1. Dubai's Man In Manhattan [New York Observer]
Even those who don't adore Andrew Farkas give the guy his due: The New York whiz kid who conquered New York real estate before becoming Dubai World's man in Manhattan is one sharp suit.

2. Will New Virtual Firms Pave Way For Full MLS? [The Real Deal]
Leigh Zaph is planning on registering his three-person firm, Manhattan Homes, as a Virtual Office website. A new breed of online brokerage is springing up in New York, altering the landscape of real estate sales in Manhattan and worrying traditional firms, who fear the changes may hurt their business.

3. 2010 REI Outlook: Real Estate Investors Planning On Buying Commercial Properties Like It's 2005 [National Mortgage Professional]
After a quiet year of investment sales, buyers are preparing to forge ahead with acquisitions in 2010. Two-thirds of investors (65 percent) who responded to the Sixth Annual Investment Survey plan to boost their investment in commercial real estate over the next 12 months.

4. Commercial Property Values Continue Decline, May Be Tapering Off [The Real Deal]
The monthly decline of commercial real estate prices nationwide is easing somewhat, according to the latest Moody's/REAL Commercial Property Price Indices. In October, the price indices declined 1.5 percent from a month earlier, a sign that commercial prices may be leveling off.

5. Moving In: East Hampton [The Hartford Courant]
Can a couple with West Coast tastes and a sense of history find a house in Connecticut that satisfies both? Absolutely, say Derek and Joyce Hyde, a pair of 40-something professionals who closed last month on a home in East Hampton that is a rare blend of old and new.

6. Real (Estate) Indicator: Port Royal Home Sells For $9.5 Million [Naples News]
Last week, the Naples' Realtors association said the sales of high-end houses are starting to pick up. Friday there was more evidence of such when a 6,406-square-foot, waterfront single-family home in Port Royal sold for $9,560,000. Mark Weber, real estate broker and owner of Whitesands Realty, said the home sold for about 20 percent less than the original list price.

7. Flaherty Warns On Mortgage Rules [The Globe and Mail]
Finance minister tells CTV Ottawa may raise minimum down payment for home buyers and reduce amortization period to stop some from taking on too much debt.

8. Tishman's $5.4 Billion Boomerang Gives Speyer Lesson [Bloomberg]
Rob Speyer showed little interest in his family's real estate business until his father began talking about buying Manhattan's Rockefeller Center.

9. Agent Or No Agent? [New York Times]
Side by side on a quiet South Nyack street with striking Hudson River views, Jeanette Corvino and Jeffrey Hall have each been trying to sell expensive houses in a challenging market. But the similarity of their neighboring situations ends there.

10. Short Sales Show Seady Growth [Inman News]
National bank and thrift servicers completed 22 percent more short sales during the quarter ending September 30 than during the previous three months, and 127 percent more than the same quarter a year ago, federal bank regulators said today.

11. Mortgage Rates Rises, 30-Year Near Five Percent [The Wall Street Journal]
Mortgage rates rose this week, with the average rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages climbing closer to five percent, according to Freddie Mac's weekly survey of mortgage rates. Frank Nothaft, Freddie's chief economist, noted rates followed yields on Treasuries, which have risen in recent days on a litany of political and economic news. He added that the 30-year rate has been below five percent for nearly two months, which has contributed to a wave of refinancing activity.