Buildings that Change Lives

By Jessica Hoefer
July 1, 2023 3 min read

In the 1930s, the programs and agencies that eventually became the Department of Housing and Urban Development were focused on construction to alleviate the housing hardships caused by the Great Depression. Then with the amended Housing Act of 1954, the term “urban renewal” was introduced as efforts to revitalize inner cities and suburban communities commenced. And by the 1970s, the focus shifted to providing communities with the unique resources needed for further development. Also, in 1973, HUD’s Office of Policy Development and Research was created, which maintained a database identifying techniques for building more affordable, durable, disaster-resistant, safe and energy-efficient housing. The beginning of the 21st century saw concerted efforts to implement a “green” approach to building, which leads us to today and the more resident-centric and holistic approaches that developers are taking.

Thanks to this ever-evolving focus on affordable housing, we continue to see advancements in the construction of these buildings, as well as the physical and emotional well-being they provide. This issue of Tax Credit Advisor exemplifies how today’s developers are embracing the infinite possibilities of better housing by looking ahead and using replicable and responsive approaches to create buildings that change lives.

In Developers Empowering Resident Voices, we learn how Preservation of Affordable Housing’s new Trauma-Informed Housing Toolkit is altering the way developers consider housing, by placing residents at the center. Trauma-informed housing strives to advance equity and economic opportunity in affordable housing. While Standardized Design touts the benefits of reproducing tried and true design elements and products to build livable, engaging communities by utilizing what provides the best life experiences for said residents.

This month’s Breaking Ground breaks down the holistic and responsive approach that developer McCormack Baron Salazar is taking to address communities’ needs and its focus on rebuilding urban America for the betterment of its residents.

And an attempt to address the homeless student population in California has resulted in a new and replicable project, the appropriately named Aspire in Riverside, CA. The project is being built for homeless college students who have aged out of foster care and will provide tailored educational, health and wellness, and workforce development programming that will encourage residents to “aspire to success.” (Case Study: The Aspire in Riverside.)

Each year, thousands of affordable housing units are developed across the United States. We know that we need more housing, but we also need more housing like the ones presented in this issue. Housing that is aspirational, as well as inspirational and that will continue to improve residents’ lives, health and economic futures.

Regards,
Jessica Hoefer
Editor-in-Chief

Industry Insights

Final CRA Rule Implementation on Pause

Kaitlyn Snyder • May 1, 2024 4 min read

A U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas recently granted an injunction to extend the Community Reinvestment Act final rule’s effective date, April 1, along with all other implementation dates. Here’s what you need to know about the case and how it will impact LIHTC investment.

The Guru Is In

Neither Fair, Nor Market, Nor Rent

David A. Smith • May 1, 2024 6 min read

Names can outlive their purpose and their original meaning. Though the Holy Roman Empire was neither holy, nor Roman, nor an empire, a cluster of mutually distrustful principalities with a largely symbolic head of state known as the Holy Roman Emperor maneuvered under that rubric for a thousand years after its 800 AD founding by Charlemagne before it was put to sleep by the 1815 Congress of Vienna. Such may yet be the fate of two venerable concepts, Fair Market Rent (FMR) and the Area Median Income (AMI).

Legally Speaking

Blending Yields

Alex Zeltser, Esq. & Robert Kaplan, Esq. • May 1, 2024 7 min read

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting impacts on the economy and financial markets, as well as the Federal Reserve’s raising of short-term rates to stave off inflation, interest rates and construction costs have risen dramatically, resulting in funding gaps that many multifamily affordable housing developers in the four percent LIHTC space have had difficulty filling.