Fox News host who said Trump’s fixer ‘knows real estate’ has a portfolio that includes support from Department of Housing, a fact he did not mention when interviewing Ben Carson last year 
 
 When Sean Hannity was named in court this week as a client of Donald Trump’s embattled legal fixer Michael Cohen, the Fox News host insisted their discussions had been limited to the subject of buying property. 
 
 “I’ve said many times on my radio show: I hate the stock market, I prefer real estate. Michael knows real estate,” Hannity said on television, a few hours after the dramatic hearing in Manhattan, where Cohen is under criminal investigation. 
 
 Will Sean Hannity's ties to Michael Cohen be his undoing? Read more 
 
 Hannity’s chosen investment strategy is confirmed by thousands of pages of public records reviewed by the Guardian, which detail a real estate portfolio of remarkable scale that has not previously been reported. 
 
 The records link Hannity to a group of shell companies that spent at least $90m on more than 870 homes in seven states over the past decade. The properties range from luxurious mansions to rentals for low-income families. Hannity is the hidden owner behind some of the shell companies and his attorney did not dispute that he owns all of them. 
 
 
 
 Dozens of the properties were bought at a discount in 2013, after banks foreclosed on their previous owners for defaulting on mortgages. Before and after then, Hannity sharply criticised Barack Obama for the US foreclosure rate. In January 2016, Hannity said there were “millions more Americans suffering under this president” partly because of foreclosures. 
 
 Hannity, 56, also amassed part of his property collection with support from the US Department for Housing and Urban Development (Hud), a fact he did not disclose when praising Ben Carson, the Hud secretary, on his television show last year. 
 
 Christopher Reeves, Hannity’s real estate attorney, said in an email he would “struggle to find any relevance” in Hannity’s property holdings, which he said were highly confidential. 
 
 “I doubt you would find it very surprising that most people prefer to keep their legal and personal financial issues private,” said Reeves. “Mr Hannity is no different.” 
 
 Spokespeople for Hud and Fox News declined to comment on the record. 
 
 I doubt you would find it very surprising most people prefer to keep their legal and personal financial issues private Christopher Reeves, Sean Hannity's real estate attorney 
 
 The real estate holdings linked to Hannity are spread across more than 20 shell companies formed in Georgia. Each of the companies uses a variant of the same name, which combines the initials of Hannity’s children. Public records show the companies have bought up dozens of properties in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, New York, North Carolina, Texas and Vermont. 
 
 Among the most valuable are two large apartment complexes in Georgia that Hannity bought in 2014 for $22.7m. The developments are in the cities of Perry and Brunswick, which have higher poverty rates and lower median incomes than the US averages. One- and two-bedroom units in Hannity‍‍‍’s apartment complexes are available to rent for $735 to $1,065 per month, according to brochures. 
 
 The Georgia purchases were funded with mortgages for $17.9m that Hannity obtained with help from Hud, which insured the loans under a program created as part of the National Housing Act. The loans, first guaranteed under the Obama administration, were recently increased by $5m with renewed support from Carson’s department. 
 
 Hannity, who is reportedly paid $36m per year for his television and radio shows, was criticised this week following Cohen’s court hearing, after it became clear he had defended Cohen and Trump on the air without disclosing that he also consulted Cohen for legal services. 
 
 He also declined to note his financial interest when he hosted Carson on Fox News last June for a discussion about Hud and housing. Hannity praised privatisation plans pushed by Trump and Carson. 
 
 Facebook Twitter Pinterest Michael Cohen, second left, leaves court in New York. Photograph: Pacific Press/Barcroft Images 
 
 “I know you’ve done a good job,” Hannity told Carson. 
 
 Hannity complained during the discussion that home ownership in the US was at a 51-year low – a false claim he has made several times on air – and criticised the state of public housing. 
 
 “I like the idea of them owning the place,” Hannity said of people who receive housing assistance. “Well, that’s the real ideal,” said Carson. 
 
 Fox News gives Sean Hannity 'full support' over Michael Cohen revelation Read more 
 
 The shell companies used to buy the properties are registered to the offices of Henssler Financial, a wealth management firm outside Atlanta. Bill Lako, a principal at the firm, has appeared on Hannity’s radio show as an expert on money issues. 
 
 Lako recently wrote an article for the show’s website berating Robert Mueller, the special counsel investigating ties between Trump’s 2016 election campaign and Russia, without noting his ties to Hannity. He did not respond to an email. 
 
 When Lako appeared on Hannity’s radio show last month, Hannity disclosed that he was a Henssler client. He joked to Lako that the company took him on as a “charity case” when he worked in Georgia, but “now I’m the best client you have”. 
 
 The Georgia mortgages supported by Hud were guaranteed as part of a program aimed at protecting investors such as Hannity who buy rental apartment buildings. The government promises to cover losses if borrowers default on their mortgages. Borrowers pay an insurance premium to Hud in return. Bigger loan guarantees are available if the building houses low-income families. 
 
 Paperwork relating to the agreements with Hud, which was filed to county authorities, named Hannity as the principal of the shell companies used to buy the apartment complexes and to borrow the funds. Hannity personally signed several of the documents. A Hud source said Hannity was identified in non-public filings as the 100% owner of the apartment complexes. 
 
 I know you’ve done a good job Hannity to Ben Carson, June 2017 
 
 Late last month, Hannity’s mortgages were replaced with loans for $22.9m that were rewritten with Carson’s Hud and a new bank. There was no indication that Carson was personally involved in the process. Carson does, however, have the authority to allow Hannity from 2019 to convert the rental complexes into condominiums for sale, which could be lucrative for the television host. 
 
 The shell companies used to buy the properties are limited liability companies (LLCs). Like in most states, they are not required to disclose their owners to Georgia regulators. LLCs are popular among well-known figures such as Hannity who wish to keep their business arrangements private. 
 
 But the Guardian obtained records in which Hannity signed deeds and other documents on behalf of four of the LLCs, sometimes being named as principal or manager. Four more of the shell companies have owned properties in which public records say Hannity or members of his family have lived. 
 
 Hannity also uses a separate company with a similar name to handle contracts relating to his syndicated radio show, according to records filed in two federal court cases. Georgia records say Hannity was chief executive, chief financial officer and secretary of this company before Lako took over the titles during 2016. 
 
 In other cases, only the relevant LLC’s name and a contact at Henssler Financial were identified in the real estate paperwork, meaning that it could not be confirmed whether Hannity was the hidden owner. 
 
 Facebook Twitter Pinterest Hud secretary Ben Carson testifies on Capitol Hill. Photograph: Win McNamee/Getty Images 
 
 The list of properties bought by the Hannity-linked companies includes multimillion-dollar homes used by Hannity. It also features single-family units priced as low as $50,000 in relatively poor suburbs. In at least two cases, batches of homes were bought simultaneously at a discount, after they were repossessed by banks from their previous owners in foreclosure proceedings. 
 
 The entire portfolio connected to Hannity comprises at least 877 residential units, which were bought for a total of just under $89m. Another seven properties bought by the companies over recent years have subsequently been sold on for more than $4m, according to public records. 
 
 When Hannity this week stressed that his business relationship with Cohen related to real estate, he pointedly denied that it involved any financial settlements with other people. 
 
 Cohen previously arranged for a $130,000 payment to Stephanie Clifford, the pornographic actor known as Stormy Daniels, who alleged she had sex with Trump. Cohen also helped Elliott Broidy, a prominent Republican fundraiser, pay $1.6m to a woman who said she had become pregnant during an affair. 
 
 Hannity said he had only “occasional brief conversations” with Cohen. He made varying statements about whether Cohen was compensated, initially stating that he had not been billed but later saying: “I might have handed him 10 bucks.” 
 
 In footage unearthed this week that was broadcast on Fox News in January last year, Hannity mentioned having discussed an unidentified $2bn property venture in Dubai with Cohen. 
 
 “I said, ‘I’m interested in that deal myself,’” said Hannity. ||||| Records show 61 different residents have received notice to vacate their homes in Perry complex since Hannity took over in 2014 
 
 The number of eviction orders obtained against tenants in a Georgia apartment complex owned by Sean Hannity has sharply increased since the property was bought by the Fox News host. 
 
 
 
 County court records say that judgments approving the removal of 61 different residents of the Hampton Place apartments in Perry have been issued during the three years and 10 months since Hannity took over. 
 
 The previous owner of the 152-unit apartment complex obtained similar orders against 12 different tenants during the preceding three years and 10 months, according to the records, before selling it to Hannity for almost $8m. 
 
 Sean Hannity's real estate venture linked to fraudulent property dealer Read more 
 
 Christopher Reeves, an attorney for the Fox News host, said in an email: “Mr Hannity is not involved in the management of these properties. Evictions only occur after a material breach of the lease terms.” 
 
 The Guardian first reported on Sunday that Hannity was the secret owner connected to a group of 20 shell companies that have spent $90m on more than 870 homes across seven states over the past decade. 
 
 Hampton Place is one of two apartment complexes in Georgia that Hannity bought in 2014 for $22.7m. The purchases were partly funded with $17.9m in mortgages guaranteed by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development. Apartments at the site are currently advertised for rent from $860 a month. 
 
 The court records suggest the rate of eviction orders at Hampton Place has increased by more than 400% under Hannity’s ownership. Landlords can obtain the orders from a magistrate judge when a tenant taken to court for unpaid rent fails to respond or pay within seven days. The orders empower local sheriff’s deputies to forcibly remove tenants and their property. 
 
 Betsy Coleman, a Hampton Place tenant who was evicted by Hannity’s company last year, said she had to leave the property after falling behind on her rent. 
 
 
 
 “It feels awful, because you don’t have anywhere else to go,” said Coleman, who is 49. “You’re trying to work to get the rent up, and you promised to get the money, and when you don’t get it, you have to go to court.” 
 
 Hannity is reportedly paid $36m a year for his primetime Fox News show and syndicated radio program. 
 
 Not all the tenants who received eviction orders were ultimately removed from the property. One who asked not to be identified said he was given a reprieve last year after agreeing to pay about $300 in extra fees in addition to a late $725 monthly rent payment for his two-bedroom apartment. “It seemed kind of harsh,” he said. 
 
 In any case, the court orders are likely to be flagged on background checks and some credit reports that may be screened by future employers and landlords when considering applications from the tenants. 
 
 The records show that Hannity’s property managers have moved to evict several other tenants who challenged the court action and were instead ordered by the court to pay outstanding debts as low as $232. 
 
 Perry, which is in Houston County and about 100 miles south of Atlanta, has a population of about 16,200. According to the US census bureau, 22.6% of residents are living in poverty, compared with 16% of Georgia and 12.7% across the US. At $20,470 a year, Perry’s average income is about 31% lower than the US average. 
 
 
 
 Lindsey Siegel, a senior attorney at the Atlanta Legal Aid Society, said Georgia state law made it relatively easy for landlords to force tenants out of rented homes. 
 
 “Georgia is one of the harshest states for tenants,” said Siegel. “You can be evicted for being a single day late on your rent – regardless of whether you’ve paid on time for the past five years.” 
 
 The court records state that 37 eviction orders were issued after tenants were taken to court by SPMK XVI Hampton, the Hannity-backed shell company that owns the complex. Another 24 were given in response to eviction actions by the property’s management company, which is co-owned by Hannity and his financial advisers. 
 
 Latonia Grady, who left the Hannity apartments after receiving an eviction order in August 2015, said the managers were unhelpful when her home needed repairs. “They were aggressive,” said Grady, who is now 51. The management company says that it offers comprehensive on-site and emergency maintenance services. 
 
 Hannity has defended his real estate investment decisions, stating in a post to his website that he had chosen to invest his wealth in “communities that badly need such investment” and that he had limited involvement in the venture’s day-to-day operation. 
 
 “The fact is, these are investments that I do not individually select, control or know the details about; except that obviously I believe in putting my money to work in communities that otherwise struggle to receive such support,” Hannity wrote. 
 
 Paperwork on the deal for Hampton Place between Hannity, his lender and Hud state that from June 2019 he may apply for permission from Ben Carson, the Hud secretary, to convert the property to sellable condominiums. 
 
 Will Sean Hannity's ties to Michael Cohen be his undoing? Read more 
 
 Another of the companies linked to Hannity bought foreclosed houses through a property dealer who later pleaded guilty to fraud and was sent to prison. 
 
 Eleven homes purchased by Jeff Brock in foreclosure auctions in Georgia during 2011 and 2012 were transferred to corporate vehicles and then sold on to the Hannity-linked company. 
 
 US investigators found Brock and accomplices rigged foreclosure auctions to obtain properties at lower prices. They secretly agreed not to make competing bids at the auctions and then gave payoffs to one another in return. Hannity has not been accused of any wrongdoing. 
 
 Reeves, the attorney for Hannity, said the Fox News host had no direct involvement in selecting the houses that Brock had bought at auction. Reeves also said they had been unaware of Brock’s fraud before being alerted by the Guardian. ||||| These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites.
– The number of eviction orders in an apartment complex owned by Sean Hannity rose 400% after the Fox News host purchased the property for $8 million nearly four years ago, reports the Guardian. After Hannity took over the 152-unit Hampton Place apartment complex in Perry, Georgia, property managers received approval to evict 61 residents. The previous owner received approval to evict only 12 tenants in a similar period of time. Through his lawyer, Hannity is denying responsibility: "Mr. Hannity is not involved in the management of these properties. Evictions only occur after a material breach of the lease terms," says Christopher Reeves in an email. But not all of the tenants threatened with eviction were booted out. One, for example, was allowed to stay after ponying up $300 in extra fees and a $725 monthly rent payment. "It seemed kind of harsh," the tenant says. But Georgia state law tends to favor landlords over tenants. "You can be evicted for being a single day late on your rent—regardless of whether you’ve paid on time for the past five years," attorney Lindsey Siegel tells the Guardian. "Georgia is one of the harshest states for tenants." Hannity has amassed a real estate empire with rental property valued at tens of millions in Georgia, Alabama, and South Florida, reports the Los Angeles Times. His holdings came under scrutiny after the Guardian reported recently that Hannity is linked to a group of 20 shell companies that invested an estimated $90 million on hundreds of homes over the last decade.