A series of federal lawsuits filed by eight black first-time homebuyers alleging that New York’s United Homes targeted minorities as part of a conspiracy to sell over-valued, broken-down homes financed with predatory loans will go forward following a federal judge’s rejection of the defendants’ motions to dismiss.
Eastern District of New York Chief Judge Raymond J. Dearie in Brooklyn whittled the parties’ “protestation and hyperbole” down to two core issues: Did the plaintiffs sufficiently plead their racial discrimination claims and were the claims against the individual defendants — about a half dozen lawyers, appraisers and lenders, along with the president of United Homes, Yaron Hershco — pleaded with sufficient specificity?
