Voices of Real Estate

With the Federal Reserve’s announcement this past Tuesday that it will dramatically increase the level of purchases of agency debt and mortgage-backed securities, mortgage rates have dropped to the lowest levels in 50 years. That’s right, 50 years!

We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again, if ever there was a time to get off the fence and buy, it’s now.

But, for many consumers, that’s easier said than done. We’ve heard from a lot of Realtors® who are frustrated that the financial system simply is not working for good buyers. It remains clogged with excessive amounts of paper work, unreasonable underwriting restrictions, inaccurate and outdated credit records and FICO scores, and other problems.

Believe me when I say that NAR understands the challenges Realtors® and consumers are facing. Ultimately, we are the one and only advocate for homebuyers and homeowners. They are counting on us to get buyers to the closing table, stabilize home prices and bolster our weak economy. Our nation—and our businesses—depend on our ability to achieve these goals.

Just as we worked diligently to bring mortgage rates back to affordable levels, NAR is working to clear the stops in the financial system and get credit flowing again. We will continue to put pressure on regulators and lawmakers to address these problems. You’ll be hearing much more about our efforts in the days and weeks ahead, and we’ll be counting on all of you to join our efforts when the New Year begins.

Until then, I wish you all a happy holiday season, and I thank you for your great work in 2008. Thanks to you, we are in a great position to succeed on all of our priorities in 2009! Gary Thomas – 2009 Vice President and Liaison to Government Affairs