Regions

New York–The Rev. Jesse Jackson, joined by members of Congress and the City Council, advised the Bush administration to address the subprime crisis during a packed meeting at City Hall Sunday, Newsday reports.Jackson, who was joined by Rep. John Conyers of Michigan and Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas, lead the forum, which was part of the Wall Street Project’s 11th annual Economic Summit. The equal opportunity organization’s conference lasts until Jan. 9 in New York.The Bush administration needs to pursue unscrupulous lenders more forcefully, Jackson said. He also predicted that the issue would be an important factor in the…

By Teresa O’Dea Hein, Managing EditorIrvine, Calif.–Scot Cool (pictured) has joined Keystone Pacific Property Management Inc., a southern California-based property management firm, as a community association manager. Cool will be based in the company’s Irvine, Calif. office. As a community association manager, Cool will be managing a portfolio of existing association communities located throughout Orange County. He will work closely with the board of directors to oversee the day-to-day operation of the associations; prepare and manage association budgets; and monitor maintenance vendors’ performance and compliance with contracts.

By Matthew Marin, Associate EditorAtlanta–VISTA, an Atlanta-based real estate investment company, in partnership with Real Estate Capital Partners, has broken ground for Marquis Vista, an upscale 225-unit, mid-rise apartment community in Atlanta. The partnership provided financing for the development. The project will be one of the latest multifamily additions to the rapidly growing Downtown market. The $35.6-million project was financed by a $29.9-million construction loan from Compass Bank, with Charles Markley acting as loan officer. “Marquis Vista is a unique, ultra-luxury multifamily community, offering unique living spaces to residents and workers in the downtown Atlanta area, a market that has…

Blackwood, N.J.– Fountainview Village LP has sold a 980-unit apartment building in Blackwood, N.J. to a joint venture group that includes Philadelphia-based Empire Realty for $51 million.Autumn Ridge Apartments sits on 52 acres and has a rentable building area of approximately 800,000 square feet.The 25-year-old complex features a fitness center, clubhouse, Olympic-sized swimming pool and two tennis courts. Empire Realty Investments Inc., has acquired and managed approximately 3,500 units, 4 million square feet and 1,000 acres of retail, office, multi-family and residential properties throughout the metropolitan Philadelphia area and in 15 states across the U.S.

By Erin Brereton, Content ManagerSilver Spring, Md.–Commercial real estate company Behringer Harvard, global asset manager Brookfield Real Estate Opportunity Fund and real estate company Fairfield Residential LLC have together arranged funding for a 15-story apartment building in Silver Spring, Md.Fairfield Residential intends to develop the Cameron House property into a $128.9 million Class A apartment building with 325 one- and two-bedroom apartments.With an estimated 302,469 square feet of rentable space, the property will also include a clubhouse, rooftop pool and 7,330 square feet of ground-floor retail space.”The development sits in one of Montgomery County’s most appealing neighborhoods, known for its…

Washington–Hampered by the housing decline and credit crisis, the U.S. unemployment rate hit its highest level since 2005 and employment was stagnant in December, according to a report released Friday by the Labor Department.In addition to the high unemployment rate, which shot up from 4.7 percent in November to 5 percent, the economy added the fewest amount of jobs in more than four years, The Washington Post reports.Total payrolls–encompassing both private employers and government–increased by a scant 18,000 in December, the lowest amount since the 2001 recession.Due to the housing slump, jobs were cut in the manufacturing, construction and financial…

Sacramento, Calif.–California’s housing decline–considered one of the nation’s worst–will hit bottom in 2008, according to the California Building Industry Association.The Sacramento, Calif.–based building industry trade group released a forecast Thursday that predicted developers will gain 10 percent more permits for 128,400 single-family and multifamily units this year, the The San Francisco Chronicle reports. The estimated number of permits in 2007 was 116,250, which was a 29 percent fall from the year before.The increase should start in the second half of 2008, the group said, as a result of population increases, lowered interest rates and a growing U.S. economy.However, several economists…

By Matthew Marin, Associate Editor  Yakima, Wash.–An environmentally friendly and affordable garden-style apartment complex for individuals and families earning 50 percent or less of the area median income recently opened in Yakima, Wash. Next Step Housing, the largest owner and operator of service-enriched, special needs housing in Eastern Washington; the Office of Rural and Farm Worker Housing; Enterprise Community Investment; Washington State Housing Trust Fund; and other development partners participated in the construction of Pear Tree Place, which comprises 26 units for successfully recovering substance abusers, homeless people and adults with developmental disabilities. The first tenants, including families with children,…

By Keat Foong, Executive EditorNew York—Tarragon Corp. has sold its interest in six properties in Florida and South Carolina for $156 million. The properties were sold to Northland Investment Corp. which assumed, extended and modified $108 million in existing financing from Barclays Capital Real Estate to finance the purchase, according to Tarragon. Tarragon says it is continuing to guarantee repayment of about 10 percent of the loan. Tarragon has been retained to manage all six properties on behalf of the Northland entities and may share in future profits from the sale and operation of the properties.“I am immensely pleased and…

New York–U.S. state capitals are having trouble funding budget deficits due to the biggest increase in borrowing costs in three years, Bloomberg reported Friday.Since July, the extra yield that investors require on 10-year bonds from California, Florida, Massachusetts and New York have doubled. In addition, property values are declining–along with consumer spending, hurting sales tax revenue, which funds one-third of state budgets.As a result, the next fiscal year 13 states will have cash deficits totaling $30 billion, according to Washington research group The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.A survey released last month by the National Conference of State Legislatures…