News

New York–Citigroup has given up its bid for Wachovia, but not its state court lawsuit, in which the company is taking on Wachovia and Well Fargo for violation of an exclusivity agreement it had with Wachovia as it worked out details of its $2.2 billion buyout offer a couple of weeks ago.Ending the fight for the bank, federal antitrust regulators today approved the acquisition of the Wachovia Corp., by West Coast based Wells Fargo.Citigroup plans to seek $60 billion in damages, The New York Times reports. Wachovia negotiated a better $15 billion deal with Wells Fargo that may be sealed…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorWashington, D.C.–The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is charging The Townsend House Corp., a New York-based apartment building operator, with housing discrimination.According to HUD, The Townsend House Corp. refused to allow a family to obtain an animal to provide emotional support for their autistic child. Under the Fair Housing Act, which was modified in 1988, property managers or owners must make reasonable accommodations for the disabled.“We concluded that the co-op had, in fact, violated the law and we, as an agency, filed the equivalent of a lawsuit before an administrative law judge,” Bryan Greene,…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News Editor and Keat Foong, Executive EditorNew York–The stock market bloodbath intensified this week. Today, the Dow average closed at 8,451 and during the course of the day had even dipped below the 8,000 mark—for the first time since March 2003. How are multifamily financing observers reacting to the latest headlines? “The multifamily sector is relatively isolated from the carnage on Wall Street,” Nicholas Ingle, director of capital markets at Hendricks & Partners, tells MHN. “But the REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts) are being impacted. Their dividend yield rate is falling, which is making it difficult…

Dr. Delores Conway (pictured) is the director of the Casden Real Estate Economics Forecast at the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate and associate professor at the Marshall School of Business. This past month, Real Estate Southern CA Magazine listed Dr. Conway as one of the “50 Women of Influence in Real Estate.”  She is an elected fellow of the American Statistical Association and a recent chair of the Business and Economics Statistics Section. She also served on the editorial boards of major academic journals, including the Journal of the American Statistical Association.  Prior to joining USC, Dr. Conway served…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorBrooklyn, N.Y.–Hours before last week’s vice presidential debate, New York-based Douglaston Development hoisted a 100-ft.-by-28-ft. banner, proclaiming “Sarah Palin, Live Here, See Wall Street,” from the construction site of its new condominium, The Edge. The banner refers to Palin’s recent remarks about the proximity of Russia to Alaska.“It’s not driving people to look for apartments, but it is giving recognition to the project,” notes Jeffrey Levine, chairman of Douglaston Development, of his company’s unique marketing idea. Another tool the company employs is sending its sales team to make house calls for prospective buyers. “In addition to…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorWashington, D.C.–Federal Capital Partners (FCP) has closed its $230 million real estate private equity fund, FCP Fund I LP. The fully discretionary fund is targeted to equity and debt investments in residential and commercial properties and land throughout the mid-Atlantic region. FCP expects to use modest leverage in the fund, which will allow approximately $800 to $900 million of total investments. Concurrent with closing the fund, FCP has established a line of credit funded by a consortium of banks led by JP Morgan.”We are extremely pleased with our ability to raise capital in a difficult…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorChicago–An increasing number of housing foreclosures seen across the nation have turned more and more homeowners into renters, according to a national survey conducted by Apartments.com. The survey, which questioned nearly 2,000 people, revealed that a majority of U.S. renters are families who consciously choose renting over ownership, as it is more affordable and allows for a lifestyle they prefer. Of the surveyed, 11 percent have been renters less than one year, and 41 percent have been renters less than five years.Half of all survey respondents said they rent because it is a more affordable…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News Editor Washington, D.C.–Pending home sales activity, including condos, co-ops and single-family homes, surged as buyers took advantage of low home prices and affordable interest rates, according to the latest National Association of Realtors study. Although NAR does not break out the pending sales numbers based on the housing sector, condos and co-ops accounted for 12.6 percent of closed sales in August. This has been a fairly steady market share over the last couple years, according to NAR. The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in August, jumped 7.4 percent to 93.4…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorSacramento, Calif.–Calif. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed into legislation the nation’s first bill to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by curbing suburban sprawl.“When it comes to reducing greenhouse gases, California is first in tackling car emissions, first to tackle low-carbon fuels, and now with this landmark legislation, we are the first in the nation to tackle land-use planning,” Schwarzenegger said of the legislation. “What this will mean is more environmentally friendly communities, more sustainable developments, less time people spend in their cars, more alternative transportation options and neighborhoods we can safely and proudly pass on to future…