California RealEstateRama

Washington, D.C. - July 22, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Rep. Mike Thompson joined with two House Republicans Wednesday in introducing legislation to protect the government-financed home and business energy retrofit programs that have run afoul of federal housing regulators.

Washington, D.C. - July 22, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- A government program that helped homeowners finance and install green upgrades before a technical roadblock stalled it last year may be resuscitated by Congress.

WASHINGTON, DC - July 21, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, Congresswoman Lois Capps (CA-23) announced that the San Luis Obispo County Housing Trust Fund has been awarded a $600,000 grant from the U.S. Treasury Department’s Community Development Financial Institution Fund. The grant will allow the Housing Trust Fund to provide low-interest financing for affordable housing for middle class families in San Luis Obispo County.

Washington, DC - July 21, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congresswoman Waters (CA), Ranking Member on the Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government Sponsored Enterprises, today led 11 of her colleagues in the House of Representatives urging U.S. bank regulators to publicly release information regarding the steps that mortgage servicers are taking to prevent illegal foreclosure practices. An identical letter was sent by U.S. Senator Robert Menendez (NJ), Chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development, and nine additional Senators.

Bipartisan PACE Bill Will Create Jobs at the Local Level Washington, D.C. - July 21, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today a bipartisan group of members – Reps. Mike Thompson (D-CA), Nan Hayworth, M.D. (R-NY), and Dan Lungren (R-CA) - introduced the PACE Protection Act of 2011.

San Francisco, CA - July 20, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mayor Edwin M. Lee today introduced legislation at the Board of Supervisors updating the Municipal Green Building Code to require U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certification for all municipal construction and major renovation projects over 5,000 square feet after September 1, 2011. Currently, only LEED Silver certification is required for municipal buildings, while LEED Gold is required for private sector buildings starting in 2012. This legislation updates green building standards for municipal construction projects that will secure San Francisco’s place as a national leader in resource efficient building.

SACRAMENTO, CA - July 20, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today the unsealing of an indictment charging seven real estate professionals with conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme. The indictment was returned by a federal grand jury on July 14, 2011.

IRVINE, CA - July 18, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Award-winning KTGY Group, Inc., Architecture and Planning, is pleased to announce that it is providing architectural design services for a new, mixed-use, 183,000-square-foot graduate student housing project to be developed by Hanover Pacific, LLC, in downtown Pomona, Calif., adjacent to the campus of Western University of Health Sciences (WesternU), a private, non-profit graduate school for health professions.

LAGUNA HILLS, CA - July 18, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The California Association of Community Managers (CACMSM) will celebrate its 20th anniversary at this year’s Statewide Expo & Conference at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim on July 28-July 29.

Washington, D.C. - July 15, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) today praised U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan’s announcement that the agency has awarded more than $10.5 million in federal grants to provide housing for homeless veterans in California. Grants will be distributed as 1,125 housing assistance vouchers by local housing agencies that have partnered with VA medical centers to benefit veterans all across the state.

Los Angeles, CA - July 15, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Del Rey Square Senior Housing Project is a new affordable housing community at 11976 Culver Boulevard in West Los Angeles. The project will contain 124 units (4 studios, 119 one-bedroom units and 1 two-bedroom manager’s unit) that will be targeted to households earning 60% of AMI or less. 30 of these units will be public housing units targeting senior and disabled households. The project is unique in its location on the Westside of Los Angeles, which suffers from a severe lack of affordable housing.

La Jolla, CA. - July 15, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Bay Area home sales rose sharply last month from May to the highest level for any month since June 2010, when outgoing homebuyer tax credits gave housing demand a final boost. The median price rose slightly from May but remained below the year-ago level for the ninth consecutive month amid a sluggish move-up market and a higher share of sub-$300,000 transactions, a real estate information service reported.

WASHINGTON, DC - July 13, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, Congresswoman Lois Capps (CA-23) voted for the Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2011 (H.R. 1309), which passed the House by a vote of 406-22. The bill re-authorizes the National Flood Insurance Program for five years, and makes needed reforms to address the financial stability of the program by phasing out non-essential premium subsidies. The legislation is particularly relevant for homeowners in the Santa Maria Valley and the cities of Oxnard and Ventura. The County of Santa Barbara, the County of Ventura, and the City of Santa Maria all written letters to the Congresswoman expressing support for the legislation.

Washington, D.C. - July 13, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) held a press conference call to discuss her bill, the Helping Responsible Homeowners Act of 2011, which would remove barriers that have prevented millions of homeowners with non-delinquent, Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac-backed mortgages from refinancing at historically low interest rates. She also urged the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, to use its existing authority to eliminate these obstacles to refinancing.

Washington, DC - July 13, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, the House Financial Services Committee approved legislation introduced by Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), the "Housing Trust Fund Elimination Act." Royce’s legislation eliminates the Affordable Housing Trust Fund established in 2008 as part of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act.

La Jolla, CA - July 12, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Southern California home sales last month shot up more than usual from May to the highest level for any month since June 2010, when the market got its last big boost from homebuyer tax credits. Sales of lower-cost homes, driven by investors and first-time buyers, and even high-end sales continued to outshine traditional move-up activity in middle price ranges, a real estate information service reported.

LOS ANGELES, CA - July 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Six Los Angeles County residents have been charged for their roles in a mortgage fraud scheme that used fraudulent loan applications and supporting documents to convince lenders to fund approximately 20 loans that resulted in approximately $4 million in losses.

IRVINE, CA - July 7, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Hanley Investment Group Real Estate Advisors, one of the most dominant retail investment groups in the western United States and a market leader in the sale of retail properties, announced today that the firm is now marketing for sale a portfolio of four shopping centers in southern California in Hawaiian Gardens, Lancaster, Mission Viejo and Oxnard. Consisting of approximately 517,870 total square feet, the four properties are offered for sale unpriced and can be purchased individually or as a portfolio.

TUSTIN, CA - July 6, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Gold Max of California announced today they are on track to open 100 Gold Max stores in Southern California within the next year. With more than 150 stores, Gold Max operates the United States’ largest chain of stores specializing in buying gold and precious metals from consumers. Gold Max entered the Southern California market in the fall of 2010 and opened 8 stores. Since retaining Present Value Properties as its exclusive real estate broker for California in early 2011, Gold Max has already opened 6 new stores in Southern California and will soon open 9 more. Currently, Present Value Properties is in negotiations on additional 23 stores for Gold Max in Southern California.

TUSTIN, CA - July 5, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Gregory A. Fisher of Present Value Properties, Inc., a full service retail real estate brokerage, and consulting firm headquartered in Tustin, Calif., announced today that Britt Nelson, a retail real estate veteran and the former President of NewCity Development, LLC and a consultant to the architectural and engineering, retail, municipal and development segments of the industry, has joined Present Value Properties as Vice President.