Yearly Archives: 2012

DALLAS - December 17, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Eugene Lockhart, Jr. was sentenced this week by U.S. District Judge Jorge A. Solis to 54 months in federal prison and ordered to pay approximately $2.4 million in restitution following his guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, stemming from his leadership role in a massive mortgage fraud scheme that he and others ran in the Dallas area from approximately 2002 to 2005. Lockhart, of Carrollton, Texas, is the last of 10 defendants who were convicted in the scheme to be sentenced.

November 22, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- On November 21, 2012, Congressman Al Green sent a letter to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as well as to the Department of Justice (DOJ) calling to their attention an invidious message, which referenced young African Americans, posted on the property of an apartment complex, located in the Ninth Congressional District. Congressman Al Green asked the agencies to take whatever action they deemed appropriate.

WASHINGTON, DC - November 19, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congressman Randy Neugebauer (TX-19) issued the following statement in response to the annual audit released today by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). The audit revealed a $16.3 billion deficit in the FHA’s insurance fund.

Torrance, CA - November 2, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Westwood Financial Corp., one of the largest owner-operators of shopping centers in the U.S., has purchased the 14,500-square-foot Carrollton Retail Center in Texas. Westwood closed the transaction from start to finish in only three weeks.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - October 18, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Gov. Rick Perry joined Dan Wallrath, founder and president of Operation Finally Home, and Jonestown Mayor Deane Armstrong to break ground on a brand-new, mortgage-free home for U.S. Army Spc. Augustine "Augie" Pena and his family, provided by Operation Finally Home, Silverton Custom Homes and Henley Homes

COLLEGE STATION, TX - October 16, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Texas is wealthy, and real estate is a big reason. Texas’ 2011 real estate wealth was valued at $1.6 trillion or $65,432 worth of real estate for every Texan, regardless of age. That’s up 86.7 percent from the $35,055 in 1997.

Torrance, TX - October 3, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Lee & Associates, the nation’s largest broker-owned commercial real estate services firm, brokered the lease of 38,000 square feet in a 152,000-square-foot industrial building at 5300 George McVay, McAllen, Texas.

September 25, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- State Representative Eddie Lucio III announced the extension the Texas State Affordable Housing Corporation’s (TSAHC) down payment assistance programs to current homeowners and those who previously owned a home.

Washington, DC - September 19, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Large mortgage servicers have been ordered by federal bank regulators to identify borrowers who may have been harmed by errors and improper practices in foreclosure or threatened foreclosure and to review each of their mortgage files for financial harm.

WASHINGTON, DC - September 11, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today announced the approval of the State of Texas’ disaster recovery plan totaling $31.3 million in emergency aid to help several communities throughout the Lone Star State to recover from last year’s devastating wildfires. With the acceptance of this disaster plan, the real work of long-term disaster recovery throughout the State can now begin.

HOUSTON - August 31, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Lisa Carol Ross, 50, of Missouri City, Texas, has pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today, along with FBI Special Agent in Charge Stephen L. Morris and Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Special Agent in Charge Lucy Cruz.

AUSTIN, TX - August 21, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Increasing the coordination of employment and health service resources with local housing programs will make the state agencies that administer programs to address the issues of homelessness more effective, according to a study issued today by the Interagency Council on Homelessness.

Torrance, CA - August 10, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Westwood Financial Corp., one of the largest owner-operators of shopping centers in the U.S., has purchased Waterside Marketplace, a Kroger-anchored retail center in a suburb of Houston, Texas. The sale price was undisclosed.

Washington, D.C. - August 9, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, Congressman Silvestre Reyes (D-TX) announced that the U.S. Department of the Treasury will award the El Paso Credit Union Affordable Housing LLC (El Paso CU) a $98,400 federal grant to assist in the city’s affordable housing markets. El Paso will receive the award under the fiscal year 2012 funding round of the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Program.

AUSTIN, TX - July 30, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) today announced it has allocated $48.6 million in housing tax credits to developers of affordable rental properties, helping increase housing choices for the state’s growing population of younger working families and senior citizens.

WASHINGTON, DC - July 30, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congressman Randy Neugebauer (TX-19) is pleased to announce a Veteran’s Affairs grant to improve services to veterans in West Texas. The West Central Texas Regional Foundation was awarded nearly $500,000 to provide supportive services to veterans and their families to prevent homelessness. The grants will be used to fund three full-time staff members that will assist approximately 120 families with financial counseling, employment assistance, child care, transportation, and other services that either prevent homelessness or help families recover from the loss of housing. The foundation will focus on holistic approaches that help families continue being self-sustaining in the long-term.

AUSTIN, TX - July 27, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) today announced that it has awarded a $1.2 million contract to Webb County to continue funding operations of the county’s Colonia Self-Help Center, which promotes home ownership and self-sufficiency for residents living in five county colonias.

July 23, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- On Friday, July 13, the Texas Department of Insurance began receiving hundreds of emails from consumers all across Texas addressed to Commissioner Kitzman. The messages were identical and contained comments and suggestions concerning the state of the property insurance marketplace in Texas. Commissioner Kitzman reviewed these suggestions with her staff on July 17, and is in the process of gathering the necessary data and information to respond to each consumer in a substantive and comprehensive manner.

PLANO, TX - July 16, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Five individuals have been indicted have been indicted for their roles in a combination foreclosure rescue/drug distribution scheme in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales today

COLLEGE STATION, TX - July 13, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- By almost any measure, Texas homes are more affordable than the United States overall. But the gap is narrowing, said a residential expert with the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University.