Residential
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November 14, 2025
7th Circ. Wary Of Takings Challenge To Chicago Tenant Law
A Seventh Circuit judge on Friday pressed counsel for a building owner, which opposes a Chicago law requiring owners of foreclosed rental properties to pay tenants a relocation fee or offer a new lease, to address the limits of its argument that those fees are an unconstitutional taking of its property.
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November 14, 2025
NC Coastal Erosion Spurs Call For Proactive Flood Coverage
North Carolina's governor and the state insurance commissioner are calling on Congress to pass a bill that would cover homes on the brink of collapsing into the ocean under the National Flood Insurance Program — a problem currently plaguing the state's shoreline, where coastal erosion has claimed 27 homes along the Outer Banks since 2020.
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November 14, 2025
Del. Lawmakers OK Pushing County's Property Tax Deadline
Delaware would extend a tax payment deadline for New Castle County property owners until the end of the year under a bill unanimously approved by state lawmakers and headed to the governor.
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November 14, 2025
Smith Anderson Adds Fox Rothschild Land Use Duo
Smith Anderson Blount Dorsett Mitchell & Jernigan LLP has welcomed land use duo Robin Tatum as partner and Catherine Hill as counsel, expanding the firm's land use practice in its office in Raleigh, North Carolina, where it is based. The lawyers, who are joined by paralegal Amanda Ball, arrive from Fox Rothschild LLP.
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November 14, 2025
Non-Attys Could Help Close Georgia's Civil Justice Gap
Low-income Georgians and rural Georgians face several barriers to accessing legal services, including living in a legal desert, according to a Georgia Supreme Court committee’s report. The panel's proposal allowing "limited licensed legal practitioners" to assist with civil housing and consumer debt matters could improve access to justice across the state.
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November 14, 2025
Geosam, Group RMC Unveil Ind. Office Redevelopment Project
Investment firm Geosam Capital and investment manager Group RMC will redevelop a 44-acre Carmel, Indiana, office building into a mixed-use property that will include a hotel, as well as residential, office and retail areas.
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November 14, 2025
2 Firms Guide Canadian REIT's $2.6B Asset Sale
H&R Real Estate Investment Trust announced that it is negotiating the sale of $2.6 billion in assets, guided by Blake Cassels and Fasken Martineau, after a special committee rejected wholesale acquisition offers.
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November 13, 2025
NC Biz Court Bulletin: Rulings Spotlight Coverage Clashes
The North Carolina Business Court plowed into the fourth quarter with two big decisions in insurance disputes that involved $50 million in COVID-19-related losses at a chain of outlet malls, and an industrial accident at a Nucor Corp. iron plant in Louisiana.
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November 13, 2025
Wash. Court Backs Tax Dept. In $500K Tax Refund Dispute
A Washington property management company did not merit an exclusion from state gross income for payments to onsite employees, a state appeals court panel ruled, upholding a trial court decision and denying a nearly $500,000 refund bid.
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November 13, 2025
Wells Fargo Must Face Mortgage Borrowers' Fee Claims
Wells Fargo can't shed a proposed class action alleging it improperly charged mortgage borrowers certain fees and failed to properly remediate the issue, according to a ruling by a San Francisco federal judge, which also trimmed some claims.
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November 13, 2025
Housing Authority Pans 'Confusing' Bid To Revive Bias Claims
The public housing authority in Charlotte, North Carolina, has called a former coordinator's attempt to revive long-dismissed claims in her hostile work environment case that already went to trial "confusing" and "frivolous," saying the court should dismiss her request outright.
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November 13, 2025
Mass. Board Won't Limit Condo Value For Co-Op Member
A Boston condominium owned by a cooperative was correctly assessed, a Massachusetts panel ruled in a decision released Thursday, declining to reduce the tax valuation to the amount the co-op's remaining shareholder said she could receive for her shares.
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November 13, 2025
Shutts & Bowen Brings Back Real Estate Ace In Orlando, Fla.
Shutts & Bowen LLP announced Thursday that a real estate attorney has returned to the firm as a partner in Orlando, Florida, after having stepped away from legal work to run a family-owned candle business with her brother.
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November 13, 2025
Multifamily REIT Closes $1.6B Portfolio Sale, Nets $520M Loan
Multifamily real estate investment trust Elme Communities has wrapped up its $1.6 billion portfolio sale of 19 multifamily communities to a Cortland Partners LLC affiliate and borrowed a $520M senior secured term loan from Goldman Sachs Bank USA, the REIT announced.
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November 13, 2025
'Antiquated' Mass. Condo Unit Overvalued, Tax Board Says
A standalone condominium unit in Massachusetts was overvalued, the state Appellate Tax Board said in a decision released Thursday, agreeing with the owners that the property lacked the updates of those used for value comparisons by the local assessor.
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November 13, 2025
NYC OKs Long Island City Rezoning, Earmarks $1.9B Funding
The New York City Council unanimously approved a plan to rezone 54 blocks in Long Island City on Wednesday, enabling the construction of 14,700 new housing units with significant affordability mandates.
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November 13, 2025
Fox Rothschild Adds Steptoe & Johnson Real Estate Ace
Fox Rothschild LLP has added a partner in Dallas from Steptoe & Johnson PLLC who boasts decades of experience advising clients on retail and mixed-use developments, as well as affordable housing projects.
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November 13, 2025
Ohio Lawmakers OK Property Tax Valuation Process Changes
Ohio would make changes to its process for adjusting proposed property values for tax purposes under a bill unanimously approved by state lawmakers and headed to Gov. Mike DeWine.
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November 12, 2025
Ex-NY Gov. Aide Tells Jury FARA Rap Is A Bridge Too Far
Counsel for former New York state government official Linda Sun told a Brooklyn federal jury Wednesday that prosecutors overreached by accusing her of acting as an undisclosed agent for the People's Republic of China, saying the former aide was just doing her job as the go-between linking two Empire State governors and the Chinese-American community.Â
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November 12, 2025
2nd Circ. Upholds Airbnb Win In NYC Landlord's Suit
The Second Circuit affirmed a lower court's dismissal of a New York City landlord's lawsuit accusing Airbnb Inc. of enabling illegal short-term rentals and costing it more than $100,000 in city fines, finding the property owner failed to meet a deadline to respond to a magistrate judge's report and recommendation.Â
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November 12, 2025
8th Circ. Will Rehear Travelers' $27M Fire Award Challenge
The Eighth Circuit agreed Wednesday to revisit its previous split decision affirming a Missouri-based apartment complex owner's $27 million jury award against a Travelers unit in a fire coverage dispute.
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November 12, 2025
Wachtell Helps Centerspace Weigh Potential Company Sale
Centerspace, under the guidance of Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz LLP, is considering whether it should sell itself, merge with another company or stay independent, the apartment communities operator and owner announced.
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November 12, 2025
Supply Shaped Multifamily In Q3, REIT Execs Report
Though an ongoing oversupply in the multifamily market is set to drop off in 2026, multifamily real estate investment trust executives reported during third-quarter earnings calls that supply still defined the sector, driving a focus on renewals.
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November 12, 2025
9th Circ. Says Finance Guru Ramsey Can't Arbitrate Fraud Suit
A Ninth Circuit panel rejected celebrity financial planner Dave Ramsey's bid to force arbitration in a proposed class action accusing him of roping radio show listeners into a timeshare exit scheme, concluding Wednesday the suit isn't tied to the consumers' contract with Reed Hein & Associates.
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November 12, 2025
MVP: Cadwalader's Christopher Dickson
Christopher Dickson of Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft LLP's real estate practice was lead partner advising lenders Wells Fargo, Morgan Stanley and The Goldman Sachs Group in the record-breaking $1.15 billion refinancing of a mixed-use waterfront development in Washington, D.C., earning him a spot as one of the 2025 Law360 Real Estate MVPs.
Latham Atty Talks SEC's Bid To Revive Public RMBS
There hasn't been a public offering of residential mortgage-backed securities since financial crisis-era reforms dissuaded the market from issuing them, but that may change under the current administration, said a veteran of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission who recently joined Latham & Watkins LLP.
Condo Lawyers Prep Amid Immigration Enforcement Surge
Between discussions on building inspections, shared facilities and board elections, residential association attorneys at a conference in South Florida last week turned their attention to a less obvious but certainly hot-button topic — immigration.
Welltower Inks $14B Worth Of Senior Housing Purchases
Welltower Inc. is set to complete $14 billion worth of deals to acquire 700 senior housing communities with more than 46,000 total units, all in the U.S., U.K. and Canada, the real estate investment trust announced Monday.
Expert Analysis
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How Calif. Zoning Bill Is Addressing The Housing Crisis
The recently signed S.B. 79 represents a significant step in California's ongoing efforts to address the housing crisis by upzoning properties near qualifying transit stations in urban counties, but counsel advising on S.B. 79 will have to carefully parse eligibility and compliance with the bill and related statutes, says Jennifer Lynch at Manatt.
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NYC Landlords Should Fight Unlawful Occupancy With 2 Laws
New York City property owners should proactively use the Multiple Dwelling Law and Administrative Code to maintain the integrity of the city's housing market, safeguard tenant safety and keep unlawful occupancy disputes out of the already overwhelmed New York City Housing Court, say attorneys at Rosenberg & Estis.
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Key NY State Grand Jury Rules Can Shape Defense Strategy
As illustrated by recent cases, New York state's grand jury rules are more favorable than their federal counterparts, offering a genuine opportunity in some cases for a white collar criminal defendant to defeat or meaningfully reduce charges that a prosecutor seeks to bring, says Ethan Greenberg at Anderson Kill.
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New Mass. 'Junk Fee' Regs Will Be Felt Across Industries
The reach of a newly effective regulation prohibiting so-called junk fees and deceptive pricing in Massachusetts will be widespread across industries, which should prompt businesses to take note of new advertising, pricing information and negative option requirements, say attorneys at Hinshaw.
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Addressing Legal Risks Of AI In The Homebuilding Industry
Artificial intelligence is transforming the homebuilding industry, but the legal challenges posed by its adoption spread across many areas, including contractual liability and intellectual property issues, so builders should adopt strategies to mitigate the risks and position themselves for success, says Philip Stein at Bilzin Sumberg.
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Compliance Steps To Take As FCRA Enforcement Widens
As the Fair Credit Reporting Act receives renewed focus from both federal and state enforcers, regulatory and litigation risk is most acute in several core areas, which companies can address by implementing purpose processes and quick remediation of consumer complaints, among other steps, say attorneys at Wiley.
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How Calif. Law Cracks Down On Algorithmic Price-Fixing
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed two laws this month significantly expanding state antitrust enforcement and civil and criminal penalties for the use or distribution of shared pricing algorithms, as the U.S. Department of Justice has recently wielded the Sherman Act to challenge algorithmic pricing, say attorneys at Pillsbury.
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New Conn. Real Estate Laws Will Reshape Housing Landscape
With new legislation tackling Connecticut's real estate landscape, introducing critical new requirements and legal ambiguities that demand careful interpretation, legal counsel will have to navigate a significantly altered and more complex regulatory environment, say attorneys at Harris Beach.
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Md. Ruling Spotlights Source-Of-Income Discrimination
In Hare v. David S. Brown Enterprises, the Maryland Supreme Court recently ruled that landlords cannot impose income requirements that disqualify tenants relying on housing vouchers, raising questions about applying the disparate impact doctrine in source-of-income discrimination cases, says Yvette Pappoe at the University of the District of Columbia.
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Colo. Law Brings Some Equilibrium To Condo Defect Reform
Colorado's American Dream Act, effective next year, does not eliminate litigation risk for developers entirely, but it does introduce a process, some predictability and a more holistic means for parties to resolve condominium construction defect claims, and may improve the state's housing shortage, says Bob Burton at Winstead.
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A Primer For Lenders On NY's New Mortgage Disclosure Regs
A recent New York regulation requiring licensed lenders and mortgage bankers to distribute a significant new disclosure pamphlet, essentially a borrower bill of rights, to applicants serves as a reminder to the industry to follow existing best practices, says Scott Samlin at Blank Rome.
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Trump Tax Law Has Mixed Impacts On Commercial Real Estate
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act brings sweeping changes to the real estate industry — and while the permanency of opportunity zones and bonus depreciation creates predictability for some taxpayers, sunsetting incentives for renewable energy projects will leave others with hard choices, says Jordan Metzger at Cole Schotz.
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DOJ Settlement Offers Guide To Avoiding Key Antitrust Risks
The U.S. Justice Department's settlement with Greystar Management shows why parties looking to acquire companies that use pricing recommendation software should carefully examine whether the software algorithm and how it is used in the market create antitrust dangers, say attorneys at Fried Frank.