President Obama has signed the "Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act" into law. The National Association of REALTORS® called this long-sought victory a "significant step" toward eliminating barriers to safe, affordable mortgage credit for condos.

This bill was approved unanimously first by the US House in February and then by the Senate in July. NAR has long been an advocate of this bill, testifying before Congress and lobbying for its passage.

This new law includes reforms to current Federal Housing Administration (FHA) restrictions on condominium financing, including lowering FHA's current owner-occupancy requirement from 50% to 35%. The law will also make FHA's recertification process "substantially less burdensome."

NAR President Tom Salomone praised the legislation. "Condomiumiums often represent an affordable option that's just right for first-time and low-to-moderate income home buyers. Overly burdensome restrictions on condo financing have for too long put that option out of reach for many creditworthy borrowers. This legislation puts the dream of home ownership back in reach for more Americans."

Special thanks to Virginia's Senators and Representatives for their support of this important legislation.

The latest edition of Southern Business & Development magazine recognizes several Roanoke Region locations in the list of "Who's winning the economic development game in the South?" The 'best of' list ranks locations from all over the Southern part of the country in 60 different categories.

Here are the highlights from the Roanoke Region:

• Best-Kept Secrets for Great Quality of Life in the South: Mid-Markets: Roanoke VA
• Best Data Center Locations in the Southeast: Roanoke County VA (honorable mention)
• Best Cities and Counties in the Southeast for the Creative Class: Roanoke VA
• Best Mid-Markets in the Southeast for the Automotive Indistry: Roanoke VA