The sale of homes within the San Jose condo complex implicated in fraud closes

SAN JOSE – Condo sales are closing at a San Jose condo complex that’s one in every of several properties mired in a large real estate fraud case within the Bay Area, raising hopes amongst investors who lost money.

The residential real estate sales shall be conducted in a 96-unit condominium community called Almaden Terraces, positioned in south San Jose at 1853 Almaden Road.

As of Sept. 30, seven of the condos had been sold to owners at prices averaging $768,000, in keeping with this news organization's evaluation of documents filed with the Santa Clara County Recorder's Office.

The condo sales are raising hopes, albeit faint, that those allegedly duped in an enormous fraud case will recoup at the least a fraction of what they lost investing in properties owned by Bay Area real estate manager Sanjeev Acharya Area and his company Silicon Sage Builders were developed.

In late 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed a criticism against Acharya and Silicon Sage, alleging they defrauded an estimated 250 people – lots of them of South Asian descent – who paid roughly $119 million to speculate in projects launched by Acharya would have.

As a part of the lawsuit, a federal court has placed Silicon Sage's real estate holdings into receivership with a purpose to sell the properties and, in some cases, complete their development so that they may be sold.

This was the case with the San Jose condominium community on Almaden Road. The project has been under construction for about three years and was accomplished earlier this 12 months, allowing the sales process to start in earnest.

It's not clear how much money, if any, from the property sales could flow to the defrauded investors.

“The bankruptcy trustee continues to support the sales efforts of the Almaden units and has coordinated signage for marketing purposes and the development of a sales website,” in keeping with a filing earlier this 12 months in U.S. District Court in San Francisco. “The recipient is considering options to increase sales speed in the project.”

It was not immediately clear whether any of the brand new owners had already moved into their units. The most up-to-date purchase was accomplished and recorded on Sept. 30, county records show.

One of the most important challenges for the bankruptcy trustee and the defrauded investors is that in 2018, Acres Loan Origination provided a $41.9 million construction loan to a subsidiary controlled by Acharya and Silicon Sage to construct the project.

Previous court filings indicate that at the least some proceeds from condo sales could be used to repay at the least a portion of that loan.

Amenities at The Almaden condominium complex include a pool, spa, fitness room, clubhouse and bike storage. There are barbecue facilities and meeting rooms within the courtyard.

Sales achieved ranged from a low of $660,000 to a high of $980,000, in keeping with Santa Clara County real estate records.

Units within the San Jose condo complex range in size from 679 square feet to 1,299 square feet.

Prices start at $585,000 for a one-bedroom, one-bath condo and go as much as $1.02 million for a three-bedroom, two-bath condo.

The location of the condominium complex was also listed on the sales website.

“These new homes border the desirable Willow Glen area of ​​San Jose,” the sales website states. “The Almaden is accumulating along the Guadalupe River. The Almaden is just a short 10 minute drive from downtown San Jose.”

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