Home Prices Hit New Depths
Home prices fell to fresh lows in December, but economists say that a drop in the number of homes listed for sale could help stabilize prices in parts of the country this year. Home prices fell by 4% last year, according to the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index that tracks 20 metro areas. Prices dropped by 1.1% for the three-month period ending in December compared with the same period ending in November.That was slightly better than November's reading, when prices were down 1.3% from October.

$200,000 bought nothing but trouble
Dominguez and two dozen other buyers shelled out more than $200,000 apiece for spacious, 11-acre-plus residential lots. They had big plans to start building custom homes quickly on their rustic properties near Leon Creek and move in. That was seven years ago. Today, the dream homes are just that — a dream...Clearwater Ranch totaled $4.3 million, according to deeds filed at the Bexar County Courthouse.

Quail Run developer goes bankrupt
Just 70 lots, but lots of headaches.  Residents also blame the county, saying it's holding them hostage... Quail Run's roads still have not gotten needed repairs nor passed inspection with Bexar County engineers, steps required before the county will accept the roads for maintenance. ... “At this point, he's still a viable developer with a presence in the community,” said County Engineer Renee Green. “The street issues in Quail Run came to light as part of a review in the spring of 2010, when the county identified 121 subdivisions in unincorporated areas whose streets and drains had been out of warranty for at least two years. ...  Green said county officials have not made a policy decision about how to deal with street problems...  Green said the county does not feel pressured to decide immediately how to deal with Quail Run's streets. “The streets are what they are,” Green said. “They're not going anywhere.”

Medina calls Perry a 'capital crony'
An old foe is lashing out at Gov. Rick Perry, as he continues his campaign for president. Debra Medina - a GOP opponent in 2011's gubernatorial race - and a handful of tea party activists pointed out what they call “crony capitalism” formed under Perry's reign in Texas. ...“We want to take the opportunity and say it's not an HPV mandate but across all areas of public policy in Texas we've seen those sorts of practices,” Medina said. "We do all we can to inform the public about what's going on politically.”... "The stagnant economy is a predictable outcome of government picking winners and losers in businesses and industries that they will favor," Medina said.

VA takes action against builder in WAVE 3 Troubleshooter report
Mike Jones Built Homes is still pushing forward with new construction projects despite losing its approval from the VA and getting hit with two different lawsuits from angry customers... In February, a WAVE 3 Troubleshooter investigation uncovered at least four military families in the same neighborhood who complained of shoddy workmanship with their Mike Jones Built Homes.Jones had transferred the properties he was working on at that time to Hardesty Built Homes. That company is owned by Jimmy Hardesty, the same guy who helped Jones build the homes the soldiers are having problems with now.

Former Miami Beach building official gets 18 months in corruption case
The third Miami Beach building department employee caught taking bribes from a scandal-tainted developer pleaded guilty Monday, agreeing to serve 18 months in jail.  Mohammed Partovi, 54, pleaded guilty to two counts of “unlawful compensation’’ for accepting a Rolex watch and cash from Michael Stern, a troubled Miami Beach developer who has repeatedly been accused of fraud and forgery in lawsuits relating to his real estate business.

Documentary Gives Hot Issue Caffeinated Jolt
“Everybody knows — or thinks they know — the McDonald’s case,” said Susan Saladoff, who put her legal practice aside to direct and produce the film. “But they really don’t know it at all. I didn’t do this to become a filmmaker. I made this movie because I had something to say that needed to be said, and nobody else was saying it, at least to regular folks, to the public.” That message may be getting across. Ann Hornaday of The Washington Post, reviewing the film at the Sundance Festival, wrote that it provided “the kind of narrative that sends audiences out of the theater thinking in a brand-new way about something they thought they understood.” ... One of several strands in the film, Ms. Liebeck’s story shows how tort reformers deftly spun her case and others to nudge public opinion and argue for the need to shut down what industry advocates called “jackpot justice.” The film also lays out facts of the case that are rarely heard.  89 related articles

HBO Documentary Films: Summer Series - Hot Coffee (HBO)
HOT COFFEE examines the dangers of so-called “tort reform” and its threat to our civil justice system. Using the now-infamous legal battle over a spilled cup of McDonald’s coffee as a springboard, the film follows four families, including McDonald’s plaintiff Stella Liebeck and KBR/Halliburton plaintiff Jaime Leigh Jones, whose lives have been profoundly affected by their inability to access the courts, and examines the role of corporations and a complicit media in promoting “tort reform.” 89 related articles

Southborough couple have a $1 million money pit
Ever since they moved into the house at 22A Lovers Lane in 2005, Kathryn and Christian Culley say their long-awaited "dream home" has been nothing but a nightmare. The garage was too small to fit their car. Weeks later, water began flooding the basement. Over time, doors couldn't be shut, and floors started creaking. The Culleys didn't know it, but their house was shifting... During the course of the legal proceedings, builder Gary Cato lost his license, as did two engineers, John Greendale and Carlos Ferreira, who both admitted to stamping plans improperly. After a monthlong trial, a jury awarded the Culleys $1.1 million in damages, an amount that was to be tripled automatically because of the fraud and building code violations... A year later, though, the Culleys haven't seen a cent. They are still looking for resolution.  That's because Middlesex Superior Court Judge Thomas Murtagh threw out the jury's verdict, saying it went "against the weight of the evidence and was likely due to misapprehension, confusion or passion."

'Hot Coffee:' Facts, Fiction, and Corporate Greed
...did you know that the coffee served to Stella Liebeck was 50 to 60 degrees hotter than what you brew in your coffeemaker at home? That Ms. Liebeck received third-degree burns over 16 percent of her body: the worst burns her treating physician had even seen? That over a ten-year period before Ms. Liebeck was horribly burned more than 700 people reported burns from McDonald's coffee? That McDonald's representatives admitted at trial that its coffee was so hot it was "not fit for consumption" when sold? That the judge who presided over the trial described McDonald's conduct as "callous" and "willful, wanton, and reckless"? Probably not.