REI INK

Legal

Changes to California HOBR

The “Big” Guys, “Little” Guys, and Those In Between by T. Robert Finlay, Esq. During the height of the Financial Crisis, California passed its landmark legislation intended to help homeowners facing foreclosure — the Home Owner Bill of Rights (HOBR). In short, HOBR required loan servicers to follow certain procedures when putting defaulted borrowers on notice of foreclosure prevention alternatives and prevented servicers from “dual tracking,” i.e., simultaneously proceeding with

Read More

California’s Recently Passed SB 567

What to Understand Before Jumping into the Fire By Todd E. Chvat, Esq. and T. Robert Finlay, Esq. SB 567 directly impacts two sets of property owners — fix-and-flip investors planning to substantially remodel or rebuild a property for resale AND property owners planning to move into an occupied property either themselves or by a family member. To Understand the New Laws, We Must Understand the Old Laws Civil Code

Read More

California’s Assembly Bill 1033

May be a Game Changer for the Development of Accessory Dwelling Units By Kathryn Moorer, Esq. and T. Robert Finlay, Esq. You may have read or heard a lot about Accessory Dwelling Units or ADUs (also colloquially known as Mother-in-Law Suites) recently as building restrictions have been relaxed over the last several years allowing property owners to take advantage of additional lot space, or space within the primary residence, to

Read More

The Mid-Pandemic Battle of Legal Interpretation

Centers for Disease Control Eviction Order and Constitutionality Dilemma by Jenna Baum, Esq. and Justin Ortega, Esq. Early September of 2020, six months after the pandemic began and while many state eviction moratoriums had already come to an end, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stepped in with an added protection to the landlord tenant eviction process, issuing their own “Temporary Halt on Residential Evictions” (85 FR 55292). The

Read More

Finding Value in the Intellectual Property Assets of Distressed Companies

Buying Intellectual Property as an Investment Opportunity by Jennifer McLain McLemore Last year’s wave of retail bankruptcies will have a long-lasting impact on the structure of modern shopping centers. However, the businesses that sought bankruptcy protection and the diverse outcomes can be instructive beyond the struggles of retailers. These bankruptcy cases provide examples of investment opportunities that arise when distressed companies seek liquidity by selling some or all of their

Read More

The Future of Opportunity Zone Tax Benefits for Real Estate

A Legal Perspective on Benefits, Requirements and Criticisms by Jenny Connors The opportunity zone (“OZ”) tax incentive, which was enacted as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, has been a major catalyst for real estate investment over the past three years. Initiated as a bipartisan effort for economic growth and job creation, the incentive was intended to promote long-term, private investment in America’s low-income communities. The incentive, however,

Read More