Letters to the Editor

Small Loans: What Happened to FHLB’s Financing Program?TO THE EDITOR: I read your article [“Need a $750,000 Loan? Don’t Panic,”Multi-Housing News, March 2009] on www.multi-housingnews.com. We appreciate your insight and information. It is our opinion that the Community Investment Program (CIP) as offered by the Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) should also be a viable financing alternative. I say “should”, because at every turn our local FHLB member bank institutions are giving us a variety of reasons why the program can’t work: (a) no treasury funding at present for the program (b) falls under the borrowing limit imposed by FHLB on the local member, (c) local bank doesn’t have an “appetite” for the program, and (d) local member would still upcharge the borrower to operate the program, etc.We really are having a very difficult time getting straight forward / trustworthy information on the program. Is there any way you or your team could update your readership on this financing vehicle? Thank you. Tim D. HawkinsMetro Developers, Inc.Savannah, Ga.Editor’s Reply: In the past, MHN has covered the Federal Home Loan Banks’s financing program for multifamily housing. Developers seemed to have found the program most useful. Thank you for the input and suggestion. MHN will look into this topic for a future issue. Small Loan ProvidersTO THE EDITOR: I read your article in MHN this month [“Need a $750,000 Loan? Don’t Panic,”Multi-Housing News, March 2009] and enjoyed it very much. I am a REO sales agent who specializes in commercial properties. My clients would be very excited to know that there are 18 mortgage bankers who are “authorized by Fannie Mae to underwrite, close, and deliver small loans up to $3 million.” May I request a copy of the list of these bankers, please? Thank you again for your assistance.Eddie JamesBank REO Sales AgentHomeSmartEditor’s Reply: While all Fannie Mae DUS lenders have access to Fannie Mae small loans, the list of lenders specializing in Fannie Mae’s Small Loan Program is available at https://www.efanniemae.com/mf/refmaterials/lenderinfo/smloanlenders.jsp