The Home Affordable Refinance Program, which is designed to help struggling homeowners refinance their Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac mortgages, is getting a one-year extension.

HARP can help refinance homes with a loan-to-value ratio of between 80 and 125 percent. You must be current on your mortgage and have the ability to make new payments.

Since its inception, the two secondary mortgage-market companies noted that they have refinanced almost 622,000 mortgages under the program. HARP is now set to expire on June 30, 2012. For more information, visit FannieMae.com or FreddieMac.com or contact a HUD-approved housing counselor at 1-888-995-HOPE (4673).


Checking out the single-family home sales in February, we find that they're nearly on track with last year's figures: 56 home sales in the Santa Fe city and county combined in February 2010 versus 54 in February 2011. While home sales remained steady, the median price dropped from $384,000 in 2010 to $348,500 in 2011, a 9 percent decrease.

Condo and townhome sales remain strong, with 24 units sold in February 2011 compared to 17 in the same month of 2010. The median price of condos/townhomes also dropped, from $312,000 in 2010 to $226,000 in February 2011.

These trends mirror data from across New Mexico in February, documenting nearly flat sales with lowered home prices.

Buyer activity certainly picked up after the first of the year, with our in-house listing syndication service noting a 12-month high of Santa Fe online home-listing visits in January 2011.


The city of Santa Fe's flood insurance rate map panels are being revised to provide greater detail on the Approximate A Flood Zones. Several County of Santa Fe floodplains are also being remapped.

In late April, the city and county will jointly host community meetings to review the potential map changes and provide information about grandfathering for insurance purposes. It is anticipated that after a federal appeal process the revised maps will become effective in early 2012.

There are several ways to see if your property will be impacted. Online visitors can go to http://riskmap6.com/NM/SantaFe/ and enter your street address on the left side of the page. You can request a hard copy of the comparison maps at the City Land Use Department on Tuesdays from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. and Thursdays from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. And if you call 955-6955 you can get a CD with the information at a cost of $10.

Santa Fe is also revising the floodplain ordinance as part of its Land Development Code rewrite.

Donna Reynolds is chief executive officer of the Santa Fe Association of Realtors (www.sfar.com).