As economy shudders, lawyer helps real estate owners stand tall

Tisha Black-Chernine helped developers and business owners secure financing for real estate deals during the boom years of Las Vegas.

Over the last few years, she's been helping homeowners and commercial property owners restructure their debt.

As managing partner of law firm Black & LoBello, she helps real estate owners deal with the area's imploding economy, declining rents and collapsing prices.

She and partner Michele LoBello formed the firm seven years ago.

Black-Chernine acknowledges that she benefits from being the daughter of Randy Black Sr., a real estate developer and the majority owner of Black Gaming.

"I was given a lot of opportunity and I exploited it," she said. "I ran with any gain I had."

When clients started complaining that residential mortgage loan modification firms charged thousands and did nothing, she formed Nevada Home Savers.

After Nevada's Legislature passed a bill authorizing gay couples to form domestic partnerships, the firm decided to help couples file the forms and to help with prenuptial agreements for those with high incomes or high net worths.

Question: What made you and partner Michele LoBello want to establish a law firm?

Answer: We both wanted to get married and have kids. Figured we could run a practice, pay our bills, have a little more freedom, service our clients to the degree we did (at Marquis & Aurbach) or better, make as much money and do it much cheaper if we went out on our own.

Our bills are 50 percent to 60 percent of what the other firms are. I pay all my people well and I have a 401(k). We just pay less to the people at the top.

Question: How did you help clients with real estate transactions during Las Vegas' boom days?

Answer: Sometimes, it would just be a construction loan and you would have to go find permanent financing.

We help a developer purchase an assemblage of land, title it and then sell it to a national homebuilder.

Or the firm would represent a business owner that would come in and purchase a small shopping center or a small commercial building.

Question: How has your practice changed with the real estate slump?

Answer: Now, with the change in the market, we're helping restructure loans, helping landlords and tenants renegotiate their leases.

Question: You established Nevada Home Savers to help homeowners negotiate loan modifications. How did you get into that field?

Answer: Some of our clients on the residential side were paying ... upwards of $4,000 to companies that were supposed to be helping them, nonlawyers that were supposed to be helping them with restructuring their loans. These people wanted to stay in their house, but, at the end of the day, they gave away lots of money and they weren't helped at all and they weren't able to maintain their home.

Nevada Home Savers basically sets up seminars for Black & Lobello attorneys to conduct on loan residential restructuring, whether it's commercial real estate offices, residential real estate offices or neighborhood parks. Then, if somebody wants to pursue legal help for restructuring, the homeowner or business owner becomes a Black & Lobello client.

Question: What do you tell lenders to persuade them to modify loans?

Answer: I say, "Mr. Lender you may think that you want to move my client, Mr. Borrower, either out of his residential or commercial property, but let me give you the comps (comparable property sales) on this property. Let me tell you how long these properties usually sit on the market.

"Let me give you an analysis of what your carrying costs are going to be. You run the risk of dilapidation and vandalism."

Question: How is the real estate downturn affecting commercial property owners?

Answer: A lot of people built a property assuming they were going to get $3 a square foot for commercial (leases). Now, the properties aren't (producing enough income to make debt payments).

Since there is more space available, supply is greater than demand.

The tenant's sales are down, and he wants to negotiate, and the landlord wants to keep occupancy in the building.

Question: What's your outlook for local economy?

Answer: Getting out of this connotes getting back to where we were in the heyday. I don't think that will happen.

I have to say we are, if not at the bottom, very close to the bottom. We've just got to get our employment back up. We've got to root for our gaming.

Contact reporter John G. Edwards at jedwards@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0420.