New York City real estate prices will stabilize in 2010, REBNY’s Steven Spinola says … and more

1. New York City residential real estate prices will stabilize in 2010, Steven Spinola, president of REBNY, says [NY1]
2. Tallest building in Brooklyn, the Brooklyner, 20 percent rented within a month [Brownstoner]
3. Construction of Hunters Point South park will be funded with revenue from new housing [Post]
4. Construction worker escapes death after falling eight stories from a Garment District building [NYDN]
5. Warren Buffet may buy troubled mortgage company Residential Capital [Reuters]
6. Real estate consultants and partners Kathy Braddock and Paul Purcell celebrate Christmas outside NYC [NYT]
7. East Village’s Italian trattoria Mr. C’s still vacant after closing five months ago [EV Grieve]
8. Maggie Gyllenhaal talks about fixing up her Park Slope brownstone [NY Mag]
9. Celtic Park co-op rejects proposal to commemorate Irish-American Athletic Club on site [Irish Echo]
10. Two Newark men injured in fire in basement apartment which may have been illegally converted [ABC]
11. Downtown Brooklyn eco-architects construct prototype for homes made of animal flesh [Brooklyn Paper]
12. Freddy’s Bar & Backroom builds nine-foot guillotine from empty beer cans to protest AY [NYDN]
13. Queens Library will design a Long Island City branch this spring [Zwire]
14. Treasury promises more support for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac [Housing Wire] and [Bloomberg]
15. Part two of the subprime mortgage crisis impending [Seeking Alpha]
16. Linking the housing bubble to immigration protests [Seeking Alpha]
17. Loan officers around the country have begun taking mandated licensing exams [NYT]
18. Reopening of Fort Hamilton Library in Bay Ridge delayed due to termite problem [Brooklyn Paper]
19. Trial modifications hurt homeowners’ credit score [CNN]
20. First-time homebuyer tax credit will not be renewed for a third time, industry leaders and lawmakers say [LA Times]