Exhibit 99.1

New York Mortgage Trust Reports

Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2012 Results

NEW YORK, NY – March 5, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) – New York Mortgage Trust, Inc. (Nasdaq: NYMT) (“NYMT” or the “Company”) today reported results for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2012.

Summary of Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2012:

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Company Overview

NYMT is an internally managed real estate investment trust, or REIT, which invests in mortgage-related and financial assets. The Company currently targets multi-family CMBS, Agency RMBS, including Agency fixed-rate RMBS, Agency ARMs, and Agency IOs, and residential mortgage loans. RiverBanc, LLC, The Midway Group, L.P. and Headlands Asset Management, LLC provide investment management services to the Company with respect to certain of its targeted asset classes. For a list of defined terms used from time to time in this press release, see “Defined Terms” below.

Management Overview

Steven Mumma, NYMT’s CEO and President, commented: “The Company finished the year on a strong note, funding over $75.6 million in multi-family CMBS securities and $60.9 million in residential distressed mortgage loans during the fourth quarter of 2012, bringing our total investment in credit sensitive assets to $255.0 million for the year. In addition, the Company raised total net proceeds of $231.6 million in public equity offerings during 2012, including $104.1 million in October 2012. The Company also completed three structured financing transactions in 2012 of a significant portion of its credit sensitive assets, resulting in total net proceeds for the Company of $114.7 million. These financings provide longer term funding for certain multi-family CMBS and distressed residential loans, thereby reducing liquidity risk and, we believe, enhancing the overall return for invested capital. Our increase in capital has resulted in a more diverse portfolio, access to better financing terms as well as lowering our expense operating ratios by over 64%.

We are pleased with our earnings for the fourth quarter given the deployment of a significant portion of the proceeds from the October 2012 equity offering into credit sensitive assets over the course of the fourth quarter. For a number of reasons, these credit sensitive assets tend to require a longer diligence and settlement process than investments in Agency RMBS. However, while the slower deployment of capital to these assets during the quarter may have impacted fourth quarter results, we are confident that the allocation of capital to these types of assets will produce longer-term benefits for our portfolio and our returns.

Management believes the Company’s portfolio is well positioned heading into 2013 with a balanced investment strategy for both interest rate risk and credit risk. The Company’s current funding sources are also well balanced with a combination of short term repurchase agreements that fund primarily our Agency RMBS portfolio and our newly issued securitized debt. We will continue to pursue credit sensitive assets and more traditional mortgage-related assets that we believe, when combined with the appropriate mix and type of financing, will deliver attractive risk adjusted returns and will complement our existing portfolio.”

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Results from Operations

For the quarter ended December 31, 2012, the Company reported consolidated net income attributable to common stockholders of $9.4 million, or $0.19 per common share, as compared to consolidated net loss attributable to common stockholders of $1.9 million, or $0.16 per common share, for the same period in 2011. The increase is primarily due to an increase in net interest margin of $6.0 million, an increase in realized gain on investment securities and related hedges of $2.9 million, an increase in unrealized gain on multi-family loans and debt held in securitization trusts of $1.7 million, a decrease in general, administrative and other expense of $1.2 million, and a decrease in impairment loss on investment securities of $0.3 million, partially offset by an increase in unrealized loss on investment securities and related hedges of $0.5 million, and a decrease in income from investments in limited partnership and limited liability company of $0.5 million. The increase in net interest margin of $6.0 million is primarily due to an increase of $977.3 million in average interest earning assets at December 31, 2012 as compared to December 31, 2011, which was mainly driven by the Company’s additional investments in Agency RMBS and multi-family CMBS during 2012, achieved largely as a result of cash proceeds received from public stock offerings during the year ended December 31, 2012. The $2.9 million increase in realized gain on investment securities and related hedges is primarily due to the performance of our Agency IO portfolio, which had a $0.6 million realized gain for the quarter ended December 31, 2012 as compared to a $2.3 million loss in the quarter ended December 31, 2011. The decrease in general, administrative and other expense of $1.2 million is primarily due to the decrease in management contract termination fees of $2.2 million, substantially all of which was recorded during the quarter ended December 31, 2011.

For the year ended December 31, 2012, the Company reported consolidated net income attributable to common stockholders of $28.3 million, or $1.08 per common share, as compared to consolidated net income attributable to common stockholders of $4.8 million, or $0.46 per common share, for the year ended December 31, 2011. The increase is primarily due to an increase in net interest margin of $12.1 million, an increase in unrealized gain on multi-family loans and debt held in securitization trusts of $6.7 million, a decrease in unrealized loss on investment securities and related hedges of $5.7 million, a decrease in provision for loan loss of $0.9 million, an increase in realized gain on investment securities and related hedges of $0.5 million, partially offset by a decrease in income from investments in limited partnership and limited liability company of $1.5 million, an increase in general, administrative and other expenses of $0.9 million, and an increase in income tax expense of $0.5 million. The increase in net interest margin of $12.1 million is primarily due to an increase of $365.0 million in average interest earning assets resulting from the deployment of proceeds totaling $231.6 million from four public equity offerings completed in 2012. The proceeds were mainly invested in Agency RMBS and multi-family CMBS during 2012. The $6.7 million unrealized gain related to our multi-family loans and debt held in securitization trusts was due to improving market conditions during the year ended December 31, 2012. There were no multi-family loans and debt held in securitization trusts investments during the year ended December 31, 2011. The decline in net unrealized loss on investment securities and related hedges was mainly related to an improved environment for our investment portfolio, particularly our Agency IO portfolio, as compared to the comparative 2011 periods. During the second half of 2011, a confluence of factors, including uncertainty and concerns of systemic risk related to the European sovereign debt crisis and a revamping of the rules for HARP II, contributed to a significant widening of credit spreads and prepayment speed concerns, which in turn, negatively impacted the pricing of our Agency IOs at December 31, 2011. The general, administrative and other expense increase of $0.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2012, as compared to the same period in 2011, is primarily due to an increase in management fees, driven in large part by the increase in assets managed by external managers and increased profitability of our investments.

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Book value per common share as of December 31, 2012 was $6.50, representing an increase of $0.38 per common share from the Company’s book value at December 31, 2011.

A reconciliation between (i) net income excluding the unrealized gains and losses on investment securities and related hedges and multi-family loans and debt held in securitizations trusts and (ii) GAAP net income (loss) attributable to common stockholders for the year and three months ended December 31, 2012, respectively, is presented below (dollar amounts in thousands, except per share):

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Portfolio Allocation

The following table sets forth our allocated equity by investment type at December 31, 2012 (dollar amounts in thousands):

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Portfolio Asset Yields

The following table summarizes the Company’s significant assets at December 31, 2012, classified by relevant categories (dollar amount in thousands):

 Additional Information

As of December 31, 2012, the Company funded a portion of its investment portfolio with $889.1 million of repurchase agreement borrowings with an average interest rate of 0.54%. In addition, as part of the hedging strategy for its Agency IOs, the Company had a net long position of $244.8 million of To-Be-Announced (“TBA”) securities as of December 31, 2012.

The Company’s portfolio net interest margin was 333 basis points for the quarter ended December 31, 2012 as compared to net interest margin of 470 basis points for the quarter ended September 30, 2012. The decline was primarily a result of the deployment of a significant portion of the proceeds from public equity offerings in August and October 2012 into Agency RMBS.

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Analysis of Changes in Book Value

The following table analyzes the changes in book value for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2012, respectively (amounts in thousands, except per share):

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Conference Call

On Wednesday, March 6, 2013, at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time, New York Mortgage Trust's executive management is scheduled to host a conference call and audio webcast to discuss the Company's financial results for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2012. The conference call dial-in number is (877) 312-8806. The replay will be available until Wednesday, March 13, 2013 and can be accessed by dialing (855) 859-2056 and entering passcode 15739758. A live audio webcast of the conference call can be accessed via the Internet, on a listen-only basis, at the Company's website at http://www.nymtrust.com. Please allow extra time, prior to the call, to visit the site and download the necessary software to listen to the Internet broadcast.

Full year 2012 financial and operating data can be viewed on the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K, which is expected to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on or before March 15, 2013. A copy of the Form 10-K will be posted at the Company’s website as soon as reasonably practicable following its filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Defined Terms

The following defines certain of the commonly used terms in this press release: “RMBS” refers to residential mortgage-backed securities comprised of adjustable-rate, hybrid adjustable-rate, fixed-rate, interest only and inverse interest only, and principal only securities; “Agency RMBS” refers to RMBS representing interests in or obligations backed by pools of residential mortgage loans issued or guaranteed by a federally chartered corporation, such as the Federal National Mortgage Association (“Fannie Mae”) or the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (“Freddie Mac”), or an agency of the U.S. government, such as the Government National Mortgage Association (“Ginnie Mae”); “Agency ARMs” refers to Agency RMBS comprised of adjustable-rate and hybrid adjustable-rate RMBS; “IOs” refers collectively to interest only and inverse interest only mortgage-backed securities that represent the right to the interest component of the cash flow from a pool of mortgage loans; “Agency IOs” refers to Agency RMBS comprised of IOs; “POs” refers to mortgage-backed securities that represent the right to the principal component of the cash flow from a pool of mortgage loans; “ARMs” refers to adjustable-rate residential mortgage loans; “residential securitized loans” refers to prime credit quality residential ARM loans held in securitization trusts; “distressed residential loans” refers to a pool of performing and re-performing, fixed-rate and adjustable-rate, fully amortizing, interest-only and balloon, seasoned mortgage loans secured by first liens on one- to four-family properties held in securitization trust; “CMBS” refers to commercial mortgage-backed securities comprised of commercial mortgage pass-through securities, as well as IO or PO securities that represent the right to a specific component of the cash flow from a pool of commercial mortgage loans; “multi-family CMBS” refers to CMBS backed by commercial mortgage loans on multi-family properties; “multi-family securitized loans” refers to the commercial mortgage loans included in the Consolidated K-Series; “CDO” refers to collateralized debt obligation; “CLO” refers to collateralized loan obligation; and “Consolidated K-Series” refers to four separate Freddie-Mac sponsored multi-family loan K- Series securitizations, of which we, or one of our special purpose entities, or SPEs, own the first loss PO securities and certain IO securities.

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We determined that the Consolidated K-Series were variable interest entities and that we are the primary beneficiary of the Consolidated K-Series. As a result, we are required to consolidate the Consolidated K-Series’ underlying multi-family loans including their liabilities, interest income and expense in our consolidated financial statements. We have elected the fair value option on the assets and liabilities held within the Consolidated K-Series, which requires that changes in valuations in the assets and liabilities of the Consolidated K-Series be reflected in our consolidated statement of operations.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

In addition to disclosing financial results calculated in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), this press release presents a non-GAAP financial measure that excludes certain items. This non-GAAP financial measure is provided to enhance the user's overall understanding of our financial performance. Specifically, management believes the non-GAAP financial measure provides useful information to investors by excluding or adjusting certain items affecting reported operating results that were unusual or not indicative of our core operating results. The non-GAAP financial measure presented by the Company should not be considered a substitute for, or superior to, the financial measures calculated in accordance with GAAP. Moreover, this non-GAAP financial measure may not be comparable to similarly titled measures reported by other companies. The non-GAAP financial measure included in this earnings release has been reconciled above to the nearest GAAP measure.

About New York Mortgage Trust

New York Mortgage Trust, Inc. is a Maryland corporation that has elected to be taxed as a real estate investment trust (“REIT”). The Company invests in mortgage-related and financial assets and targets Agency RMBS, consisting of fixed-rate, adjustable-rate and hybrid adjustable-rate RMBS, Agency IOs consisting of interest only and inverse interest only RMBS that represent the right to the interest component of the cash flow from a pool of mortgage loans, multi-family CMBS and residential mortgage loans, including loans sourced from distressed markets.

When used in this press release, in future filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) or in other written or oral communications, statements which are not historical in nature, including those containing words such as “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “plan,” “continue,” “intend,” “should,” “would,” “could,” “goal,” “objective,” “will,” “may” or similar expressions, are intended to identify “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and, as such, may involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions.

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Forward-looking statements are based on the Company’s beliefs, assumptions and expectations of its future performance, taking into account all information currently available to it. These beliefs, assumptions and expectations are subject to risks and uncertainties and can change as a result of many possible events or factors, not all of which are known to the Company. If a change occurs, the Company’s business, financial condition, liquidity and results of operations may vary materially from those expressed in its forward-looking statements. The following factors are examples of those that could cause actual results to vary from the Company’s forward-looking statements: changes in interest rates and the market value of the Company’s securities; changes in credit spreads; the impact of the downgrade of the long-term credit ratings of the U.S., Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Ginnie Mae; market volatility; changes in the prepayment rates on the mortgage loans underlying the Company’s investment securities; increased rates of default and/or decreased recovery rates on the Company’s assets; the Company’s ability to borrow to finance its assets; changes in government regulations affecting the Company’s business; the Company’s ability to maintain its qualification as a REIT for federal tax purposes; the Company’s ability to maintain its exemption from registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended; and risks associated with investing in real estate assets, including changes in business conditions and the general economy. These and other risks, uncertainties and factors, including the risk factors described in the Company’s periodic reports filed with the SEC, could cause the Company’s actual results to differ materially from those projected in any forward-looking statements it makes. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made. New risks and uncertainties arise over time and it is not possible to predict those events or how they may affect the Company. Except as required by law, the Company is not obligated to, and does not intend to, update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

For Further Information

FINANCIAL TABLES FOLLOW

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NEW YORK MORTGAGE TRUST, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(amounts in thousands, except per share amounts)

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NEW YORK MORTGAGE TRUST, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(amounts in thousands, except per share amounts)

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NEW YORK MORTGAGE TRUST, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(amounts in thousands, except share and per share amounts)