California RealEstateRama

SAN MATEO, CA - February 21, 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.

Washington, DC - February 18, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) reintroduced her legislation from the 111th Congress today that would make key investments in affordable public housing. H.R. 762, the Public Housing Reinvestment and Tenant Protection Act of 2011, contains provisions to revitalize housing units and neighborhoods; address one-for-one replacement issues; empower housing authorities to make reforms; and to create jobs, with support from Reps. Barney Frank (D-MA) and Nydia Velazquez (D-NY), her colleagues on the Financial Services Committee. She issued the following statement

IRVINE, CA - February 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- RealtyTrac™ (www.realtytrac.com), the leading online marketplace for foreclosure properties, today announced the hiring of Brian C. Walby as Vice President of Sales and Strategic Alliances. In this role, Walby will focus on member subscription sales, advertising sales, lead generation programs and product sales.

BEVERLY HILLS, CA - February 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- International real estate investment and services firm Kennedy Wilson (NYSE: KW) today announced that the company, along with an affiliate of DRA Advisors and with Kennedy Wilson Property Fund III, acquired Enclave at Adobe Creek, a 492-unit multifamily community in Petaluma, CA. The company also joined forces with The LeFrak Organization to purchase a 100% equity interest in Indigo Springs, a 278-unit multifamily community in Kent, WA.

February 15, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and Councilmember Herb Wesson attended today the unveiling of the first building - the Vineyard Recreation Center - to be retrofitted by workers trained through the Green Retrofit Workforce Program. Funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), the first-in-the nation, workforce development retrofit program targets workers from low-income communities and trains them with the skills they need to obtain good-paying, green jobs.“The Green Retrofit Workforce Program is a national model for how to build a specialized, highly-trained workforce that can retrofit municipal buildings to drastically reduce our City’s carbon footprint,” Mayor Villaraigosa said. “After all, electricity use within buildings accounts for almost one-third of our greenhouse gas emissions -- emitting almost 17 million tons of greenhouse gas a year into the air we breathe.”

February 15, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Housing Authority President and CEO Rudolf C. Montiel joined Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Congresswomen Maxine Watters, Laura Richardson, the Watts Labor Community Action Committee (WLCAC) , Affordable Housing CDC, Inc. (AHCDC), Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, local leaders to celebrate the grand opening of Dolores McCoy Villa Apartments.McCoy Villa apartments is a new low-income housing development in Watts. The 64 supportive housing units for large homeless families are fully furnished and offer a range of supportive services, including case management, budget counseling, employment training/placement, academic counseling, access to health care/substance abuse services, and assistance focused on families and independent living skills

February 15, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- On January 26 the Los Angeles Worksource Investment Board (WIB) recognized the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles with its prestigious Four Star Performance Award. This is the third consecutive year that HACLA receives the award. The award recognizes the outstanding Workforce Investment Act performance for program year 2009-2010.

SACRAMENTO, CA - February 15, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that United States District Judge William B. Shubb sentenced Iftikhar Ahmad, 40, of Stockton, to 21 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and restitution in the amount of $382,750 for multiple counts of mail fraud relating to a scheme involving the fraudulent submission of mortgage loan applications. Ahmad pleaded guilty on April 28, 2008

San Francisco, CA - February 14, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- In 2002, Zephyr established the Golden Z Award to recognize extraordinary efforts of those who have gone above and beyond in their charitable endeavors in the San Francisco community. In the past, the award has been presented to one of the company’s agents. In a departure from tradition, this year the Golden Z was presented to Bill Drypolcher, President and Founder of the company.

Washington, DC - February 14, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), the Ranking Member on the Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government Sponsored Enterprises, released the following statement today after the Obama Administration unveiled its plan, “Reforming America’s Housing Finance Market

Los Angeles, CA - February 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Los Angeles County NeighborWorks® Center for Foreclosure Solutions and The Long Beach Housing Development Company have partnered to help Long Beach residents become better informed about the foreclosure process and prevent foreclosure in 2011. In the last two years, families in Los Angeles County lost their home to foreclosure every 15 to 18 minutes. Dataquick Information Systems reports 26,703 Los Angeles County families lost their home to foreclosure in 2010. High unemployment rates have weakened homeowners’ ability to stay current on their mortgage loans. In addition, an increase in foreclosures is likely to occur in 2011 when $300 billion worth of adjustable rate mortgages are expected to reset upward.

IRVINE, CA - February 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Award-winning KTGY Group, Inc., Architecture and Planning, is pleased to announce that Diane's Beachwear, which offers the latest in swimwear clothing and accessories, will be opening its newest store in Scottsdale, Ariz., at the Scottsdale Quarter in early March 2011. The new 1,200-square-foot flagship store represents the 19-store chain's debut outside of California. Irvine, Calif.-based KTGY is the architect for the new Diane's Beachwear store.

SANTA ANA, CA - February 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- South Gate Gateway announced today that it filed a lawsuit on February 2, 2011, against the City of South Gate and the City's Community Development Commission for breach of contract and damages in excess of $10 million. According to Susan Rounds, the developer's spokesperson, "South Gate Gateway's lawsuit is based on the City's breach of an Option Agreement under which the City had agreed to re-purchase certain property owned by South Gate Gateway."

February 8, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- On Sunday, February 6, 2011, at approximately 4:45 a.m., Long Beach police officers responded to the area of Myrtle Avenue and Hill Street regarding a call of a man with a gun inside a residence. The caller, a 16-year-old female resident of the home, said her father, who was inside the residence armed with a gun, had shot her and her mother. As the caller pleaded for help, the 9-1-1 operator could hear what sounded like gunshots in the background

San Mateo, CA - February 7, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The state of the local housing market is a highly scrutinized subject matter as the housing market is a barometer of the financial health of San Mateo County. To bring answers, clarity and a bit of a crystal ball to see what is in store for the housing market in 2011, the San Mateo County Association of REALTORS® is hosting California Association of REALTORS® Chief Economist, Leslie Appleton-Young, along with Mike Simonsen, CEO, Altos Research to provide a housing forecast at the “Future of the Housing Market and Real Estate Technology” conference on Thursday, February 17th at the San Mateo Elks Lodge from 9:30 am-4:00 pm

February 7, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- A real estate executive pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Sacramento, California, to conspiring to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions held in San Joaquin County, California, 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

MISSION VIEJO, CA - February 7, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Hammerhouse LLC, an expanding national recruiting and strategic growth firm for the financial service industry with mortgage sales and leadership placement at its core, announced today the hiring of Grant Lupo as Strategic Growth Partner. Mr. Lupo, an experienced mortgage professional with years of experience in servicing, hiring and training mortgage production professionals, is being hired to help manage Hammerhouse’s client growth and expand the Company’s national mortgage recruiting market share. Mr. Lupo will report directly to Drew Waterhouse, Managing Director of Hammerhouse and be based in Mission Viejo,

LOS ANGELES, CA - February 3, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Attorney General Kamala D. Harris today announced a $6.5 million settlement of a predatory lending case against Angelo Mozilo and David Sambol, former officers of Countrywide Financial Corporation. Attorney General Harris announced the settlement money will be used to establish an innovative statewide California Foreclosure Crisis Relief Fund to combat the effects of California's high rates of foreclosure and mortgage delinquency

San Francisco, CA - February 1, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Zephyr Real Estate, San Francisco’s largest independent real estate firm, is pleased to announce the company’s top producing real estate agents of 2010.

ANAHEIM, CA - February 1, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Knightsbridge Realty Capital, Inc. of Newport Beach, Calif., has arranged financing of just under $3 million for the renovation of a retail center on North Anaheim Boulevard in Anaheim, Calif. The transaction includes a first trust deed loan supplemented with proceeds provided through the U.S. Treasury Department’s New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) program, and accomplishes the goals of President Obama’s Healthy Food Financing Initiative announced in February 2010

LOS ANGELES, CA - January 25, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- A Tacoma, Washington man has been found guilty of federal fraud charges for running a scheme that defrauded the owners of distressed homes by promising to delay or prevent foreclosure through a program that supposedly used notes backed by Treasury bonds to pay off mortgages.

January 24, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mayor Edwin M. Lee today announced that the U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded San Francisco $18.7 million in HUD’s Continuum of Care grants to fund a wide variety of programs from street outreach and assessment programs to transitional and permanent housing for individuals and families experiencing homelessness. The HUD Continuum of Care grants are awarded competitively to local programs to meet the needs of their homeless clients, and this year, 51 San Francisco-based organizations and programs received grant awards.

BAKERSFIELD, CA - January 24, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- David Marshall Crisp, 31; Carlyle Lee Cole, 63; Julie Dianne Farmer, 42; Sneha Ramesh Mohammadi, 49; Jayson Peter Costa, 38; Jeriel Salinas, 29; Robinson Dinh Nguyen, 30; Michael Angelo Munoz, 31; Jennifer Anne Crisp, 29; and Caleb Lee Cole, 35, were charged in a 56-count indictment with conspiracy to commit bank, mail and wire fraud, and with individual counts of mail fraud, U.S. Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today. Certain of the defendants were also charged with wire fraud, bank fraud and conspiracy to launder money. The indictment was returned Jan. 13 by a federal grand jury in Fresno and unsealed today

SAN MATEO, CA - January 24, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congresswoman Jackie (D-San Francisco/San Mateo) and other members of Congress sent a letter (attached) today to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and Acting Comptroller of the Currency John Walsh urging them to hold JPMorgan Chase accountable for overcharging thousands of military families on their mortgages and even wrongfully foreclosing on 14 families

Washington, D.C. - January 21, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, Representatives Mike Honda (D-Campbell) and Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose) announced $9,989,955 in Continuum of Care Homeless Assistance grants from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. These funds will go to local organizations providing a range of assistance to homeless persons and families, including transitional housing, permanent housing, and other supportive services. Local grantees are:

Washington, D.C. - January 20, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) today lauded the announcement by Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan that California organizations will receive more than $227 million in federal grants to provide housing and other assistance to Californians who are homeless.Senator Boxer said

FULLERTON, CA - January 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Morningside, the award-winning continuing care retirement community in Fullerton, Calif., has completed a $2 million expansion and renovation of its Lakeview Hall, lake and surrounding courtyard features. The renovation of Lakeview Hall, which serves as Morningside’s community center for major events, theatrical productions, musical entertainment and dances, doubled the hall’s original size of 4,500 to approximately 9,000 square feet

WASHINGTON, D.C. - January 14, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- “Today, we heard that banks seized a record 1.05 million homes in 2010, topping the prior record from 2009. This is despite a massive slowdown in foreclosures at the end of the year due to several major banks initiating voluntary moratoria as homeowner lawsuits, news reports and Congressional hearings – like the one I chaired on November 18 – created a groundswell of public pressure demanding reform

BEVERLY HILLS, CA - January 14, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- International real estate investment and services firm Kennedy Wilson (NYSE: KW) today announced that the company and its partners have acquired Club Palisades, a 750-unit multifamily community in Federal Way, WA. The property is the second largest multifamily asset in the Seattle metro area and was purchased as an REO from a group of insurance companies.

Torrance, CA - January 6, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Lani Kaneshiro, regional manager of Keystone Pacific Property Management’s Irvine office, has been elected to the 2011 Board of Directors of the Community Association Institute (CAI). Her three-year term began on Jan. 1, 2011