JACKSONVILLE, FL—United States Attorney A. Brian Albritton announces that U.S. District Judge Henry Lee Adams, Jr., today sentenced Juan Carlos Gonzalez (age 51, of Jacksonville) to seven years in federal prison for conspiring to commit wire and bank fraud. The court also entered a money judgment against Gonzalez for $6,296,303.65, the amount that Gonzalez obtained from the fraud. Gonzalez had pleaded guilty on November 25, 2008

WASHINGTON, DC - November 6, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- U.S. Congressman Kendrick B. Meek today voted in favor of H.R. 3548, the Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009 to extend critical unemployment benefits for unemployed workers, expand and improve the homebuyer tax credit, and provide tax relief for military families and businesses. The legislation passed by an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote of 402-12.

Washington, DC - November 5, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congressman Ron Klein (FL-22) today joined a bipartisan majority of his colleagues to support legislation that will strengthen South Florida’s economy. The bill, the Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2009 (H.R. 3548) has two critical provisions for our community. First, it extends tax credits for first-time homebuyers in order to continue to provide a crucial jolt to the real estate market and the South Florida economy. In addition, the bill supports local businesses by allowing a five-year carry-back on net operating losses.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - November 4, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- Florida CFO Alex Sink today commended the contributions of her Division of Insurance Fraud in the “Mortgage Fraud Surge”, a nine-month joint effort with the U.S. Attorney Brian Albritton, the FBI and numerous other federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to secure as many mortgage-fraud related indictments and arrests as possible.

TAVARES, FL - November 2, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Lake County Board of County Commissioners is hosting three public workshops on Nov. 2, 5 & 9 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. to give stakeholders — residents, property owners, business owners, municipalities and other local and regional entities — an opportunity to voice concerns, questions and suggestions about the proposed Lake County Comprehensive Plan, titled Planning Horizon 2030.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - November 2, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- Florida Housing was recently awarded $1,805,370 to support foreclosure prevention counseling efforts in the State of Florida. The much-needed boost will bolster efforts to provide additional foreclosure counseling to area homeowners in danger of foreclosure.“Needless to say, we are very pleased to have been awarded these funds from NeighborWorks® America to expand and build upon the efforts to help those facing foreclosure in our state,” said Steve Auger, Florida Housing’s executive director. “Through the continued partnership with our sub-grantees, we will work diligently to assist as many homeowners as possible.”

TALLAHASSEE, FL - October 27, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- Florida CFO Alex Sink’s Bureau of Unclaimed Property continued its record-setting pace this weekend by netting over $1.24 million at the annual Unclaimed Property Auction held Saturday in Ft. Lauderdale. This is the most ever garnered by Florida’s Bureau of Unclaimed Property at the annual auction. CFO Sink’s push in the week leading up to the Unclaimed Property Auction also helped return to people a staggering $7.23M through over 20,000 accounts in just seven days.

FT. MYERS, FL - October 26, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Attorney General’s Office and the Florida Interagency Mortgage Task Force today hosted a Ft. Myers community forum to discuss the housing crisis. The event, designed to present a comprehensive approach for dealing with housing-related issues, provided community education and assistance to over 100 attendees. Participating agencies included state agencies, law enforcement, and regulatory authorities

Washington, DC - October 22, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- As thousands of Floridians continue losing their homes to foreclosure, U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor is calling on the Treasury Department to provide detailed information about the number of trial loan modifications offered to at-risk homeowners. Castor joined with Chairwoman Maxine Waters demanding that Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner provide the requested information about the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) by next week. Waters, of Los Angeles, is chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity

TAVARES, FL - October 22, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Lake County Board of County Commissioners is hosting three public workshops on Nov. 2, 5 & 9 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. to give stakeholders — residents, property owners, business owners, municipalities and other local and regional entities — an opportunity to voice concerns, questions and suggestions about the proposed Lake County Comprehensive Plan, titled Planning Horizon 2030.

TALLAHASSEE, LF - October 20, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- Florida CFO Alex Sink today highlighted two initiatives she started to bring real, tangible help to Florida homeowners facing foreclosure, and heard from community groups and homeowners who are on the frontlines of tackling the state’s housing crisis.

Orlando, FOL - October 14, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congressman Alan Grayson, U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan, and Mayor Buddy Dyer toured a neighborhood and highlighted two successful programs helping resolve the problems of foreclosure and slumping property values today in Orlando.

TALLAHASSEE, FL- October 13, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- Florida Housing's upcoming Board of Directors' Meeting will be held on Friday, October 23 in Tallahassee. The meeting will begin at 8:30 a.m. For Board Package information,

Washington, DC - October 13, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- Tomorrow, Tuesday, October 13, Congressmen Robert Wexler (FL-19), Mario Diaz-Balart (FL-25), and Ron Klein (FL-22) and State Senator Ted Deutch will be joined by President Barack Obama’s Secretary for Housing and Urban Development, Shaun Donovan, for a tour of a Boynton Beach home afflicted by contaminated drywall. Reps. Wexler and Diaz-Balart, the co-chairs of the Congressional Caucus on Contaminated Drywall, will emphasize to Secretary Donovan the devastating impact the tainted drywall has had on the lives of the Roberts family, who own a home in the community of Cobblestone Creek. Dr. Steve Roberts and his wife Jennifer Roberts have struggled with their 16 month-old daughter’s frequent respiratory infections, and the fact that their home has lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in value as a result of this toxic product

TALLAHASSEE, FL - October 13, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- Reports recently received by Florida Housing Finance Corporation (Florida Housing) show a significant increase in the number Floridians finding affordable rental housing using www.FloridaHousingSearch.org, which is the Corporation’s FREE online rental housing locator. According to the data in the report, provided by Socialserve.com®, 39 percent of the rented units on the state’s Search.org affordable rental housing locator were located by consumers using www.Floridahousingsearch.org or the Locator's call-center.

Washington, DC - October 9, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congressman Vern Buchanan (FL-13) will hold a foreclosure assistance workshop on Saturday, October 10, 2009. Lenders, federal agencies, and local housing and counseling agencies will help assist residents of Florida’s 13th District from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the student union at State College of Florida, 5840 26th St. West, Bradenton, Florida

Washington, DC - October 8, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congresswoman Suzanne Kosmas (FL-24) voted in favor of the Service Members Home Ownership Tax Act (H.R. 3590), which will make changes to home-buying provisions in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to benefit active-duty servicemen and women currently, or soon to be, deployed overseas. The bipartisan legislation passed by a vote of 416-0.

WASHINGTON, DC - October 8, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congressman Connie Mack (FL-14) praised unanimous passage of legislation in the House of Representatives today that will extend the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit for one year for qualifying U.S. servicemen and women.

TAMPA, FL - October 6, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- Fire Prevention Week (Oct. 4 – 10) is a perfect time for home and business owners to assess their properties to determine how vulnerable they may be to fire coming from both outside and inside - and then take actions to prevent losses, the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) said today.

House Gives Final Approval to $5.5 Million for Wares Creek, $500,000 for Sarasota Renewable Energy Center, $305,000 for Lido Beach, $100,000 for Anna Maria Island Beach Re-nourishment, $100,000 for Port Manatee and up to $5 million for Sarasota Bay Restoration. Washington, DC - October 2, 2009 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congressman Vern Buchanan (FL-13) has won final approval in the House of $8.3 million in federal funding for environmental projects in Florida’s 13th District. The House voted 308-114 for the fiscal year 2010 energy and water appropriations bill (H.R. 3183) today.