By Marcelo Bermúdez, President, Figueroa Capital Group, subsidiary of Charles Dunn Co.: As of Oct. 15, a deal is within striking distance to give the Fed authority to borrow through mid-February 2014.

By Marcelo Bermúdez, President, Figueroa Capital Group, subsidiary of Charles Dunn Co.: Rarely is there a day that goes by where a client doesn’t ask me if whatever we are trying to accomplish can be non-recourse or if certain covenants can be stripped during the negotiation process.

By Marcelo Bermúdez, President, Figueroa Capital Group, subsidiary of Charles Dunn Co.: Foreign investment in the U.S. is a great way to expand the capital pool available for real estate development, business expansion, and most importantly, job opportunities.

By Marcelo Bermúdez, President, Figueroa Capital Group, subsidiary of Charles Dunn Co.: This month’s jobs report showed a 200,000-unit increase compared to the month prior. Assuming the economy can maintain that level of job creation consistently, the U.S. can break the 7 percent threshold by June 2014, which is less than one year away.

By Marcelo Bermúdez, President, Figueroa Capital Group, subsidiary of Charles Dunn Co.: Over the past 40-plus years, the U.S. government has enacted several discretionary benefit programs worth billions. Because of the complex structures, investors shy away from these investment alternatives. Don’t be too quick to judge the unknown.

By Marcelo Bermúdez, President, Figueroa Capital Group, subsidiary of Charles Dunn Co.: This coming Sunday, May 19, commercial real estate professionals, developers, and retailers from all over the country will convene in Las Vegas for the International Council of Shopping Centers annual RECon event.

By Marcelo Bermúdez, President, Figueroa Capital Group, subsidiary of Charles Dunn Co.: Over the last six months, headlines like, “Improvements in Fundamentals Mean Big Returns,” “Secondary Markets Heating Up,” and even, “The Return of the Boom” continue to bring encouragement to the marketplace.

By Marcelo Bermúdez, President, Figueroa Capital Group, a subsidiary of Charles Dunn Co.: 2012 ended with a growing amount of activity for investors wishing to reposition their portfolio and prepare for the increased tax burden.

By Marcelo Bermúdez, President, Figueroa Capital Group, a subsidiary of Charles Dunn Co.: It has been a month since the election, and the rhetoric regarding the fiscal cliff, the fiscal equivalent of Y2K per economist Dr. Peter Linneman, has taken center stage for pundits and newsrooms.

By Marcelo Bermúdez, President, Figueroa Capital Group, a subsidiary of Charles Dunn Company: Although it has cost billions of dollars and precious lives, Hurricane Sandy provided a mental reprieve that turned down the noise of the presidential election and Wall Street.