The co-founders of $1.5 billion fund have long resumes highlighted with mortgage, FHA, Wall Street and financial regulation experience in executive positions. Richard Stewart Jr., CEO of Heritage Capital Resources and Peter Monroe, CEO of National Real Estate Ventures, have carefully assessed the turbulent state of the national housing market and decided to pool their talents to buy and sell distressed real estate. In doing so the plan is to "help return foreclosed homes to productive use, prevent many foreclosures and also allow us to work with banks, servicers and federal agencies to reduce evictions."

Their forward-looking joint venture has also formed a close strategic alliance with Partners in Action, or PIA, a non-profit organization that has for years helped first-time home buyers via the HUD-sanctioned Affordable Housing Program. Currently it is heavily involved in assisting troubled homeowners with loan modifications and lease-purchase options that would let them stay in their homes.

The REO, or real estate owned, fund is set to work together with Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA, FDIC and the Treasury to seek workable solutions to this financial calamity. Not only that, but it also aims to maximize returns for the investors on board.

This partnership is a good example of how a private enterprise can work together with the government in finding answers to common problems. When something like this is structured correctly it can turn out nice returns, monetary and otherwise, for both sides. From the looks of this fund it'll do just that.

Is the traumatized Las Vegas real estate market going to be one of the joint venture's priorities? At the moment no one knows, as a more specific plan of action is probably just now being put together. If it calls for heavy involvement in Southern Nevada - in communities like Henderson, Summerlin, Green Valley, Seven Hills and Eldorado - it would certainly help stabilize the still fluid situation here. Home prices have in many neighborhoods dropped below replacement cost, as several industry experts are saying, so that in itself offers excellent investment opportunity. Which ought to be incentive enough to give Sin City a careful look.