AHF caught up with Tom Capp of Gorman & Co., Brett Johnson of Overland Property Group, Meg Manley of McCormack Baron Salazar, and Matt Rieger of the Housing Trust Group at the recent AHF Live: Housing Developers Forum in New Orleans.
All their firms are on this year’s AHF 50 list of top developers.
They reveal how they are approaching the current environment of lower low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) pricing and identify the traits that made their companies leaders in the field. They also share the trends they see coming for the industry.
One move may be for developers and housing finance agencies to really examine what’s necessary to provide quality housing, including considering smaller units, in this era of cost containment, says Manley.
“I think the trend we’re going to see in the immediate future is maybe getting to a more economical design of our units,” she says.
The biggest opportunity for LIHTC developers is finding a way to reach renters earning just above the housing credit maximum of 60% of the area median income, says Capp. “Every community we work with right now wants to brainstorm with us about how to hit workforce housing and those income levels that are just a bit higher than our traditional LIHTC population,” he says.
Watch this video sponsored by Love Funding to learn more from the veteran developers.
