National Equity Fund (NEF) provided record-level financing to support affordable housing in 2024.

Under development by Over the Rainbow Association and Lakeview Lutheran Church, Lakeview Landing will bring new affordable housing opportunities to residents in Chicago. National Equity Fund is one of the key financing partners behind the 37-unit development.
Over the Rainbow Association Under development by Over the Rainbow Association and Lakeview Lutheran Church, Lakeview Landing will bring new affordable housing opportunities to residents in Chicago. National Equity Fund is one of the key financing partners behind the 37-unit development.

The nonprofit low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) syndicator and real estate investment manager reported raising and deploying $2.7 billion in affordable housing investments, including $1.8 billion in LIHTC equity, last year. This marks the firm's strongest performance, according to officials.

NEF's activities also included providing $900 million in structured finance—more than doubling 2023's results—for preservation lending and workforce housing investments.

"Thanks to our deep relationships, strong product offerings, and the perseverance of our exceptional teams, I'm proud that we helped create or preserve more than 16,000 affordable homes in 2024 in service of our mission," said president and CEO Matthew Reilein. "While there is still stress in the system across our industry, we continue to provide stability for our investor and developer partners by expanding our financial solutions and delivering new ways to bridge capital gaps in addition to our core offerings."

Matthew Reilein
Matthew Reilein

In response to the growing equity size of deals in urban markets, in 2024, the nonprofit developed and closed on a "club fund" strategy aimed at placing single large deals in a fund with multiple investors, in addition to its traditional proprietary and multi-fund offerings.

In another milestone, the firm’s 10th Homestead Equity Fund closed last summer at over $1 billion in total equity since inception in 2009. The nonprofit also reported that it leaned into state LIHTCs, which make up a larger piece of project capital stacks than ever before.

NEF also teamed with NeighborWorks Capital, a national nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution, to launch the NeighborWorks Capital Equity Fund, an initiative to provide high-performing community-based nonprofits with standardized equitable LIHTC terms.

Officials at NEF added they will continue to advocate for the Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act, legislation that will expand and improve the LIHTC program, this year.