The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "Florida Real Estate Commission" ...
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Hillsborough County School District Land Investigation
The ninth largest U.S. school district, Hillsborough County (FL), in 2006 was "growing fast enough to fill five new schools" per year. To meet the demand, Hillsborough county used the services of 4 private real estate brokers, without using bids, in violation of its own regulations. Three of the four brokers have records of criminal, legal and financial problems. Some of those brokers simultaneously represented the sellers, or flipped the land themselves, resulting in land purchases often made substantially above appraisal values. Reporters from the St. Petersburg Times documented swampland purchases, and school sites surrounded by the homes of sexual predators.
Tags: land; school board; school district superintendent; real estate brokers; realtors; swampland; bidding practices; state FOI; land flipping; rezoning applications; condemnation; assessments; appraisals; financial investigations; land records; wetland maps; FBI investigation; Florida Department of Law Enforcement; Excel; Matthew B. Cox; Chester B. Luney; Fred Edmister; National Realty Associates; school planning; Wilson-Miller; Florida Real Estate Commission; 2606 East Caracus Land Trust; Laurence E. Fuentes; Fuentes and Kreischer Title Co.; Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation
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Escambia County Commission
The News-Journals investigates bribery and Sunshine Law violations at the Escambia county government. The stories reveal that the county commissioners voted for the purchase of a dilapidated soccer complex "real-estate agent Joe Elliott, a buddy of then Commission Chairman W.D. Childers, the former Dean of the Florida senate." The county later proceeded with a second purchase from Elliott, a defunct car dealership. The land purchases totalled $6.2 million, at a time of tight budget and halt of major county projects. As a result of the publications, the Attorney General of Florida started an investigation that ended with indictments of four of the five county commissioners.
Tags: bribes; land transactions; money laundering; secrecy; reals estate; elected officials; financial disclosure statements; Willie Junior; public office
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Land Deals Help County Commissioner Freeman
This Orlando Sentinel investigation delves into the "tangled financial dealings" of Orange County Commissioner Bob Freeman. Among the major findings are the commissioner's failure to pay taxes on his new home and his financial interlacing with "two key backers who also have needed commission approval for projects during Freeman's tenure." The reporters reveal the participation of the commissioner in questionable real-estate transactions. The story questions Florida's ethics laws for making it "almost impossible to hold politicians accountable for ethical problems - or even just sloppy record keeping."
Tags: land development; real estate; taxes; IRS; conflict of interest; financial disclosure; fund raising; Orange County; Florida
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Boom times for mortgage fraud
Deception has become almost routine in the home loan business, according to the Broward Daily Business Review. Commission-hungry middlemen tart up marginal deals for lenders too eager to care. In Florida, mortgage fraud is so widespread that the state ranks at or near the top nationwide in the suspected volume.