Real Estate News – January 23, 2012
The parents of a Pittsburgh boy who has health aversions to sunlight can add a retractable awning to the front of their home in settling a federal lawsuit against their neighborhood homeowner’s association (via WashingtonPost.com):
Philip Villasis, age 41, and Ray D. Gata, age 56, both of Chesapeake, Va., were indicted by a Norfolk federal grand jury on nine charges including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering (via LoanSafe.org): http://bit.ly/zTsisB
Federal authorities are investigating possible fraud at General Electric Co.’s former subprime mortgage arm amid increased public pressure to hold Wall Street accountable for its role in the financial crisis (via LATimes.com): http://lat.ms/woCRjK
A mortgage broker and the owner of a title closing company have pleaded guilty in federal court in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme involving the Cloud 9 condominium complex in Minnetonka. That complex, formerly an office building, was converted to condos by St. Paul developer Jerry Trooien. Trooien has not been charged in the scheme (via LoanSafe.org): http://bit.ly/xDq0sc
Oakdale backyard ice rink for kids must go, homeowners’ association says (via TwinCities.com): http://bit.ly/wx15GK
If you have lost a job and are in danger of falling behind on mortgage payments, here’s some potentially important news: The two largest players in mortgages, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, are revising their policies on forbearance when unemployment interferes with the ability to stay current on a home loan (via LATimes.com): http://lat.ms/xLtyCS
The nation’s five largest mortgage lenders have offered a draft settlement to pay out as much as $25 billion to cover new terms for homeowners driven out by foreclosure, but government officials said Monday the states won’t be able to close the deal before President Obama’s State of the Union address on Tuesday (via FoxNews.com):
http://fxn.ws/yZCi1y