Ryan Sfreddo has been appointed president of Red Stone Equity Partners, a national real estate investment firm specializing in tax credit syndication to facilitate the development of affordable housing and renewable energy projects.
The firm also announced that 2019 was its most successful year as it surpassed $5.5 billion in tax credit equity raised since the firm’s 2007 inception. Red Stone Equity raised $1.1 billion of tax credit equity in 2019, and its funds invested in 68 underlying transactions.
Most recently, Sfreddo has served as a principal and managing director of investor relations, overseeing the marketing and distribution of the company’s tax credit investments. He has 21 years of real estate and affordable housing experience and has been a member of the executive leadership team since joining Red Stone Equity in 2011.
In his new role, Sfreddo will be responsible for leading the firm’s affordable tax credit syndication business, focusing on acquisitions, investor relations, and portfolio management. He will continue to work out of the company’s New York City office.
Founder and former president Eric McClelland will maintain his role as CEO, focusing on the company’s overall strategic planning, growth, and business diversification initiatives.
The $1.1 billion of tax credit equity raised last year included $1.03 billion of low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) equity and $70 million of renewable energy tax equity. The firm added investments in Arkansas, New Hampshire, and South Carolina, increasing the breadth of its investment portfolio to span 42 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
Red Stone Equity-sponsored investment funds have been used, along with other project-level financing sources, to finance the construction and/or rehabilitation of 442 properties containing more than 38,000 units of affordable housing and 676 megawatts of solar energy installations.
As part of its 2019 activities, Red Stone Equity sponsored three different multi-investor LIHTC funds: Red Stone Equity—2019 National Fund, Red Stone Equity—Fund 75, and Red Stone Equity—2019 California Regional Fund..
Collectively, these funds closed on $368.4 million in investor subscription commitments to finance the construction and/or rehabilitation of 45 projects containing 3,907 units of affordable rental housing across the country.
Also contributing to the record-breaking year was Red Stone Equity's efforts in New York City, where it invested more than $275 million of LIHTC equity in 2019. Hope Gardens represents the company's largest single asset financing to date at $88.2 million in LIHTC equity; the project is a comprehensive renovation and modernization of 949 units contained within 47 buildings located within five complexes in Brooklyn's Bushwick neighborhood.
