continue expanding its aggressive monitoring of national security issues, say attorneys at Kirkland.
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Climate Disclosure Mandates Demand A Big-Picture Approach
As carbon emissions disclosure requirements from the European Union, California and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission take effect, the best practice for companies is not targeted compliance with a given reporting regime, but rather a comprehensive approach to systems assessment and management, says David Smith at Manatt.
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Illinois EV Charging Act Sparks Developer Concerns
A recent state law in Illinois requiring multifamily housing to provide facilities for electric vehicle charging raises significant concerns for developers over existing infrastructure that isn't up to the task, says Max Kanter at Much Shelist.
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What NAR Settlement Means For Agent Commission Rates
If approved, a joint settlement agreement between the National Association of Realtors and a class of home sellers will likely take the onus off home sellers to compensate buyers' agents, affecting considerations for all parties to real estate transactions, say attorneys at Jones Foster.
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Calif. Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q1
The first quarter of the year brought the usual onslaught of new regulatory developments in California — including a crackdown on junk fees imposed by small business lenders, a big step forward for online notarizations and a ban on predatory listing agreements, says Alex Grigorians at Hanson Bridgett.