“Led by Reps. Paul E. Kanjorski, D-Penn., and Ken Calvert, R-Calif., a bipartisan group of 79 House members sent a letter to the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve on Feb. 1 urging them to take a more active role in keeping the commercial real estate market more stable, The New York Times reported.
The Congressmen are calling for the agencies to make clear public statements encouraging lenders to continue to make credit available for performing assets, even if the value of the property has taken a hit in its value. According to Deutsche Bank, more than $1.4 trillion in commercial mortgages will come due by 2013, and as much as 65 percent of those deals will have trouble getting refinanced because of decreasing property values, according to the Times.
Congress is showing growing concern that the unstable $6.7 trillion commercial real estate market could implode, bringing a major setback to economic recovery, according to the Times.”
