Latest News
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Booming N.D. Oil Town Becomes Hot Apartment Market
Thursday, May 17, 2012
A booming local oil market is having both positive and negative ramifications for Williston, N.D. The town is growing so fast that it is having a hard time meeting basic social needs such as housing and even trash pickup. In 2006-07, the school enrollment was Read More
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Shadow Inventory: 46 Months to Clear Distressed Housing Supply
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
According to estimates from Standard & Poor's Rating Services, it will take at least 46 months to clear the market's supply of distressed homes, or the shadow Read More
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Owner Best Practices Conference Call: Cost Effective Bed Bug Treatment
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
NAA's Independent Rental Owner Committee (IROC) will host a best practices web conference call on Wednesday, May 16. The primary topic discussed on the call will be a follow-up to the IRO best practices Read More
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EPA Warns Against New R-22 Refrigerant Alternatives
Sunday, May 6, 2012
In the wake of the market disruptions provoked by EPA’s preliminary notice regarding importation and production quotas for the refrigerant R-22, property owners and managers have looked for alternative refrigerants to keep their systems operating. While R-22 production will ultimately be Read More
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Petition for Rehearing in Farmer’s Branch Immigration Case
Saturday, May 5, 2012
On March 22, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the Farmers Branch, Texas, housing ordinance requiring citizenship or lawful immigration status as a precondition to renting housing as unconstitutional. After examining the ordinance, the appellate court concluded its sole purpose was not to regulate housing, but to exclude undocumented aliens, specifically Latinos, from the city, which the court concluded is an impermissible regulation of immigration. Specifically, the court ruled the Read More
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Bed Bugs The Landlord and The Tenant
Friday, May 4, 2012
Bed bugs remain a problem for the housing industry and, as a result, several state legislatures are considering regulating the responsibilities of owners and managers in the event of an infestation. Last year, bills addressing the issue died in New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio and Pennsylvania. This year, Alabama, Connecticut, Iowa, Illinois, Massachussetts, Missouri and New Jersey have entertained legislation. Currently, Arizona, Maine and New York City prescribe rules for landlords. State and federal courts (diversity jurisdiction) have addressed the liability of landlords to tenants Read More
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EEOC Issues Revised Guidance on Employee Criminal Screening
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
On April 25, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) approved updated guidance on the use of criminal arrest and conviction records of job applicants and current employees. At issue is when the consideration of applicant and employee criminal records constitutes Read More
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At NAA/NMHC's Urging, HUD Issues Revised Bed Bug Guidance
Monday, April 30, 2012
On April 23, at the urging of NAA/NMHC, HUD issued new bed bug guidance (Notice H-2012-5) to replace the troublesome notice (H-2011-20) issued last summer. In letters and meetings with senior HUD staff, an NAA/NMHC-led coalition objected to the original Read More
