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ยป VISIT US ONLINE @ DSNEWS.COM 93 IN THE NEWS Settles Denver- Area Discrimination Complaint e U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced it has reached an agreement with the owners/ managers of a Denver-area apartment com- plex, resolving complaints of discrimination. e complex, e Orchards at Cherry Creek Apartments in Centennial, was charged with discrimination after refusing to allow children to play outside. "A requirement of constant parental su- pervision of all minors, and even teenagers, is oppressive, unnecessary, and unfairly burden- some on families with children," said Bryan Greene, HUD's acting assistant secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. "e Fair Housing Act protects the rights of fami- lies with children to enjoy the same housing amenities that others do." HUD filed a secretary-initiated complaint in November 2013, alleging that the complex unfairly restricted the activities of children. e rule in question was published in the complex's monthly newsletter, which read: "All children must be supervised by an adult at all times while playing outside. No sports activities, skateboarding, roller- blading, or general extracurricular activities are to take place in our community. If we see anyone violating any of the above activities or see any unsupervised children, they will be sent home immediately." According to the Fair Housing Act, the action was discriminatory in that it "prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of dwellings, and in other housing-related transactions, based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status, and disability. is includes setting restrictive rules on families with children," HUD said. Per the terms of the agreement with e Orchards, property managers will design and build a $10,000 play area, which will also be accessible for people with disabilities. e time frame for the project is six months. Additionally, all employees will attend fair housing training within a year, and the company will amend its policies to comply with the Fair Housing Act and distribute the new rules to its employees and residents. $60M Residential Loan Portfolio Sold Through MountainView MountainView Capital Group, a residen- tial whole loan transaction advisor in Denver, announced the closing of a deal involving a portfolio of residential mortgage loans with a total unpaid principal balance of approxi- mately $60 million. e seller was listed as ResCap Liquidating Trust, and Mountain- view served as ResCap's loan sale advisor. "Given the size and composition of the portfolio, these assets attracted a very diverse group of whole loan buyers," said Jonas Roth, managing director at MountainView and the lead advisor on the sale. "A total of 25 bids were received across the entire portfolio." e portfolio consisted of performing, re-performing, and non-performing first and second liens. "e portfolio was representative of what we saw trade throughout 2013. Sales by financial institutions, government-directed sales, and fund-to-fund trades will create the supply in 2014, while hedge funds, investment banks, private-equity funds, and new inves- tors to this space will provide liquidity for both large and small portfolios," Roth added. "Aggressive pricing will continue as buyers continue to compete for performing and non- performing residential assets." Number of Paid- Off Homes Fall in Colorado According to the Colorado Division of Housing, the number of home loans paid off in Colorado fell 49 percent from the first quarter of 2013 to the first quarter of 2014. e report found that approximately 50,000 deeds of trust were released during Q1 2014, the lowest quarterly total recorded in any quarter since the division began collecting data in 2008. Roughly 98,000 deeds were released dur- ing the first quarter of last year. e release noted, "Typically, a release of a deed of trust occurs when a real estate loan is paid off whether through refinance, sale of property, or because the owner has made the final payment on the loan. Decreases in release activity occur as refinance and home- sale activity decreases, and rising release totals typically indicate increases in the demand for home loans and real estate." Release activity also fell from the fourth quarter of 2013 to the first quarter of 2014, dropping 19.6 percent. During the fourth quarter of last year, approximately 62,000 deeds were released. "is is the fourth quarter in a row of de- clines in release activity, and it looks like the most recent refinance boom is already over," said Ryan McMaken, an economist with the Colorado Division of Housing. "Mortgage rates are still low compared to where they Colorado RANK: 49 90+ Day Foreclosure Unemployment Delinquency Rate Rate Rate MARCH 2014 1.26% 0.62% 6.2 YEAR AGO 1.60% 1.01% 7 YEAR-OVER-YEAR CHANGE -21.1% -38.7% -0.8 Top County LAS ANIMAS COUNTY 90+ Day Foreclosure Delinquency Rate Rate MARCH 2014 2.14% 2.44% YEAR AGO 2.62% 3.90% YEAR-OVER-YEAR CHANGE -18.3% -37.3% Top Core-Based Statistical Area MONTROSE, CO 90+ Day Foreclosure Delinquency Rate Rate MARCH 2014 1.46% 1.23% YEAR AGO 1.47% 1.64% YEAR-OVER-YEAR CHANGE -0.2% -25.0% note: The 90+ day delinquecy rate is the percentage of outstanding mortgage loans that are seriously delinquent. The foreclosure rate is the percentage of outstanding mortgage loans currently in foreclosure. State rank is based on the March 2014 foreclosure rate. All fi gures are rounded to the nearest decimal. The unemployment rate refl ects preliminary March 2014 fi gures released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. All other data courtesy of LPS Data & Analytics. Colorado Marina Dubrova, CRS, CDPE, CIPS Broker/ Owner 333 S Allison Pkwy, #201 Lakewood, CO 80226 720-583-6010 offi ce | 720-583-2672 fax 720-936-0540 direct | 866-870-0933 e-fax www.coloradohomeswesell.com