we'll start with ms. thompson. >> good morning. i appreciate the testimony to testify on bhaft of the fdic regarding the condition of the commercial real estate market and its relationship to the overall stability of the financial system. the events surrounding the recent financial crisis have taken a heavy toll on economic activity across our nation. the past three years have been difficult for many institutions that focus on cre lending, especially in home construction. in 2009, there were 140 bank failures, last year, 157 banks failed, and many of those failures were caused by losses on construction loans that were made during the boom years before the crisis. some community banks with cre concentrations continue to experience elevated losses. the stressed cre loan exposures take time to work out, and in some cases, require restructuring to establish a more realistic and sustainable repayment program. some loans may not be able to be modified and must be written off. this process of prompt lost recognition and restructuring pain