Hefty Tab
Did you get sued this year? If your answer is, “Yes, 10 times,” then you must be in real estate. According to the U.S. Litigation Trends survey from law firm Fulbright & Jaworski, the average American real estate company annually faces an average of 10 separate lawsuits pending in U.S. courts. As a result of these suits, real estate firms spent an average of $389,000 on litigation last year. Surprisingly, real estate had one of the lowest average numbers of pending lawsuits across the industries surveyed.
–Les Shaver
Whirlwind Tour
Jeff Stack, managing director of the Sares-Regis Group, participated in a Pentagon-sponsored weeklong tour of U.S. bases in the Middle East and Southwest Asia. The trip was designed to give civilians a first-hand look at U.S. military personnel and national defense strategies. Stops included military bases in Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, plus the USS Iwo Jima. “The quality of our military leadership today has improved dramatically since Vietnam,” says Stack, a Vietnam veteran. “Not only are they brave, they are more highly educated than ever before. I’ve returned home to Orange County with renewed faith in the future of our great country.”
–Rachel Z. Azoff
Bright Idea
The Philadelphia Housing Authority is greening its properties one light bulb at a time. The agency is replacing every bulb in its 17 senior communities with a compact fluorescent version. If the initiative proves to be successful, the agency will install fluorescent bulbs at its family developments.
–Rachel Z. Azoff
Lucky Break
Though Hope VI funding is perennially on the chopping block, HUD did grant $71.9 million in October to four housing authorities for replacing blighted homes. Housing authorities in Niagara Falls, N.Y., Easton, Pa., and Beaumont, Texas, each received grants of $20 million, while Kingsport, Tenn., received $11.9 million. Grantees were selected from a pool of 26 applications from public housing authorities across the country.
–Les Shaver
Big Haul
CB Richard Ellis Group has agreed to buy Trammell Crow Co. for $49.51 per share of common stock in cash. The deal, which will close in late 2006 or early 2007, is valued at approximately $2.2 billion. The new company will have combined pro-forma 2006 revenues of approximately $4.4 billion and 21,000 employees and would be the first commercial real estate services company to qualify for the Fortune 500 list of the largest U.S. corporations, according to CB Richard Ellis.
–Les Shaver
Football Frenzy
Developers are helping die-hard football fans get closer to the action. A number of condos are popping up near college football stadiums. Capstone Development Corp., a Birmingham, Ala.-based student housing developer, has a line of condos geared specifically to these sports-crazy alumni. Its latest project: Fieldhouse-Manhattan Condominiums, a 24-unit community in Manhattan, Kan., just 450 yards from the Kansas State University stadium. Prices start at $199,900 for a two-bedroom unit and $249,900 for a three-bedroom. Go Wildcats!
–Rachel Z. Azoff