sued the Houston-area developers of Colony Ridge on Thursday, accusing them of deceptive sales, marketing and lending practices that allowed their sprawling housing development to flourish.
Thursday’s lawsuit marks the most significant state action to date against the development. It echoes many of the claims in a U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit. In the state’s lawsuit, Paxton argues the developers target foreign-born, Latino consumers with a bait-and-switch sales scheme that leads to sky-high foreclosure rates.. “Their deceptive practices have created unjust and outsized harms.
While parts of Paxton’s lawsuit repeat similar findings brought by the federal government, it also alleges new details about Colony Ridge’s business practices. Throughout the lawsuit, former Colony Ridge employees who spoke to state investigators are referred to by pseudonyms to “prevent harassment and/or retaliation.”
in a previous story that the developer lied to them about how the eight parcels of land they purchased were “move-in ready,” gave them incorrect tax documents and stole money from them before forcing them both into foreclosure.