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Wednesday, July 21, 2021

Arias Housing Investigation Expands to Include More Alleged Fraud in BMR Program

‘Mr Emeryville’ Surrenders Emeryville Loft Home

'Hyper-Local' Promoter , Rob Arias Ensnared in Affordable Housing Fraud Allegations

A family atop Emeryville’s long waiting list for an opportunity to buy an affordable loft home are about to feel that they won the lottery.  The winnings might be easier to come by for more people in coming months as fraud is uncovered in the City's BMR subsidized housing program..

Every unit within one of Emeryville’s main affordable housing programs is being investigated for fraud after authorities uncovered one unit being used as an office. Several other units are under suspicion. It is unclear how many units within the city’s Below Market-Rate (BMR) program are being illegally sublet, used as AirBnBs, or as a pied-à-terre.  There are 238 for-purchase and rental units in the program, in a city where 134 mostly market rate housing units were built in 2020.  There were about 2400 people on the City’s wait list for the last tranche of BMR affordable units that became available. 

Ironically, the incident sparking the investigation starts with one of Emeryville’s leading promoters, a man who made a second career building an on-line hub for positive, ‘hyper-local’ spin.  Rob Arias, editor of the E’ville Eye was asked to sell his loft home at 1500 Park Avenue back to the City this month, after admitting to city investigators he had purchased a Pleasant Hill home in 2019.  Tuesday night, after the lengthy City investigation, the City Council voted to place Mr Arias' Emeryville home on the market so that a needy family can take advantage of his unit, a coveted ownership BMR affordable home.

People using Emeryville’s BMR program must annually certify the unit is their primary residence.  The City investigated following repeated calls from The Tattler after neighbors said the unit was seldom occupied, and even more rarely after business hours.  Numerous photographs taken by Tattler staff showed the unit vacant every night for weeks. The evidence was later confirmed by City staff, presumptively at the behest of the Council. 

When drawn into direct communication with investigators, Mr Arias asked for elaboration on the definition of 'primary residence' even though he had annually signed a legal document certifying the loft had been his primary residence since 2003.

Arias purchased the Park Avenue unit in 2003 for $206,000.  The City paid $338,200 to buy it back this week.  Essentially, Mr Arias received free housing for eighteen years and left with $132,000 in walking around money. He can’t be faulted for that.  That’s how the BMR ownership program is supposed to work.  Give people in need a chance.  But if you strike it rich, or in this case find a way to finance a second home, continuing to own a government subsidized unit is wrong morally.  And legally, if you live primarily in your new market rate home.  It violates the legal annual certification and is a slap in the face to everyone on Emeryville’s lengthy affordable housing waiting list.  

Mr Arias needed an affordable home in 2003 and he was lucky existing BMR unit holders didn’t exhibit the same behavior he has been engaging in over the last two years, otherwise he might not have been able to get affordable housing through Emeryville's BMR program.   People’s financial situations can change.  And the financial lure of holding on to a bargain in Bay Area real estate must be great.  But officials are finally acknowledging in action that poorly supervised affordable housing is an ‘attractive nuisance’ encouraging misuse. 

The housing authority at City Hall is wrapping up its investigation of other abuses in the BMR affordable housing program.  The Tattler has public records requests pending and will continue to report on the un-needy but greedy people who take advantage of Emeryville's good will and non-wealthy people who would be helped with housing in our town. 

Tattler Investigation:
Eight successive nights between 8 PM and 9 PM last spring revealed 
lights out at Rob's Emeryville loft (red arrows).   Early to bed?



Tattler Investigation
Rob's Car is Almost Always Parked at His Pleasant Hill Home
Eight different days; mornings, afternoons and nights.  Only one time
on a Saturday at 11AM was Rob's car not in the driveway. 
A clear sign he likely lives at this address.  The City of Emeryville agreed.


Under Penalty of Perjury Rob Signed This Declaration
This was signed in July 2019 AFTER he and his spouse had
purchased their Pleasant Hill home.  

Rob Forgot What a Primary Residence Was Before His Required Interview by City Housing Investigators
A few days after he sent this email (January 21st) he was interviewed.  He wanted to know what
'primary residence' meant for purposes of the interview, even though he had signed an annual declaration that his Emeryville loft was his primary residence since 2003 without being bothered by this question.





According to Redfin, Rob's home in the suburbs is worth $833,881.  He and his spouse purchased it in May 2019 for $630,000.

Regardless of the government assistance meant for needy families, Mr Arias (and his spouse) own more than $1 million in California real estate, until the final sale of the Emeryville loft probably in about a week


17 comments:

  1. This is just so wrong. Thanks to the Tattler for revealing this to the city. Let's hope we can root out all these unethical people taking advantage of our affordable housing program. Shame on Rob Arias and the others.

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  2. As a former Emeryville resident (1975-1981) I am not as concerned with the goings on in my former home as a current resident would be. I would assume the same holds true now for Mr. Arias, since he hasn't been able to legally call Emeryville home for more than 4 years. RIP E-ville Eye.

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  3. Rob Arias is a HypocriteJuly 23, 2021 at 7:38 AM

    Nice, Tattler! Those of us who know Rob know he's always been in it for himself. As you have reported, he has always used the E'ville Evil to take down the poor and the working poor in Emeryville. He's a classic hypocrite. And good going on reporting on fraud in the BMR program beyond Rob. When can we expect to read more?

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    1. Something tells me Rob won't be doing any stories on fraud in Emeryville's BMR program. But the Tattler will. Expect to read more about it after the City finishes its investigation and all public records requests are completed. Probably a few months. Thanks for the comment.

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  4. Rob reports good news about Emeryville. All you ever do is complain. Nobody cares about what you say.

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    1. I enjoy the E'ville Eye and their broader coverage of our city. Lord knows no one else is. And no doubt the Tattler can tire one with their seemingly constant anger. But this investigation shows the value of muckraking journalism. No doubt this was not the only instance of abuse in the BMR program, so it is great to hear that the Tattler is staying focused on the issue, not only when a perceived rival is involved. The persistence they showed on this story is truly impressive.

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  5. Rob could still continue on with the Eye but he should tell his readers about this. He should not editorialize on Emeryville politics any more. The business news is good and he can keep on reporting that as well as the real estate reporting.

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  6. Thanks for outing that scumbag. He defrauded the Emeryville taxpayers out of thousands of dollars in property taxes over the years. He should pay it back

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  7. Ohhh snap, the Holden Street God strikes again. Great work taking down another enemy, Brian! Think of how many other traitors to Emeryville and scumbags you'll be able to expose if you're on the Emery City Council, or even Mayor (I believe that one will be available soon). We need you Brian!! You've always been a bright, shining star of goodwill to Emeryville. You'll save us in the end. Please run for office!!

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    1. I'm going to continue to take them all down from here. I'd be constrained in that endeavor on the Council. Maybe you can get Rob to run.

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    2. Thanks to your reporting, I know that Rob doesn't live in Emeryville, nor does he care much for the town he chose to leave. But you definitely do live in Emeryville, and care for the common people!! And you're also super smarter and savvier than Rob, so there's that. Think about it, you won't have to snoop around in the night anymore, you could strike down your enemies from a seat of power. Don't be afraid to lose, I'm sure you would win. Look at all these Tattler readers that agree with you, that's half the votes right there. Donahue (again) for city council!!

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  8. I think you should leave Rob and his family alone. They are trying to get by like everybody else. So what if he found a good deal outside of our city boundaries. It's obvious you're just jealous of him and all he has built.

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    1. Yeah, it's a bit creepy that an older man is sneaking around at night, taking pictures of a family's house. Good thing Brian is white, if he was POC he would've been arrested by now for being in the "wrong" neighborhood.

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    2. The creepy behavior, sneaking around, is called 'investigative journalism'. It's also done by some other people known as private investigators and they're commonly hired by defense attorneys, prosecutors, municipalities and private parties engaged in lawsuits. The idea is that sometimes people lie and when it's important that the truth be revealed, creepy albeit legal sneaking around, is called for. In the case of Mr Arias, the people of Emeryville are the beneficiaries of the Tattler sneaking around. You're welcome.

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    3. Thank you Brian, once again, for taking care of the people of Emeryville, especially it's poor. As a BMR owner myself, I know only you could fix Emeryville. Nobody else is willing to get their hands dirty for the benefit of Emeryville like you. Please run for City Council!! As a person of power, you would be able to hire those private investigators instead of risking your own health and safety doing it yourself. We need you, Brian!! Why won't you run for city council?? It would benefit us all!! You won't lose this time.

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    4. Only you can fix it. Run, Mr Anonymous!

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    5. What a shame you don't take running for office seriously. Emeryville's loss, I guess.

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