Annual AHF Live Brings Encouraging News

There was a positive tone to this year’s AHF Live: The Affordable Housing Developers’ Summit, the annual event from Affordable Housing Finance magazine and Hanley Wood, in Chicago this week.

Some encouraging news started with the Affordable Housing Finance Editorial Advisory Board Roundtable on Monday. David Reznick, founder and chairman of the board of Reznick Group, referred to an article from Monday’s USA Today about the nation’s job outlook turning positive and that more companies plan to add new employees in the next six months rather than cutting positions. “As people get jobs back, that is key,” he said.

The keynote address Tuesday by Carol Galante, the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s deputy assistant secretary for multifamily housing, also focused on the positive changes happening at HUD that will benefit the affordable housing industry.

Many of the speakers and moderators at the event conveyed cautious optimism and signs of improvements ahead, a lot of encouragement for the affordable housing industry, and a lot of urging for developers and owners to get engaged in solutions by calling their legislators to get changes enacted to the low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) program and sharing their stories of how LIHTC developments are having a positive effect on neighborhoods across the nation.

Galante said with rents dropping and vacancies rising in the conventional rental market, some question why more money should be invested in affordable housing. “We need as an industry to really demonstrate why the tax credit industry is so different,” she said.

However, despite some of the encouraging signs that are emerging, developers and financiers also shared several big concerns about the industry, including a lack of equity in the LIHTC market, tougher underwriting standards, and growing financing gaps.

We will be updating www.housingfinance.com with more conference coverage over the next several days.

Maximize every opportunity during these challenging times with the affordable housing specialists at Baker Tilly. From tax and funding assistance, to strategic planning and advisory services, we can help identify and apply resources to your project. Click here to see how Baker Tilly helped make affordable housing goals a reality.

ICON Builders sets the standard for renovation of occupied affordable housing apartment units. We also excel in senior and multi-family new construction. We are the company with a passion for quality and detail on every project.
12,600 Units, $550M total contracts
Serving California, Arizona, and the west for over 60 years.