81% Of Americans Hate Mandatory Binding Arbitration
According to science, even the President is more popular than mandatory binding arbitration. A recent poll shows that Americans hate everything about the extrajudicial resolution system, from its inescapable omnipresence, to its unappealable decisions that rob consumers of their day in court. The poll provides a refreshing contrast to a different study commissioned by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which found that Americans love mandatory binding arbitration more than pie. Public Citizen Reports: New Poll - Americans say "No Thanks" To Binding Arbitration

Arests expected soon in two other schemes based here
Eleven members of that 16-person ring -- which includes three real estate agents, an attorney, a mortgage broker and a former Wells Fargo bank officer -- are set to be sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Austin after being found guilty of wire fraud, money laundering and falsifying information on loan documents as part of this scam that hit Austin and that San Antonio neighborhood...Texas is among the top 10 states for mortgage abuses, and San Antonio is involved in three such scams so far this year, the Austin case and two San Antonio-based rings under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The San Antonio rings used more than 50 people to inflate prices in Stone Oak, Spring Branch and Dallas. FBI special agents investigating the cases have said that arrests would happen soon this summer.

Building codes aren't big priority in Texas even after Rita
Hurricane and disaster experts say they are stunned that Texas has done nothing to bolster building codes nearly three years after Hurricane Rita blasted its Gulf coast, the Houston Chronicle reported Sunday. "Texas is an aberration," said Leslie Chapman-Henderson, chief executive of the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes, a nonprofit organization. "It's eerily quiet in the state. Why are they not having a conversation about codes?"

Homeowners' concerns heard by state
It's not a block party or a home tour, at least not the kind you're used to. It was a tour of Hutto's defective homes. Neighbors said a majority of houses in three different neighborhoods built by Lennar Homes have been plagued with cracks, nail pops and mold, among numerous other problems. Tuesday night, representatives from the state heard homeowners' concerns.

Mortgage turmoil snares Ed McMahon
Ed McMahon, the longtime sidekick to Johnny Carson on "The Tonight Show," is fighting to avoid foreclosure on his multimillion-dollar Beverly Hills estate. McMahon defaulted on $4.8 million in mortgage loans with a unit of Countrywide Financial Corp., which filed a notice of default in March, according to ForeclosureRadar, a company that sells default data pulled from public records.McMahon won a $7.2-million insurance settlement after claiming that mold in his house killed his dog Muffin and sickened him and his wife.According to a lawsuit he filed, the trouble began when a pipe broke and water flooded a den. Mold was later discovered throughout the house. McMahon and his wife, Pamela, blamed faulty cleanup. "When your family loses its health and your home is a wasteland, that's a colossal disaster," McMahon said at the time.

Home Front: Humbled home builders now facing reality
This change is not easy for builders. In a bust that has lasted three years, they have gone through phases: denial, blaming the media for messing with the heads of buyers, predicting bottom soon and laying off staff. Now a chastened industry has reached a new stage, openly acknowledging its mistakes..."We've effectively stolen from the future. The demand we should be having now we stole in 2005 and 2006." He said: "We're paying for the sins of our past right now." Are they ever. The builders, banks, sales staffs and land developers clearly see the sins now. They built too many homes, and they built them too big. They "pushed" people who had no business getting mortgages into homes. They bought too much land with too much borrowed money... industry joke went: If you can show your breath on a mirror, you can qualify..."We learned if you give people free money, they'll take it."  Respond to article and reader comments

Editorial: More evidence for judicial reform
The couple, Bob and Jane Cull, sued Perry Homes in an effort to get the home builder to make repairs to their retirement home. The case has been mired in the judicial system since 2000. Before the trial the Culls sought arbitration to avoid an even more expensive and drawn out legal fight.  After the Culls were awarded $800,000 by the arbiter, the home builder took them to court claiming that the arbitration was handled improperly. A district court and an appeals court ruled against the home builder who appealed to the Supreme Court.

Olympia Group sues home builder D.R. Horton, claims contract breach
The development group led by locally based Olympia Group has filed a multimillion dollar lawsuit against the nation's largest home builder for a breach of contract. November 2005 Land Investors filed the lawsuit Wednesday in Clark County District Court against DRHI, a subsidiary of Fort Worth, Texas-based D.R. Horton. The lawsuit claims the builder is in default of an infrastructure agreement and owes $4.1 million plus interest for unpaid costs related to the 2,675-acre Park Highlands master-planned community in North Las Vegas.

Southaven Residents: Struggling Homebuilders leave Overgrown Grass
Many people in DeSoto County are fed up with the way their subdivisions look. They say financially strapped builders are letting the grass grow out of control on their vacant lots... Wallace said residential building has slowed in the once booming city of Southaven. He said builders are left with lots no one is looking to buy. He said builders are more focused on staying in business than mowing the lawns on their properties.