A group of plaintiffs that includes the city of Minneapolis, the Family Housing Fund, the Greater Metropolitan Housing Corporation and three neighborhood organizations has announced it plans to file a lawsuit in Hennepin County today accusing a Roseville real estate firm of fraudulently flipping several dozen homes in North Minneapolis.

Here’s some background reading on the company, TJ Waconia, which has been in the news frequently the past several months:

  • In November the FBI named TJ Waconia’s owners, Jonathan E. Helgason, 44, of Chisago City; and Thomas J. Balko, 37, of Rogers, as the targets of a mortgage fraud investigation, the Star Tribune reported. The paper reported that in a six-month period, about 150 foreclosed homes in North Minneapolis — about one in five — had passed through TJ Waconia’s hands.
  • News coverage of the FBI investigation set off a lengthy comment thread on Alex Stenback’s Behind the Mortgage blog. “If you haven’t been following the comments on this post,” Stenback wrote in December, “you are missing out on some high drama and good insider backstory.” One of the people commenting, it appeared, could have connection to the company.
  • At the end of February, the Minneapolis City Council voted to revoke 45 rental licenses on vacant and boarded properties associated with TJ Waconia. State Sen. Linda Higgins, a Northside resident, told NorthNews in an article about the licenses:

    • “They were controlling the prices of housing here. Houses worth $110,000 to $120,000, which were affordable in the market, would sell for $150,000 to $160,000. After you do that for three or four properties, all in a contained area, when you set the price for the next bunch, they sell for $200,000. All of a sudden you’ve got a $110,000 single family house selling for $200,000.”

A press conference to announce the lawsuit is scheduled for 10 a.m. today in the Folwell neighborhood.