The Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against the Colony Ridge housing development, accusing the developers of using “bait and switch” predatory loans.
Located northeast of Houston in Liberty County, Colony Ridge has been criticized for marketing to illegal aliens and potentially attracting cartel activity to the area.
Notably, Terrenos Houston, the marketing program for Colony Ridge, advertises to potential buyers that they do not require traditional bank loans, nor do they need Social Security numbers or a proven job history. Instead, they operate through owner-financed lots for illegal aliens who don’t qualify for certain loans.
The lawsuit, filed in the Southern District of Texas, says the developers have “lured tens of thousands of Hispanic consumers into using predatory seller financing to purchase land, promising they would ‘Logra el sueño Americano aqui!!’ (“Achieve the American dream here!!’)”
The DOJ also says the development falsely advertises that residents will have access to utilities.
“In fact, many of the lots in the Terrenos Houston Subdivisions lack costly infrastructure to connect utilities. Moreover, parts of the Terrenos Houston Subdivisions have experienced significant flooding during rains, increasing the cost to build dwellings, which Colony Ridge’s marketing and the representations of its agents further obscure,” the suit reads.
This isn’t the only trouble the developers find themselves in.
Earlier this week, the Daily Wire reported that the development awarded more than $16 million in taxpayer dollars to a paving company with close ties to board members.
Gov. Greg Abbott tasked lawmakers with addressing the Colony Ridge development in a special session earlier this year. In turn, the Legislature allocated an additional $40 million to the Texas Department of Public Safety to use for policing the development.
