As I run into people who know what I do for a living, they somehow seem surprised that I am still growing my business in a "poor" market. Often times they will ask: "How can you sell homes if the banks are not lending money?" The response is simple: Banks are still lending money, just not to the higher risk borrowers it courted before the market began declining. There are even programs available to investors. The following is an excerpt from Realty Times and speaks directly to the investor contingent:

"Some investors may believe the headlines and assume that nobody's lending money anymore -- and certainly not for small residential rental projects.

But the reality is a little better than that. If you can come up with a downpayment, and are prepared to document income, assets and a solid appraised value, there are still some willing and able funding channels open to you.

They're basically in three categories:

Portfolio lenders such as regional or smaller banks and savings institutions who continue to offer carefully-underwritten, specialized niche products for small investors.

Second, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, who continue to fund single and multifamily loans, although with lots more restrictions than before.

And finally -- if either of these two don't work for you -- you can explore the so-called "hard money" lending route, which will almost certainly cost you a lot more.

Let's start with number one: As just one example, Home Savings of America in El Segundo, California, still offers jumbo investor loans on one to four unit rental properties with a proprietary "pay option" adjustable-rate program, according to loan officer John W. Barnes.

You've got to sink some serious equity into the deal up front: Maximum loan-to-value ratio is 60 percent and you need to come to the table with a minimum 680 FICO score.

There are also some geographic limitations, but if you get through these hoops, you might qualify for a fully-indexed 6.65 percent rate, with a 40-year term and an "MTA" index tied to the average monthly yield of Treasury securities over a one year period.

Barnes told Realty Times that "properly underwritten," payment option loans "are still a very good program" for investor applicants and the lender.

For investors looking for a more plain-vanilla, 30-year, fixed rate mortgage, Fannie Mae continues to offer loans to rental property purchasers. But again, you need solid equity up front and higher credit scores than in the past. Even on loans with 30 percent down, Fannie is tagging on a 1.75 percent adverse market delivery fee on investor mortgages. Once you're over 80 percent LTV, the fee goes to 3.75 points."