November 2006

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FEMA Told to Resume Storm AidThe Bush administration unconstitutionally denied aid to tens of thousands of Gulf Coast residents displaced by hurricanes Katrina and Rita and must resume payments immediately, a federal judge ordered yesterday. November 30, 2006
Housing Bill Targets Income Diversity… City Council President Sheila Dixon, who becomes mayor in January and has been a strong proponent of affordable housing, is expected to champion the issue … November 30, 2006
Boston: Housing Rehab Plan Gets $2.8m… a longstanding goal of finding a productive reuse for the historic school building while also providing a much-needed boost to our affordable housing stock for … November 30, 2006
Study Shows ‘Poverty’ Neighbourhoods in BelgiumIt also shows the dramatic effects of gentrification in some neighbourhoods, diving society and pushing the poorest to other, often worst off, neighbourhoods … November 30, 2006
Involvement in Social Housing May Be a Good Move for UK …… Mr Medhurst explained Orchard and Shipman’s involvement in social housing. … developments and to integrate families into neighbourhoods without discrimination. November 30, 2006
New London, CT: Church Suing City For Discrimination… to the winning bidders, who have each proposed housing developments. The complaints do not detail evidence of the alleged discrimination, because the burden is … November 30, 2006
Domestic Violence in the Workplace: A primer for Employers—San Diego… or the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA … be implicated in workplace violence situations … Domestic violence victims may also be afforded protections … November 30, 2006
Akron, OH: Elderly Woman Falls Victim to Predatory LendingPredatory lending is something many people are not aware of, creating the possibility that they could be the next victim, read story and view video of news report. November 30, 2006
New Haven, CT: City Builds New Affordable Housing… The project will replace 256 older public housing units with 160 new units, 29 market rate rental units and 37 affordable housing units. November 30, 2006
Housing a Top Concern in StateA shortage of affordable housing, a crucial issue in prospering Centre County for the past three years, is a key concern of Pennsylvanians across … November 30, 2006
Philadelphia: Roosevelt Nesmith of NAACP, 88He fought against racial harassment and violence, job discrimination and school curriculums … the so-called Mount Laurel rulings that govern fair housing in New … November 30, 2006
New York: Challenging a Tax Break for Housing DevelopersA project that includes affordable housing deserves taxpayer subsidy. We are completely eliminating the tax break for pure market-rate development.” November 30, 2006
Maine: Below-Market Priced Housing to be CreatedThe need for affordable housing in Brooklin, long recognized and studied, has brought about a plan to remedy the situation. November 30, 2006
Supreme Court Referees Dispute between Wachovia, State Regulators“Michigan and other states want to be able to help protect their citizens against abusive and predatory lending practices,” John Blanchard, assistant attorney … November 30, 2006
BBC News: Forty Years after the Seminal Film, a New Housing Challenge …… rises. Respected economist Kate Barker notes that the greatest shortage is in affordable housing for people on low incomes. This … November 30, 2006
Ontario: WISH Housing Project Needs More Political Support, say MembersThe WISH project applied to the first phase of a regional project, which is building more affordable housing in the region, last November, but they were still … November 30, 2006
Is Craiglist.com Responsible for Discriminatory Rental Ads PostedThe Chicago Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights had sued the site, alleging that Craigslist had violated the federal Fair Housing Act (FHA) by allowing … November 29, 2006
FB City Attorneys Tailored Ordinance… Kim Kendrick, HUD’s assistant secretary for fair housing and equal opportunity, said federal laws against housing discrimination do not include immigration or … November 29, 2006
Alabama Housing Discrimination Claims SettledThe Justice Department reached a housing discrimination case settlement Tuesday with a landlord in Saraland accused of trying to force a … November 29, 2006
Settlement Reached in Housing Discrimination CaseAn Oshkosh woman who filed a housing discrimination complaint against a pair of Oshkosh landlords after comments discouraged her from pursuing the housing … November 29, 2006
Arkansas: City Tackles Obstacles to Fair HousingFair housing issues come up for both renters and homebuyers, and Rogers launched a study Tuesday to figure out what those issues might be locally. November 29, 2006
GIVING BACK: Jacksonville, FL Neighbors Debate Proposed Halfway House… troubled enough and doesn’t need a group home for recovering drug addicts and alcoholics against the home’s owner who says federal fair housing laws prohibit … November 29, 2006
New York: Council Hears Housing Woes… Committee members also cited a report last month from the National Fair Housing Alliance that accused the Corcoran Group of discriminating against blacks by … November 29, 2006
Developers Face a Chillier Montgomery CountyMontgomery County Executive-elect Isiah “Ike” Leggett (D) is vowing to address what some critics describe as a culture of coziness between developers and government officials that has often favored the building industry and marginalized ordinary residents. November 28, 2006
Europe’s Quiet IntegrationOne year after riots set French housing projects ablaze, Europe appears to be … that nearly every family she knows has had some incidence of domestic violence. November 28, 2006
Racism Widespread in Europe… noted cases of people with foreign names being turned down for rental apartments in Belgium and cases of discrimination in access to housing noted especially … November 28, 2006
Race-Based Review… that the two school systems are engaging in racial discrimination, the legal … justify racial balancing in many other contexts (employment, housing, the makeup … November 28, 2006
Howell Faces Dec. 13 Deadline on Housing… may not be able to please all residents, said an attorney hired by the municipality to deal with requirements of the state Council on Affordable Housing (COAH … November 28, 2006
Stamford, CT Area Residents Say Housing is Becoming Harder to AffordDespite attempts to address an acute shortage of affordable housing, the problem is getting worse, according to most people surveyed an Advocate and Greenwich … November 28, 2006
State Senate Panel Approves Bill Prompted by Contaminated Day-Care …… weakened it where we didn’t want it weakened and didn’t strengthen it the way we wanted them to strengthen it.” New Jersey Environmental Justice Alliance and … November 28, 2006
Sana’a Schools Get Low Grades… some teachers with families are forced to move from one apartment to the next in search of inexpensive housing accommodations. … All of that seems reasonable. November 28, 2006
Area Affordable-Housing Plan UnveiledA Charlottesville City Council-appointed committee tasked in August with finding ways to increase and improve the city’s stock of affordable housing has come … November 28, 2006
Cape Shelves Housing DecisionFour- and five-story buildings filled with apartment dwellers may be needed to increase Cape Coral’s stock of affordable housing. November 28, 2006
Montana Treatment Facility Subject of Lawsuit… recently filed a civil complaint against the city of Billings, the City Council and Mayor Ron Tussing alleging they violated federal fair housing and anti … November 28, 2006
Council Ponders Move to Restrict Housing… Herman & Kittle has attracted an ally in the Greater New Orleans Fair Housing Action Center, which has asked the city to withdraw the proposal. November 28, 2006
Mayor Wilder Housing Initiative Killed… put more housing units on tracts of land than the city (Richmond, VA) code now allows, but only if they set aside a few of the additional units as affordable housing, or paid … November 28, 2006
Atlanta Mayor Offers 3 Plans to Increase Affordable Housing… clerks and teachers, said Ron Terwilliger, chairman and CEO of Trammell Crow Residential who led the mayor’s task force that created the affordable housing plan … November 28, 2006
Newton Expands Affordable HousingNewton, MA could increase its affordable housing stock, thanks to a new program that will grant homeowners up to $90,000 to create or legalize accessory … November 28, 2006
Coleman Nixes Housing PlanThe province won’t join a Greater Vancouver Regional District proposal to build more affordable housing or contribute a requested $100 million. November 28, 2006
$30 Million for Affordable Housing ProjectAgency for private investments in economic development and growth, is assisting the Government of Ghana with $30 million to promote affordable housing for the … November 28, 2006
The Unified New Orleans Plan (UNOP): Community Congress II Joins Thousands in 20 CitiesOn December 2nd in 20 cities around the country, thousands of New Orleans citizens - living at home and in the disapora - will come together to decide the most important projects we need to invest in to rebuild our city. All the meetings will be connected together, linking people who have been able to return with those who are still displaced for a true community-wide discussion. November 27, 2006
Ohio Court Curtails Stricter Predatory Lending LawLast week, the court struck down a Cleveland law aimed at curbing predatory lending, ruling 5-2 that less stringent state laws preempted the city’s initiative … November 27, 2006
National Housing Federation: What Have We Done to Eradicate …“We call upon the government to invest £11.6 billion in new affordable housing in next year’s Comprehensive Spending Review, delivering 210,000 affordable … November 27, 2006
City should do more to expand affordable housing… city jobs. Mayor Daley has responded by proposing to expand a city program aimed at developing more affordable housing. But a coalition … November 27, 2006
Twenty Five Years of Standing Up… are now resources like CARDV available for those exposed to domestic violence. O’Mara said CARDV is working with Corvallis Neighborhood Housing Services to … November 27, 2006
Mental Illness Dilemma for Jail… members generally support the idea of providing more housing and treatment … such as supporting victims of sexual assault and domestic violence, helping troubled … November 27, 2006
Affordable Housing: United Arab Emirates… Hence the need for more subsidised and affordable housing facilities. The fact is that the impressive improvement in the lifestyles comes at a price. November 27, 2006
A Collaborative Effort to Spur Affordable Housing… of the Fairfield County Community Foundation (FCCF) in Wilton, which donated $250,000 to The Fairfield County Collaborative Fund for Affordable Housing. November 27, 2006
Lattes, Lofts Invade Mean Streets of Southie… price. Some new condos sell for more than $1 million. While gentrification probably was inevitable, tourism was a real surprise. November 27, 2006
Coleman Pans Affordable Housing PlanThe province won’t join a Greater Vancouver Regional District proposal to build more affordable housing or contribute a requested $100 million. November 24, 2006
Metro Churches Link Up To Lift Families Out of PovertyTo keep her housing and put food on the table she took temporary work … Nevetta Barton says she is the victim of domestic violence and has kept moving herself, to … November 24, 2006
Nyack woman, New Rochelle Rabbi to Get Westchester County Human …… “I’d either be told I was overqualified or had no experience. Later, she and her husband filed a housing discrimination lawsuit that made the news. November 24, 2006
Anti-predatory Lending Bill DefendedIn an effort to stem the number of foreclosures, House Bill 4050 (PA 94-280) created the nation’s first predatory lending database as a trial program in Cook … November 24, 2006
Affordable Housing Projects Receive $2.4 MillionAffordable housing projects in Burlington and Brattleboro received more than $2.4 million from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston, with more than $1 million … November 24, 2006
Substandard Housing: Family Thankful for New Home… “It’s hard to find housing in Grand Island unless you’re willing to pay … Discrimination can play a role, especially with the area’s growing Latino population. November 24, 2006
The Crisis Around Central High… Dodds saw his own parents forced from their home in Boston by taxes after their once-affordable neighborhood underwent gentrification. November 24, 2006
‘Apprentice’ Runner-Up on Black Power in Business… Mr. JACKSON: Gentrification and the changing of these neighborhoods through economic forces is a natural process of capitalism. November 24, 2006
Cleveland: Foreclosures Weigh On MarketOhio’s foreclosure rate — the highest in the nation — is weighing on Cleveland’s real estate market. In a one-two punch, manufacturing job losses and predatory lenders have hurt homeowners. November 21, 2006
Top Court Overturns Predatory Loan BanThe Ohio Supreme Court ruled that Cleveland laws prohibiting predatory lending are unconstitutional because they forbid loans that state regulations allow in … November 21, 2006
Group Disputes Housing DealAGREEMENT UNDER FIRE: Fair Share Housing Center contends the state violated its own rules when it allowed Colts Neck to pay nearly $3 million for Long Branch to accept the township’s affordable-housing obligation. November 21, 2006
Overwhelming Demand for Expansion Doubles the Size of Dottie’s …… the same financial concerns that affect many New Jersey residents are an obstacle to independence, say domestic violence experts. Affordable housing is an … November 21, 2006
Historically Black Neighborhood: Cherry Residents Resist Developer… The most vocal of the crowd worried that the development would speed up the kind of gentrification that has taken hold in so many Charlotte neighborhoods, and … November 21, 2006
Affordable Housing Oasis DemolishedDemolition workers on Monday began knocking down the Cameo Apartments, a building that once offered affordable housing on Miami’s expensive east side but had … November 21, 2006
Partnership Takes Affordable Housing NorthThe Biloxi Housing Authority wants to expand affordable housing to the north. At a news conference on Monday, Housing officials … November 21, 2006
Judge Rules for Craigslist in Discriminatory Housing Ads Case… made to Craigslist’s housing board between the months of July and October, 2005 were openly discriminatory and thus were illegal under the 1968 Fair Housing Act … November 20, 2006
Morgan Hill Gets $2M for Affordable Housing… Finance Agency (CalHFA) said Monday it is giving $7.75 million in funding to Morgan Hill and two other Bay Area cities to help create affordable housing. November 20, 2006
Maine Awarded $3.6 Million In Funding For Affordable Housing… In all, 15 initiatives in New England received almost $15.0 million in grants, loans, and rate subsidies as part of the Bank’s Affordable Housing Program (AHP … November 20, 2006
Indianapolis: Most Affordable US Housing Market… NAHB). It was the fifth straight quarter that Indianapolis was the most affordable major housing market in the United States. Where … November 20, 2006
The Housing Partnership Network Launches Gulf Coast Housing …… This type of work is consistent with our mission to create fit and affordable housing for low-income Americans and help them move up and out of poverty into … November 20, 2006
Finally, Affordable Housing in Mumbai… of development rights or TDR along western and eastern expressways and suburban railway tracks, could lead to an estimated 50,000 more housing units being … November 20, 2006
US Department of HUD Charges Garden Grove Landlords With Refusing to Rent to Hispanics… that seven complaints it filed with the US Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) have resulted in HUD issuing charges of housing discrimination. November 20, 2006
Oakland Council in Pre-Dellums Rush to Reward Speculators… years. Speculators hate this “conversion right” requirement because it slows down the potential gentrification of Oakland. Still … November 20, 2006
Task Force Calls for Housing Ordinance… The group is recommending that an ordinance have strategies for getting affordable housing in developments that call for five or more units, and also for … November 20, 2006
Locals Helped to Climb Housing Ladder… The borough council has already successfully used a local priority system in the allocation of affordable housing in so-called “exception sites”, where … November 20, 2006
Cisneros’ New Career: Helping Foster Affordable Housing… But as the housing market cools, the likelihood of a glut of expensive homes and a shortage of affordable ones grows, especially in cities where land is … November 20, 2006
GVRD Pushes to Create $250M Housing TrustA draft Greater Vancouver housing strategy proposes to ratchet up regional fees to help raise a $250 million fund for affordable housing. November 20, 2006
As We See It: Affordable housing: Par 3 Plays Tough… What’s happening is that the county has to rezone a total of 32 acres for affordable housing to satisfy the state’s housing plan; these sites will be chosen … November 20, 2006
Affordable Housing Moves Slowly… to break ground in Charlotte County since Hurricane Charley is starting to take shape, but two others have been delayed as affordable housing remains scarce in … November 20, 2006
New Places to Seek Refuge… Harbor House, a domestic-violence shelter in Orange County, will open its new 48 … as the booming real-estate market has made finding affordable housing difficult … November 20, 2006
Fines Pile Up For Affordable Housing Trust With No MembershipThe 30-year-old affordable housing trust, which has real estate throughout the city, has been struggling for the past several years. November 20, 2006
Jobs, Housing Help - As Does Each ‘Grain of Sand’… Long Beach needs more affordable housing so residents don’t need to double- and triple-up in units, as many of the families featured in this series do. November 20, 2006
‘Lockdown’ Rules Keep Immigrants’ Kids from Playing OutsideFamilies “are living under lockdown in many apartment complexes,” said Elizabeth Pierson, president and chief executive officer of the Fair Housing Council of … November 19, 2006
Escondido Rental Law Raises Questions About Discrimination… and goes into effect, it could put landlords in the tenuous position of violating the city law or violating state and federal fair housing laws, critics say. November 19, 2006
Answers To Queens Housing Crunch May Take Some TimeDuring the Queens Affordable Housing Summit held recently, Father Al LoPinto, vicar for human services of the Roman … November 16, 2006
Mass March to Baton Rouge in Protest of Recovery EffortsRenters should be able to return to a City where there is affordable housing; not housing priced out of the range of the majority of New Orleans’ working people. Those who had homes with paid off mortgages should have their homes … November 16, 2006
Evicted Tenants Struggle for Housing… notices in August, settled in court last month after claiming discrimination: The mostly low-income Latino tenants said Conquest Student Housing, the alleged … November 16, 2006
Realtor Complaint Moves Forward HUD Officials Say Agent’s Former …… 3 signed off on the documentation received from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity office based in Chicago … November 16, 2006
Strip TeaseYavocka Young believes Anacostia could be east-of-the-river’s Old Town. Except for all the nonprofits and vacant storefronts and electrical wires overhead. November 16, 2006
Hopewell Borough Planners Adopt Housing Scheme… In updating the borough’s 2000 Housing Plan to comply with the third round of requirements issued by the state Council on Affordable Housing (COAH) in December … November 16, 2006
Judge Tosses Craigslist Lawsuit Over Allegedly Discriminatory Ads… allegedly discriminatory housing ads posted by its users, a federal judge in Chicago ruled in a case pitting landmark internet and fair housing laws against … November 16, 2006
Bridging the Racial Divide… percent white. All that changed in the 1960s, when the federal government passed the Civil Rights and Fair Housing Acts. By the … November 16, 2006
Disability Rights Commission: Response to Human Rights and Independent Living Measures in Queen’s Speech… transport and housing rights and the forthcoming public sector disability equality duty from this December) and legislation outlawing discrimination on grounds … November 16, 2006
New Initiative Bolsters Green Affordable Housing Efforts… the US Green Building Council (USGBC) have partnered to expand the benefits of green building for developers, operators and residents of affordable housing. November 16, 2006
Predatory-lending Law Draws Mixed Reaction… Columbus office of Policy Matters Ohio, another nonprofit, said a survey of Ohio sheriffs, who conduct sales after foreclosures, found predatory lending to be … November 16, 2006
Developer Sues Over Affordable Housing Requirements… with approval to build 150 age-restricted condominiums on Mountain Avenue is suing the town and its planning board over affordable housing requirements. November 16, 2006
Equity sharing provides fast track to home ownership… Bankers Association of America has unveiled a consumer education campaign called Stop Mortgage Fraud in an attempt to help prevent scams and predatory lending. November 16, 2006
Speak Out: Denver Just Keeps Shifting The Homeless About… somewhere.”. Which they did for a while until they were dispersed throughout the city by the attempted gentrification of Curtis Park. November 13, 2006
San Mateo County: EPA Directs Public Housing Residents to Move… LaDonna Williams, the executive director of People for Children’s Health and Environmental Justice, sent the Board of Supervisors a letter Thursday asking … November 13, 2006
Do Zillow.com’s Web Property Estimates Violate Federal Consumer Laws?… door to a variety of deceptive and predatory real estate practices in low-income neighborhoods - practices that may themselves violate the Fair Housing Act (FHA … November 13, 2006
Selectmen Left Questioning Profit from Sale of Affordable Housing… “We should ask [the inspector general] to redesign the deed riders so they’re written to give more people the ability to buy affordable housing,” Kimball said … November 13, 2006
Bethel Battles Affordable Housing SuitsFor the second time this year, the state Superior Court reversed the town’s denial of an affordable housing project proposed for Reservoir Street. November 13, 2006
Rev Invested in God & man… more private development to the area, increasing the housing and business stock … in civil rights doctrine intent on ending racial discrimination, Flake contends … November 13, 2006
Good and Bad News in the Trafalgar Inner City Report 2006The good news is that the Gautrain should lead to more inner city investment, says Neil Fraser, but the bad news is that the poor are, once again, being marginalised. November 13, 2006
R.H. Scott, The Mortgage Auditor, Provides Insider’s Look at Predatory Lending PracticesA retired mortgage banker has broken ranks, offering prospective home buyers and homeowners alike an insiderâ€™s look at predatory lending practices which … November 13, 2006
Aldermen Will Revise October Ordinance On Affordable HousingOne month ago, the Evanston City Council approved an inclusionary housing ordinance, ending three years of debate for affordable housing. Monday night, the aldermen could revise the ordinance and reintroduce items that were removed from … November 13, 2006
Coalition Says Escondido’s Anti-Immigrant Housing Law Is Unconstitutional, IllegalLandlords, Tenants Fight Back, File Suit to Halt Enforcement… November 13, 2006
Illegal Suites Seen as Key to Affordable HousingThe City of Vernon is being urged to bring illegal suites into the mainstream as a way of addressing the shortage of affordable housing in the community. November 13, 2006
HAWS Wants Inquiry… violations of the city code and the state and federal fair-housing laws … the lease agreements that they sign with landlords if they report discrimination that is… November 7, 2006
Growing Pains in North BrooklynWhile some people dislike the growth itself, others are upset that the city has not kept up with the developers — either in terms of enforcement or promises of affordable housing. There are have been 337 construction-related complaints… November 6, 2006
Housing Plan Sparks RowA new trend in suburban housing for Quebec seniors has provoked a … age-discrimination complaint against the developer with the Quebec Human Rights Commission… November 6, 2006
White Resident Joins Housing Bias Lawsuit in St. BernardFair housing advocates, joined by a local property owner, last week asked a federal court to enjoin St. Bernard Parish from enforcing… November 6, 2006
Get Real Help… Plenty of the calls that do come in are from victims of predatory lending practices, said Gossner and Cooper, a financial education counselor November 6, 2006
Web site’s free home-value estimates under fire… on Zillow.com to perpetrate fraud in our nation’s markets, often by targeting consumers in violation of federal and state fair-housing laws,” the complaint … November 5, 2006
NE Housing Plan Slammed… “Where are the corporate dollars that are going to support the educational vehicle for Ward 7?” he asked. “It’s gentrification… November 5, 2006
Don’t be a Victim… Several months and phone calls later, the couple realized they were victims of predatory lending - tactics and scams used by brokers and lenders to boost … November 5, 2006
Brownfields May Give Rise to Housing… trying to stimulate the cleanup of contaminated, old industrial sites by making $21 million available to create at least 300 units of affordable housing on them … November 4, 2006
Los Angeles’ Proposition H: Housing Hocus-PocusIf I could wave my magic wand, Proposition H—the billion-dollar “affordable” housing bond measure—would disappear from the November 7th stage, and the Prop H supporters would be revealed as illusionists. November 4, 2006
Challenges and Opportunities in the P/C Insurance Industry: Focus on Massachusetts MarketsThis presentation by Robert Hartwig, the Institute’s Chief Economist, provides detailed information on the latest p/c insurance industry financial statistics with estimates for year-end 2006 profit, premium, underwriting and investment performance. November 3, 2006
Zoning For Dummies II: What’s Affordable Housing?Affordable housing is disappearing in Manhattan (and not just in Manhattan). Luxury decontrol has overtaken previously affordable havens like Stuy Town. November 3, 2006

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