NAR - "Realtors® Praise Senate Action to Provide Financial Stability" (10-2-08)

"The National Association of Realtors® commends the U.S. Senate for passing the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008. The Senate’s bold action will help the country emerge from the current credit crisis and put the economy back on its way to improved financial and housing stability"

Inman News - "Mortgage applications drying up" (10-2-08)

"Last week's decline, which is seasonally adjusted and compares to one week earlier, was driven by a large drop-off in refinancing applications (-34 percent) and purchase applications (-10.9 percent), according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The group reported that its Government Purchase Index, comprised largely of FHA loan applications, fell 14.1 percent."

Bloomberg - "Finerman Raising $3 Billion to Make Property Loans, People Say" (10-2-08)

"Mark Finerman, who left as head of commercial real estate lending at RBS Greenwich Capital in May, is raising about $3 billion for a fund to make senior property loans, people familiar with the matter said. Finerman's LoanCore Capital LP wants to help fill the void in commercial property lending since banks stopped making new loans in the collapse of the U.S. subprime market. LoanCore will provide cash for acquisitions and refinancings, earning profits from the wider credit spreads spurred by the crisis."

Bloomberg - "Metro U.S. Home Prices Fall on Higher Foreclosures" (10-2-08)

"Home prices dropped in 24 of 25 U.S. metropolitan areas in July, led by declines in Las Vegas and the coastal cities of California, as foreclosures depressed prices and accounted for a fifth of all sales. Las Vegas had the biggest drop on a per-square foot basis, falling 33 percent in July from a year earlier, New York-based real estate data company Radar Logic Inc. said in a report today. Los Angeles, Phoenix, Sacramento and San Francisco each dropped about 28 percent. Three of the five worst-performing markets were in California."

Bloomberg - "AIG May Need to Sell More Units to Repay U.S. Loan" (10-2-08)

"American International Group Inc. head Edward Liddy, who promised investors a smaller, nimbler company after selling units to repay an $85 billion U.S. loan, has shareholders wondering if there will be anything left to run."

Bloomberg - "Buffett Purchases GE, Goldman Stakes in Credit Crunch" (10-2-08)

"Warren Buffett, the billionaire who says the U.S. economy suffered a heart attack, is betting General Electric Co. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. are among companies that will thrive when the credit crunch eases. Buffett, heralded as the world's preeminent stock picker, is striking while the biggest banks find themselves strapped with a shortage of capital. Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. spent $8 billion in the past week to buy stakes in Fairfield, Connecticut- based GE and New York-based Goldman."

Orange County Register - "Credit crunch? Irvine builder’s loan extended" (10-2-08)

"Under the new terms, the two bank syndicates managed by KeyBank agreed to extend the loans, deferring $25 million in payments due at the end of the year and preserving an additional $75 million in California Coastal’s borrowing capacity. But the homebuilder will pay 1.25% more in interest for its $94 million revolving credit facility and 1.75% more for a $116 million term loan, Pacini said."

Realty Times - "Affordability Options For First-Time Buyers" (10-2-08)

"In an online survey of 150 of its brokers, Coldwell Banker discovered some disturbing trends among first-time home buyers. While nearly half of the Coldwell Banker brokers surveyed said affordability was the No. 1 concern for first time buyers, 81 percent of those buyers also consider move-in conditions to be very important when searching for homes. Only 7 percent are considering fixer-upper homes."