California RealEstateRama

San Francisco, CA - March 30, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The San Francisco Business Times recognized two of Martin Building Co.’s projects as “best financial” deals among the publication’s annual “Deals of the Year.” Martin Building Co. was recognized for its creative financing in their effort to build two housing projects in San Francisco. Potrero Launch, an $80.4 million, 196-apartment project, and Arc Light Co., a $41 million, 94-unit rental project with a historic preservation component, were the two specific projects honored.

Washington, DC - March 30, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), a senior member of the House Financial Services Committee, introduced legislation to permanently abolish the affordable housing goals of the Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

ALISO VIEJO, CA - March 29, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Stefan Manolakas, a longtime developer of commercial, residential and mixed-use projects in Northern California, has joined the CT Realty Investors board of directors. Manolakas represents the third addition to the real estate investment firm’s board of directors in the past few months.

Torrance, CA - March 24, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Lee & Associates, one of the largest national commercial real estate providers with regional expertise, has closed on the $5.86 million sale of a 78,486-square foot industrial building located at 2525 El Presidio St., in Carson, Calif., just outside Los Angeles.

San Francisco, CA - March 24, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco (FHLBank San Francisco) today announced that Clearinghouse Community Development Financial Institution (Clearinghouse CDFI), the newest member of the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco, is the first non-depository community development financial institution (CDFI) to borrow from a Federal Home Loan Bank.

March 22, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mayor Edwin M. Lee today announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has selected San Francisco’s HOPE SF transformation plan for Alice Griffith Public Housing Development and the surrounding Bayview neighborhood as a finalist in its Choice Neighborhoods Implementation Grant competition. The Alice Griffith Plan was one of 42 plans submitted by communities nationwide competing for the $61 million in total funding and one of six finalists to enter the second application round

Washington, DC - March 22, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), a senior member of the Financial Services Committee and a top congressional advocate for affordable housing, reintroduced H.R. 1209, The Section 8 Voucher Reform Act (SEVRA), late last week. The bill would reform the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program, which provides rental housing assistance to 2 million low-income American families

SAN JOSE, CA - March 18, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Tara Denise Bonelli, 31, of Santa Cruz, Calif., was arrested today by agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation. United States Attorney Melinda Haag announced. Yesterday, a federal grand jury in San Jose indicted Bonelli, charging her with 18 counts of wire fraud, one count of mail fraud, and three counts of money laundering

Washington, DC - March 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The House of Representatives voted today to end the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP), which Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) created and which President George W. Bush signed into law three years ago under the Housing and Economic Recovery Act (HERA). Last week, House Republicans also voted to end the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) Short Refinance Program and the Emergency Homeowners Relief Program (EHRP), the latter of which Congresswoman Waters worked to include in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010.

Washington, D.C. - March 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Over the past two weeks Congressman Howard Berman (CA-28) has voted against three separate Republican proposals that would hurt struggling homeowners and further exacerbate the foreclosure crisis facing California. Congressman Berman has been working to help homeowners struggling to avoid foreclosure and recently hosted a Homeowners Assistance and Retention Workshop in Van Nuys where over 100 Valley residents received free counseling.

IRVINE, CA - March 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Award-winning KTGY Group, Inc., Architecture and Planning, is pleased to announce that it is providing architectural design services for a new 103,255-square-foot mixed-use retail and student housing building to be developed by Hanover Pacific, LLC at the University of La Verne (ULV) in La Verne, Calif. Located on the site of a former campus parking lot, the new building will add 378 beds and approximately 8,300 square feet of ground floor retail for a new university bookstore. A ground breaking ceremony will be held on the site at the end of March to celebrate the commencement of construction.

San Francisco, CA - March 15, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Since 1993, Zephyr Real Estate has produced an annual calendar for distribution to more than 10,000 clients each year. This year, for the first time ever, Zephyr is inviting the public to vote on the theme for the 2012 calendar.

San Francisco, CA - March 15, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- International law firm Nixon Peabody LLP has expanded its Affordable Housing practice on the West Coast with the arrival of new partner Tuan Pham. Mr. Pham joins Nixon Peabody’s San Francisco office from Goodwin Procter where he also served as the hiring partner for the San Francisco office and a co-chair of the West Coast Diversity Committee.

Washington, D.C. - March 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) today joined with Senate Democrats and veterans advocates to condemn a provision in the House Republicans’ budget that would eliminate housing assistance to 10,000 homeless veterans nationwide. The Republicans’ proposed cuts could undermine a program that has helped keep thousands of veterans in California off the streets.

Washington, DC - March 10, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), a senior member of the Financial Services Committee, spoke out today against Republican attempts to terminate the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) and the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP). This was the second markup in as many weeks where Committee Republicans ended programs to help people stay in their homes and help communities weather the foreclosure crisis.

LOS ANGELES, CA - March 10, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- In an effort to bring attention to the broken and ineffective short sale process and galvanize industry leaders to help resolve the issue, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.) today has placed an open letter advertisement in California’s seven largest daily newspapers, calling on lenders and industry regulators to streamline and improve the short sale process.

Washington, DC - March 8, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), a senior member of the Financial Services Committee, issued the following statement today after details of the proposed settlement between state attorneys general and mortgage servicers were revealed

LAGUNA HILLS, CA - March 8, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Muller Company, a full service real estate company specializing in management, investment and development of commercial real estate in the western United States, announced today that the firm has recently started construction on the $3 million renovation of its "mid-century modern" landmark building, the Taj Mahal Medical Center building, formerly known as the Taj Mahal, located at 23521 Paseo de Valencia in Laguna Hills, Calif.

SACRAMENTO, CA - March 7, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- A real estate investor pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Sacramento to conspiring to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions held in San Joaquin County, Calif., Christine Varney, Assistant Attorney General of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division, and Benjamin B. Wagner, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of California, announced.

Oakland, CA - March 7, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- California State Sen. Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) and Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) vowed at the end of last year’s legislative session that they would not give up on trying to prevent wrongful foreclosures of California homeowners. Their 2010 bill, which would have put an end to banks’ pursuing foreclosures while simultaneously considering loan modifications, passed the Senate but failed in the Assembly

Washington, DC - March 4, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) --Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), a senior member of the Financial Services Committee, took Committee Republicans to task today for voting to defund two programs that help struggling homeowners.

Los Angeles, CA - March 3, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Foursquare Foundation announced today its ground breaking for the construction of a new $10 million richly-appointed Foursquare Senior Living residential community in one of Los Angeles’ most historic neighborhoods, Echo Park. Designed by the architectural firm KTGY Group, Inc., this new eco-friendly, pedestrian- and transit-oriented, 1.24-acre urban in-fill redevelopment project replaces some older housing units with 75 affordable senior apartment homes. Situated directly across from Echo Park, one of the city’s most iconic settings, Parkview Living, A Foursquare Senior Living community, will help mitigate the soaring demand for quality affordable housing to active seniors 62 years of age and over. Parkview Living, A Foursquare Senior Living community will be located across the street from the 88-year-old Angelus Temple, which is home to the Foursquare Church.

Washington, DC - March 2, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- In response to the recent rise in home foreclosures, Congresswoman Susan Davis (D-San Diego) introduced legislation to give veterans access to mortgage refinancing opportunities. The Veterans Home Loan Refinance Opportunity Act (H.R. 834) will allow veterans in Alaska, Oregon, California, Wisconsin, and Texas to take advantage of low-interest home loan refinancing options available from the state. Currently, veterans in these states can use the home loans to purchase a primary residence -- but not to refinance.

Los Angeles, CA - February 28, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- In the last two years, families in Los Angeles County lost their home to foreclosure every 15 to 18 minutes. Dataquick Information Systems reports 26,707 Los Angeles County families lost their home to foreclosure in 2010. In January 2011, 2,196 families lost their home to foreclosure1, indicating that not much has or will change in 2011. Exacerbating the issue is high unemployment and the low volume of permanent loan modifications being made available to families facing foreclosure.

Washington, DC - February 25, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), a senior member of the Financial Services Committee, released the following statement today after Republicans on the Committee announced their intention to defund foreclosure prevention programs

Washington, DC - February 25, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), a senior member of the Financial Services Committee, issued the following statement today after reports of a deal between the Obama Administration and mortgage servicers to settle systemic fraud issues in the servicing and foreclosure industry

SAN MATEO, CA - February 25, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congresswoman Jackie Speier (D-San Francisco/San Mateo) today announced that the Small Business Administration is offering a program that will help small businesses facing maturity of commercial loans or balloon payments refinance their mortgage debt

LAGUNA HILLS, CA - February 25, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The California Association of Community Managers (CACMSM) has announced a new board of directors for 2011. The board oversees the statewide organization’s programs and activities, monitors legal and legislative issues, and upholds CACM’s code of ethics and standards of practice. Comprised of professional community managers representing nine regions from California, the group also advises CACM on its educational and certification program for community association managers.

Downtown Los Angeles, CA - February 24, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Weingart Center today announced the award of a grant to create business ventures that will provide employment opportunities for the homeless. The sub-grant was awarded by REDF, a California-based organization focused on starting and growing employment-focused social enterprises that provide employment opportunities for individuals facing multiple barriers to employment. REDF received a federal Social Innovation Fund award administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service and by matching private support. Weingart is one of six California nonprofits selected for inclusion in the new initiative

ALISO VIEJO, CA - February 23, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- CT Realty Investors announced that Gary H. Hunt, one of Orange County’s most respected real estate professionals, has joined its board of directors.