Frayser Apartments Again Bought Out of Foreclosure

An entity called MRC Memphis LLC has paid $1.2 million for the Whitney Manor and Frayser Manor apartment complexes in Frayser, following a foreclosure of the properties.

MRC Memphis, an entity related to the lender that brought about the foreclosure proceedings, bought Whitney Manor, 3081 St. Charles Drive, and Frayser Manor, 931 Frayser Blvd., in a Sept. 23 successor trustee’s deed.

The seller was Charles S. Sanger of the Nashville law firm Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP. The lender, Madison Realty Capital LP, appointed Sanger to sell the properties at the Shelby County Courthouse when the previous owner, Group 40, defaulted a $1.5 million loan dated July 21, 2009.

Group 40 is a Connecticut-based company that bought the properties – also out of foreclosure – in July 2009 for $2.2 million.

Whitney Manor is a 96-unit apartment complex at 3081 St. Charles Drive. Built in 1968, the complex contains 79,680 square feet and sits on 6.8 acres at the northeast corner of Steele Street and Whitney Avenue. The Shelby County Assessor of Property’s 2013 appraisal is $1.3 million.

Frayser Manor is a 106-unit apartment complex at 931 Frayser Blvd. Built in 1974, the complex contains 88,648 square feet and sits on 6 acres near the intersection of Frayser Boulevard and Thomas Street. The assessor’s 2013 appraisal is $736,600.

Source: The Daily News Online & Chandler Reports
– Daily News staff

Analyst: Markets Leave Government on Sidelines

Jim Vogel, executive vice president with FTN Financial Capital Markets, wrote in a note to clients this weekend that the private sector is moving forward while policymakers spin their wheels, referring to the U.S. government partial shutdown that continued dragging on as the week began.

“Economists talk about the importance of ‘confidence’ in the federal government as though business leaders have had any since 2010,” Vogel wrote. “The private sector eventually works around issues created by government activism, government stalemates, or government mistakes. Businesses don’t win by waiting on government leadership. … Markets price the economy and leave governments on the sideline if that’s where politicians choose to sit.”

FTN Financial is a division of Memphis-based First Tennessee Bank.

– Andy Meek

Eighty3 Launches Artists Spotlight

Downtown Memphis’ eighty3 restaurant has launched a new collaborative with local artists called Memphis Artists Spotlight.

The purpose is to provide a new venue for artists to showcase and sell their work. Memphis Artists Spotlight will feature a new artist each quarter by displaying pieces on a prominent wall inside the restaurant, and information about the artist and pricing for each piece will be provided to guests who are interested in the art.

The first artist of the new initiative is Sue Layman Lightman. She has been painting for more than 18 years and opened her gallery Downtown in 2006.

– Andy Meek

John P. Freeman Teacher Honored by State

Melissa Collins, a second-grade teacher at John P. Freeman Optional School, has been honored by the Tennessee Department of Education as teacher of the year for the West Tennessee grand division.

State education officials named one teacher for each of the state’s three grand divisions, and the awards were presented at a banquet last week in Nashville.

– Bill Dries

MTSU Offers New Education Doctorate

Middle Tennessee State University is offering a new education doctorate that is the first of its kind in the state.

The Doctor of Education in Assessment, Learning and Pre-K-12 School Improvement will help educators analyze student-learning data to pinpoint areas of success and areas that need improvement.

An informational presentation on the new degree takes place Tuesday, Oct. 22. Both sessions begin at 5 p.m. and will be held at MTSU's College of Education Building.

Applicants must have earned a master's degree and be in a position to effect immediate pre-K-12 school improvement and gains in student learning.

– The Associated Press

Technology Helps Map New Madrid Fault

New research by the U.S. Geological Society suggests that while the New Madrid Seismic Zone hasn't produced a major earthquake in more than 200 years, the risk remains.

The Southeast Missourian reports that scientists used new technology to develop high-resolution imagery of the seismic zone centered around New Madrid, Mo. The imagery allows for more detailed mapping, showing weak rocks in the zone that are found at deeper depths in the Earth's mantle compared to surrounding areas.

Findings were published recently in the Earth and Planetary Science Letters journal.

The seismic zone produced massive earthquakes, including three greater than magnitude 7, in 1811 and 1812. The quakes were so strong that the Mississippi River reportedly flowed backward and church bells rang as far away as New England.

Charles Langston, director of the Center for Earthquake Research and Information at the University of Memphis, said at least 200 earthquakes occur in the seismic zone every year, but most are very small. He said there is a 7 to 10 percent chance of a magnitude 7.5 or larger quake in the zone in the next half-century, and a 25 to 40 percent chance of a magnitude 6 quake or larger in the same period.

"So there's a good chance we could have a damaging quake in the next 50 years," Langston said.

The USGS scientists used data from USArray, a network of 400 seismometers that is part of the National Science Foundation's EarthScope Program.

– The Associated Press

Court Considers Ending Stanford Class-Action Suits

The Supreme Court is considering shutting down class-action lawsuits from investors who lost billions in former Texas tycoon R. Allen Stanford's massive Ponzi scheme.

Justices listened to lawyers argue over whether lawsuit should proceed against individuals, law firms and investment companies that allegedly aided Stanford's fraud. He was sent to prison after being convicted of what prosecutors termed a $7.2 billion Ponzi scheme on investors.

A lawyer for the defendants in the class-action suits said the lawsuits are blocked by the federal Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act. But others argue the investment scheme is not covered by the law because the main part of the fraud involved certificates of deposit, not stocks and other securities.

Justices will make a ruling sometime next year.

– The Associated Press

Obama May be Open to Short-Term Debt Limit Hike

A senior Obama economic adviser is suggesting that the White House would be open to a short-term increase in the nation's borrowing authority. But the adviser, National Economic Council Director Gene Sperling, says a long-term extension of the debt limit would be better for the economy.

Sperling says the size of the increase is up to Congress. Asked if a two- or three-week extension would be out of the question for the White House, Sperling said, "Longer is better for economic certainty and jobs, but it is ultimately up to them."

Sperling spoke at a breakfast Monday sponsored by Politico.

Sperling reiterated President Barack Obama's vow not to negotiate on the debt because it would sanction the threat of default as a bargaining chip and increase the chance of default in the future.

– The Associated Press