Monthly Archives: July 2010

BOSTON, MA - July 14, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The owner of coastal property and an island in Fairhaven will restore wetlands on both the mainland and island parcels that were damaged by clear-cutting and wall construction projects conducted in violation of state laws designed to protect natural resources, Attorney General Martha Coakley and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) announced today.Carlos A. Pereira will restore the wetlands and pay a $38,000 civil penalty, $18,000 of which will be waived if he complies with the terms of the consent judgment entered yesterday in Suffolk Superior Court. Under the terms of the settlement, Pereira will also make a $2,000 contribution to the Coalition for Buzzards Bay, a non-profit organization dedicated to the protection of the Buzzards Bay watershed.

Washington, DC - July 13, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congressman Eliot Engel (D-NY-17) announced three U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) grants for Rockland County

Washington, D.C. - July 14, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Even with modest improvements in the overall U.S. economy, nonresidential construction spending is expected to decrease by more than 20 percent in 2010 with a marginal increase of 3.1 percent in 2011 in inflation adjusted terms. Poor conditions remain because of an oversupply of nonresidential facilities in most construction categories, weak demand for space, continuing declines in commercial property values, and a strong reluctance to provide credit from real estate lenders. These are highlights from the American Institute of Architects (AIA) semi-annual Consensus Construction Forecast, a survey of the nation’s leading construction forecasters

Washington, D.C. - July 14, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Even with modest improvements in the overall U.S. economy, nonresidential construction spending is expected to decrease by more than 20 percent in 2010 with a marginal increase of 3.1 percent in 2011 in inflation adjusted terms. Poor conditions remain because of an oversupply of nonresidential facilities in most construction categories, weak demand for space, continuing declines in commercial property values, and a strong reluctance to provide credit from real estate lenders. These are highlights from the American Institute of Architects (AIA) semi-annual Consensus Construction Forecast, a survey of the nation’s leading construction forecasters

WASHINGTON, D.C. - July 14, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending July 9, 2010. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 2.9 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. This week’s results include an adjustment to account for the Independence Day holiday. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 12.6 percent compared with the previous week

McLean, VA - July 14, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) announced today that it plans to launch a $1 billion reopening of its 2.875% five-year USD Reference Notes® security that matures on February 9, 2015. The issue will price today, Wednesday, July 14, 2010, and will settle on Thursday, July 15, 2010.

WASHINGTON, DC - July 14, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Property managers tightly controlled operating expenses throughout 2009, according to the 2010 Experience Exchange Report (EER), released by the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International in collaboration with Kingsley Associates. Analysis of operating income and expense data from “same buildings”—those who submitted data in both 2009 and 2010, whose total rentable area did not change by more than 10 percent and whose occupancy did not change by more than 15 percent—reveals that total operating expenses for U.S. private sector buildings declined by a little more than one percent. The decrease in total operating expenses illustrates what commercial real estate managers have noted all year: there is considerable pressure to reduce operating expenses and maintain strong net operating income. Rental income for all U.S. private sector buildings increased marginally, up one percent in 2009. For U.S. private sector downtown buildings, rental income increased 2.5 percent in 2009.

Washington, D.C. - July 14, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- NeighborWorks America, the nation’s leading trainer of community development professionals, proudly invited 49 seasoned executives to participate in the fifth class of its NeighborWorks Achieving Excellence in Community Development Program, offered in collaboration with the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government

Washington, DC - July 14, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-3) announced today the award of $9,089,530 in housing grants from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The funds, which include Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), Emergency Shelter Grants (ESG), HOME program grants, and Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) grants, will go to Hamden, Stratford, West Haven, and New Haven, and are to be distributed as such

July 14, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- State Senator Joseph J. Crisco, Jr. (D-Woodbridge), and state Representative Linda Gentile (D-Ansonia) today announced final approval for significant state funding to help secure property that will become the future home of the (Naugatuck) Valley Regional Fire Training School. The lawmakers said a total of $950,000 is now available to purchase property in Beacon Falls for the project

July 14, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Senate President Donald E. Williams, Jr. (D-Brooklyn) joined State Rep. Susan Johnson (D-Willimantic); representatives from the Access Community Action Agency in Willimantic, and the Connecticut Fair Housing Center for a news conference in Willimantic today to announce that the state’s landmark foreclosure mediation program is being extended for another year.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - July 14, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The site of a waterfront townhome community located on the banks of the Indian River in Millsboro, Del., is the first on the East Coast and only the fourth nationwide to earn a four-star land development certification under the new National Green Building Standard, according to the National Association of Home Builders and the NAHB Research Center (NAHBRC), which developed the standard and certified the project

Destin, Fl - July 14, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- In these challenging economic times, the real estate website that forecasts housing markets all over the U.S., Housing Predictor dot com is introducing a new section of its website to “Save Money on Home Remodeling.”

WASHINGTON D.C. - July 13, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) today announced that $22,317,400 has been awarded to Ohio housing services by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Section 202 and Section 811 programs.

Providence, RI - July 9, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) announced this week that two innovative homelessness programs run by Rhode Island Housing will receive $1.1 million in federal funding.

Albany, NY - July 13, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Michael Skrebutenas, Executive Deputy Commissioner of the NYS Division of Housing and Community Renewal, joined Yonkers Mayor Philip A. Amicone and other state and local officials at a groundbreaking Wednesday, July 7, for two affordable rental projects to be located at the site of the historic Mulford Gardens Public Housing Complex in Yonkers.

BLANDING, Utah - July 12, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- More than 250 Christian volunteers will descend on the Navajo Reservation Monday for a week-long summer camp.

Atlanta, GA - July 13, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Realtor Teresa Abney is the latest to make the switch to Prudential Georgia Realty. She joins the new Buckhead office of Prudential Georgia Realty, located at 3221 Peachtree Road, just south of the Peachtree and Piedmont Road intersection

LAS VEGAS, NV - July 12, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- A former Las Vegas resident has pleaded guilty to conspiracy for his involvement in a Nevada mortgage fraud scheme involving straw buyers and falsified mortgage loan documents, announced Daniel G. Bogden, United States Attorney for the District of Nevada.

Westfield, NJ - July 13, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Watch the sunset from your new bay front condominium centrally located on the strip in Ocean City, Maryland. With minimum bids starting at just $75,000 at an auction later this month, owning a vacation home in one of the East Coast’s top beach resorts is now within reach.

AUSTIN, TX - July 8, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) today announced a $37,500 award to help a regional community development organization access federal grant funds and enhance homeownership for low income residents in a six-county service area.

AUSTIN, TX - July 9, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) and State Senator Eddie Lucio, Jr. today announced a $49,500 award to help a local nonprofit housing organization access federal grant funds and enhance homeownership for low income residents in Cameron and Willacy counties.

EUGENE, OR - July 13, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- IDX, Inc. and PHA Realty have teamed up to bring Rocklin, California homes and MetroList MLS listings to home seekers around the world, on the real estate website of Mary Pizzimenti. It is now easier than ever before to match buyers with properties, thanks to the raw listing data MetroList provides and displays on her website, and the search tools IDX Broker enables her website to host. Customizable IDX solutions make the online home search experience simpler and more effective for brokers, agents and buyers alike

EUGENE, OR - July 13, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Kailua, Hawaii broker Robert Vieira and IDX, Inc. have joined forces to bring Hawaii Central MLS (HiCentralMLS) property listings to his clients and potential home buyers in the area and around the globe. With IDX Broker software, HiCentralMLS listing data is extracted from the database and displayed directly on his website, giving home seekers an incredibly comprehensive online property search experience. Thanks to the addition of a customized IDX solution, Vieira can now rest assured that his clients have access to the greatest online database of properties and thorough listing information around.

SPRINGFIELD, IL - July 13, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- July 12, 2010. Governor Pat Quinn today signed two bills into law that will protect consumers from deceptive home repair and remodeling practices. Senate Bill 3645 and Senate Bill 2540 protect homeowners and individuals who have disabilities from fraudulent home repair projects

BROCKTON, MA - July 13, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- A Marshfield woman has been arraigned in connection with allegedly trying to delay or avoid foreclosure of a home mortgage by falsely reporting the death of a child to her mortgage company, and thereafter knowingly falsifying information in an affidavit filed in Brockton Superior Court, Attorney General Martha Coakley announced.Donna Larson, age 52, was arraigned today in Brockton Superior Court on charges of Attempted Larceny and Perjury. Larson pled not guilty before Judge Joseph M. Walker III and was released on personal recognizance.

New York, NY - July 13, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The NYC Housing Development Corporation (HDC), the NYC Housing Preservation and Development (HPD), The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. and BRP Development announced an innovative $45 million real estate transaction to develop much-needed affordable housing and retail space in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. To be built under Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s New Housing Marketplace Plan (NHMP), the new mixed-use, mixed-income project, called “The Bradford,” will include 105 apartments for low- and middle-income families.

Washington, D.C. - July 13, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Door and Hardware Institute (DHI) announced that is has joined the ConsensusDOCS coalition, which creates standard contract documents for use by all participants in the construction industry

Silver Spring, MD - July 13, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Montgomery Housing Partnership (MHP), a private nonprofit housing developer, has commenced construction on Maple Towers Apartments and plans to complete the renovation next Spring. The 44-year-old, 8-story brick building at 7610 Maple Avenue was purchased after it had sat vacant for nearly three years. It is now being gutted and renovated with environmentally-friendly technology and products that will meet Enterprise Green Communities’ criteria

Washington, D.C. - July 13, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu today announced 43 cutting-edge research projects that aim to dramatically improve how the U.S. uses and produces energy. Funded with $92 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act through the Department of Energy's Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E), today's selections focus on accelerating innovation in green technology while increasing America's competitiveness in grid scale energy storage, power electronics and building efficiency