Real Estate
How LA Failed to Stop Landlords From Turning Low-Cost Housing Into Tourist Hotels
Fifteen years ago Los Angeles passed a law to preserve residential hotels as housing of last resort. Now, amid the homelessness crisis, Capital & Main and ProPublica found some hotels may be violating that law.
Local Reporting Network
HomeVestors Said It Had Kicked Out a Top Franchisee Who Broke the Law. New Evidence Suggests It Didn’t.
The company said it had cut ties with Cory Evans, the former co-owner of Patriot Holdings LLC, “a number of years” ago, but texts, emails and interviews indicate he was still engaged in the business as recently as March.
The Ugly Truth Behind “We Buy Ugly Houses”
HomeVestors of America, the self-proclaimed “largest homebuyer in the U.S.,” trains its nearly 1,150 franchisees to zero in on homeowners’ desperation.
Billionaire Harlan Crow Bought Property From Clarence Thomas. The Justice Didn’t Disclose the Deal.
The transaction is the first known instance of money flowing from Crow to the Supreme Court justice. The sale netted the GOP megadonor two vacant lots and the house where Thomas’ mother was living.
Impact of Our Reporting
DOJ Backs Tenants in Case Alleging Price-Fixing by Big Landlords and a Real Estate Tech Company
A ProPublica investigation last year about RealPage’s rent-setting software led to federal lawsuits asserting inflated apartment prices.
Senators, Regulator Call for More Scrutiny of “We Buy Ugly Houses” Company
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s head said the Department of Justice and state attorneys general should be made aware of predatory house-flipping practices, following ProPublica reporting on HomeVestors of America.
