Developments

The 1704 N. Humboldt development is the substantial rehabilitation and historic preservation of a 1920s low-rise courtyard building in Chicago, which was originally purchased in 1988 by sponsor, Bickerdike Redevelopment Corporation. At that time, the existing 54 studio apartments were converted into 29 units of Section 8 family housing.

The recent rehabilitation of the five one-, 15 two- and nine three-bedroom apartments continues their Section 8 status targeting them to households earning at or below 60 percent Area Median Income.

Renovation included installation of high-efficiency heating and cooling systems and kitchen and bathroom fixtures. Roofs were replaced, existing walls repaired and tuck-pointed and windows, doors and lintels restored. A new laundry facility in the building’s basement is equipped with Energy Star appliances. Each apartment features a dishwasher, garbage disposal, air conditioning, blinds and new hardwood flooring.

Founded in 1967, Bickerdike Redevelopment Corporation is one of Chicago’s strongest community-based non-profit organizations and is widely recognized for its excellence in community development.

National Equity Fund® invested $8.8 million of LIHTC equity in 1704 N. Humboldt, its ninth partnership with Bickerdike.

The Harmon Apartments are named after the inspiring Cordelia Harmon, founder of The Boston Home in 1881, which served as a long-term care facility for adults with neurological conditions, primarily multiple sclerosis. Located in Boston, Massachusetts, the three-story apartment building provides 30 homes to residents earning no more than 30-60 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI) and six market-rate units. Harmon Apartments is an “accessibility plus” development for adults who live in independent housing and cannot afford a skilled nursing facility.  

This development is designed to meet the needs of individuals coming from environments of isolation and hardship with on-site services catering to active and healthy living, including wellness and social programs, access to neurological specialists, counseling, assistance with wheelchair positioning, and custom accommodations. Automatic doors, roll-in showers, and appliances in units make accessibility a priority. Residents can also adjust heating and cooling systems, lights, and blinds from their phones. About 90 percent of the community relies on supportive services with ages ranging from 15-81. 

Harmon Apartments was a 2020 AHF Readers’ Choice Award Finalist in the Special Needs category. The complex was co-developed by The Boston Home and Affirmative Investments, and NEF invested over $9.2 million in LIHTC equity. 

Georgiaville Village Green is one of the first affordable housing developments for families in Smithfield, Rhode Island. Once home to the Narragansett Gray Iron Foundry, Gemini Housing Corporation remediated and replaced a brownfield site with a 42-unit complex. This townhome community mirrors the architecture of historic Georgiaville Village while maintaining a cohesive design that is surrounded by greenery built to street edge. Units are available for single-family residents earning between 30-60 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI).  

The new homes at Georgiaville Village Green offer 3 one-bedrooms, 22 two-bedrooms, and 18 three-bedrooms. Five homes are reserved for very low-income households earning no more than 30 percent AMI through the Section 811 program, which offers supportive services to those residents with disabilities. The Smithfield area holds a range of shopping centers, medical centers, restaurants, and other amenities. 

This building’s “green” features include storm water runoff management, 46-kW solar photovoltaic systems, and the construction led to efforts to clean the contaminated lagoons and rehabilitate nearby riverbanks.  

Georgiaville Village Green was a 2020 AHF Readers’ Choice Awards Finalist in the Family category. Funding from the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) and Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program made the remediation and land purchase possible. Sponsored by Gemini Housing Corporation and housing authority affiliate, Coventry Housing Associates, NEF contributed an investment of about $8.1 million in LIHTC equity.  

Formerly an abandoned bowling alley, Energy Square (E2) is a single five-story net-zero-for-living development that provides 57 rental apartments in Kingston, NY. E2 dedicates 29 units to households earning at or below 50 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI) including seven ESSHI (Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative) units, nine units for special needs, seven for homeless young adults (18-25) and two for homeless persons with rents set at 30 percent AMI. Nine apartments are reserved for households at 90 percent AMI. Preference is given to persons waitlisted for subsidized housing and whose current housing fails to meet basic standards of health and safety.

E2 provides five fully accessible units: three adapted for persons with mobility impairment and two for hearing- or vision-impaired individuals. Support services are offered for financial literacy, employment readiness, and accessing health, mental health, and substance abuse services. The building features first-floor commercial and community service facility space with two elevators and an exterior greenspace. E2 achieved LEED Platinum certification and net zero through geothermal wells, solar, and building design.

This 2020 AHF Readers' Choice Awards Finalist in the Green Category was developed by Rural Ulster Preservation Company (RUPCO), and NEF invested $12 million in LIHTC equity.

St. Anthony Terrace, formerly named Prosser Senior Housing, is a new construction 61-unit affordable housing community in Prosser, Washington. The development neighbors the Tri-Cities and is a part of Catholic Charities Housing Services (CCHS) Diocese of Yakima’s extended regional territory. 

St. Anthony Terrace is the second phase of a two-phase project in Prosser. The first phase is Rio de Vida Farmworker & Workforce Housing built in 2014. This second phase provides 112 households in a community of 6,300 and serves low-income seniors 55 and older, including individuals with disabilities. The senior community has a combination of 26 one-bedrooms and 35 two-bedrooms. Half the building will be available for tenants with 50 percent of the area median income (AMI) and the other half will be reserved for households earning 30 percent AMI.  

St. Anthony Terrace’s unit amenities include blinds, grab bars, central heating and air conditioning, oven, dishwasher, and refrigerator. The development provides security with limited access and video surveillance cameras.  

CCHS has worked throughout rural Washington state, particularly in Benton, Grant and Yakima counties and has a portfolio of 23 stabilized projects, most of which serve farm workers. NEF contributed an investment of about 9.1 million in LIHTC equity to the development of St. Anthony Terrace. 

WSFSSH at West 108 is a new, two-condo construction in Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Co-located with WSFSSH's 110-bed shelter for seniors, Valley Lodge, there are 199 affordable housing units at the new construction at West 108 with several supportive studios and apartments for the formerly homeless, low-income families and elderly residents with serious mental illness and/or substance use disorders.

In 2020, Freedom Village at West Windsor opened in Princeton, New Jersey as a beautiful 72-unit affordable housing community that supports residents with disabilities. This development provides homes for moderate income families and individuals who earn between 50-80 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI).  

About 45 percent of residents in the community live with developmental and mental health disabilities, and 18 apartments are set aside for individuals in need. Specifically, 10 units are reserved for residents who are currently receiving services for developmental disabilities through their individual providers. Rents for these set-aside units are all paid for by the New Jersey Division of Developmental Disabilities while rent for eight units reserved for mental health consumers receiving agency services are paid for by the New Jersey Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services. The remaining 54 units are available for individuals and families without disabilities. While showcasing their mission, Project Freedom provides a 100 percent barrier free convenience with accessible wheelchairs and social service providers.  

Freedom Village at Windsor brings together neighborhoods through easy access to transportation, high-quality education and job opportunities in the surrounding areas. The developer worked to meet LEED Silver equivalent efficiency, minimizing water usage while creating healthy and efficient cost-saving buildings and minimal usage of heating and cooling sources.  

With Project Freedom as the developer, NEF invested over $13.2 million in LIHTC equity. 

Project Summary: Milwaukee Soldiers Home is the preservation of 101-unit apartments on the grounds of the Clement J. Zablocki VA Medical Center in Milwaukee. Eighty of the development’s homes are in Old Main, which was constructed in 1867 as a place of recuperation for Civil War soldiers as they transitioned back into society as part of one of the last pieces of legislation signed by President Lincoln. Today, six historic buildings on the Milwaukee Soldiers Home grounds, including a National Historic Landmark, have been rehabilitated and returned to their original purpose, the service of veterans. The development also serves families experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness.

Rents are affordable to households earning between 30-50 percent of Area Median Income (AMI) and all receive 30-year Project Based VASH (Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing) rental subsidy vouchers from the Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee (HACM).

Milwaukee Soldiers Home is one of the first developments in the nation and the first in Wisconsin financed with a hybrid structure using 4% and 9% Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC).

All residents of the Milwaukee Soldiers Home have access to a range of supportive services, provided on-site by the Milwaukee Veterans Affairs Medical Center HUDVASH program. Services include care coordination, job training and employment assistance, help with benefits coordination and peer-to-peer counseling.

The property’s extensive rehabilitation was spearheaded by The Alexander Company. NEF invested nearly $15 million of LIHTC equity into the development. 

Constructed on a blighted parking lot in a transitional neighborhood in Rochester, NY, The Eastman Reserve seeks to help transform the community into a safe, sustainable residential area with connections to existing amenities and employment opportunities. The 187-unit mixed-income mixed-use complex is comprised of townhouses, single-family homes and multi-family apartments that target a range of households including homeless youth and domestic violence survivors. Supported by Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative (ESSHI) funding, 69 apartments are affordable to households earning 50 percent or less of the Area Median Income (AMI), including 27 special-needs units: five targeting homeless young adults (18-25) and 22 are reserved for domestic violence survivors. Most of the other units are affordable with 66 at 50-60 percent AMI, 33 units at 60-90 percent AMI, and 19 units at 90-120 percent AMI. Residents have access to on-site supportive services such as counseling, legal, and healthcare services as well as a variety of modern amenities.

The Eastman Reserve won a 2020 Developments of Distinction Award for the Development that Best Preserves Metropolitan Community Impact and was a 2021 AHF Readers' Choice Awards - Family Category Finalist.

Sponsored by PathStone Development Corporation, NEF invested nearly $20 million of LIHTC equity into this development.

Recognized on the National Register of Historic Places, the preservation of Miriam Apartments has not only preserved the building’s original classic Chicago front façade elements and floors, but also 66 homes for residents in Chicago’s Uptown community. Mercy Housing Lakefront took over from Lakefront SRO, which updated the property in 1990, to improve this four-story historical building that was built in 1925. The rehabilitation work transformed shared bathrooms and communal kitchens into private spaces.  

In the interest of long-term affordability, Rental Assistance Demonstration Program (RAD) secured 20-year project-based assistance contracts for all apartments. Mariam Apartments aims to improve the quality of life of residents coming out of homelessness. All 66 units are restricted to residents earning 30 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI) and benefits from a Section 8 contract. The rehabilitation also features a steam heating system, which provides the residents with air conditioning for the first time as well as access to a computer lab, fitness room, community room, and resident storage. 

Miriam Apartments has gained recognition as the 2020 Residential Development that Best Exemplifies Major Community Impact at the Novogradac Rehabilitation Awards and was a 2020 Affordable Housing Finance Readers’ Choice Awards Winner in the Preservation category. This community was developed by Mercy Housing Lakefront, and NEF invested over $9.4 million in LIHTC equity. 

Florence Mills Apartments (FMA) is an environmentally-forward and thoughtfully designed mixed-use affordable housing building in the Central Avenue Historic District of South Los Angeles. FMA offers 74 new apartments with a mix of one-, two-, and three-bedrooms, approximately 5,000 square feet of commercial retail on the ground floor, community spaces for on-site resident services, and one level of subterranean parking. The apartment community is home to 54 large low-income families earning less than 60 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI) and 19 homeless veterans and families earning less than 18 and 9 percent AMI, respectively. The architecture integrates design elements to satisfy the needs of future residents, foster a sense of community, and reduce the environmental impact of the building. The building's namesake and mural subject, Florence Mills, was an extraordinary African American singer, dancer, and a passionate advocate of racial rights who captivated audiences during the golden age of Jazz in the 1920s. This community was a 2021 finalist in the Charles L. Edson Tax Credit Excellence Awards and the AHF Readers' Choice Awards - Urban Category.

FMA was developed by Hollywood Community Housing Corporation. NEF invested over $25 million of LIHTC equity into this development.

Armed with a vision of reducing vacant lots, reactivating abandoned residential structures and taking on some high commercial vacancy, developer VOA Illinois created a grand plan to make a difference in one urban Chicago neighborhood. Hope Manor Village is comprised of 36 new scattered site infill homes built on 16 lots that VOA purchased from the city for $1 each. Residences are affordable to households earning 15-60 percent of Area Median Income and rental assistance with the Chicago Low‐Income Housing Trust Fund MAUI Program provides subsidies for 10 units. Hope Manor Village replaces abandoned and foreclosed homes with high-quality affordable rental opportunities for Englewood residents and individuals and families (veteran preference). This development focuses on revitalizing both the infrastructure and aesthetics of the 10 surrounding blocks of Hope Manor II. Completed in 2021, 16 vacant lots are now home to 36 apartment units in a series of 2- and 3-flat buildings. Nine units are designed to support physically disabled and/or other special needs and will target the Veteran population. Residents have access to services including case management, counseling, peer support groups, financial literacy classes, health and wellness support, employment support and crisis intervention support.

This community was spearheaded by the Volunteers of America Illinois and Volunteers of America National Services. NEF invested just over $10 million of LIHTC equity into the development.

Hope Manor Village was the overall winner in Affordable Housing Finance’s annual Readers’ Choice Awards for the nation’s top developments of 2020 and 2021.

Milwaukee Soldiers Home is the preservation of 101-unit apartments on the grounds of the Clement J. Zablocki VA Medical Center in Milwaukee. Eighty of the development’s homes are in Old Main, which was constructed in 1867 as a place of recuperation for Civil War soldiers as they transitioned back into society as part of one of the last pieces of legislation signed by President Lincoln. Today, six historic buildings on the Milwaukee Soldiers Home grounds, including a National Historic Landmark, have been rehabilitated and returned to their original purpose, the service of veterans. The development also serves families experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness.

Rents are affordable to households earning between 30-50 percent of Area Median Income (AMI) and all receive 30-year Project Based VASH (Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing) rental subsidy vouchers from the Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee (HACM).

Milwaukee Soldiers Home is one of the first developments in the nation and the first in Wisconsin financed with a hybrid structure using 4% and 9% Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC).

All residents of the Milwaukee Soldiers Home have access to a range of supportive services, provided on-site by the Milwaukee Veterans Affairs Medical Center HUDVASH program. Services include care coordination, job training and employment assistance, help with benefits coordination and peer-to-peer counseling.

The property’s extensive rehabilitation was spearheaded by The Alexander Company. NEF invested nearly $15 million of LIHTC equity into the development. 

Milwaukee Soldiers Home won the 2021 Charles L. Edson Tax Credit Excellence Award in the Housing for Veterans of the Armed Forces category and Affordable Housing Finance (AHF) Reader’s Choice Award in the Historic Rehab category.

Mason Place is a new 60-unit permanent supportive housing development in Fort Collins, CO. Formerly a movie theatre building, this community combines beautiful design, livability, and sustainability with comprehensive on-site supportive services to promote self-reliance for formerly homeless individuals and veterans. The property includes 60 fully furnished apartments, 100 percent focused on formerly homeless individuals earning less than 30 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI) and 10 units reserved for veterans with VASH vouchers.

The trauma-informed design provides safety, comfort, privacy, and security to residents. Its prime location is pedestrian and bicycle friendly, close to a central transit corridor, and near grocery stores, healthcare, and restaurants. The high-density development (38 units/acre) is designed for health and sustainability with low-flow fixtures, energy efficient lighting, ENERGY STAR appliances, and low water landscaping -- in accordance with Enterprise Green Communities standards. Amenities include a laundry lounge on each floor, a medical room, indoor and outdoor community space, and dedicated office space for service providers. Mason Place won an Eagle Award in 2022 and was a 2021 AHF Readers' Choice Awards Finalist in the Special-Needs category.

Housing Catalyst developed this community, and NEF invested nearly $12 million of LIHTC equity into this development.

Located in Detroit’s Piety Hill Neighborhood, the Ruth Ellis Clairmount Center (REC Center) is a mixed-use development that offers 43 units of permanent supportive housing for LGBTQ+ youth (age 18-24) experiencing homelessness, addressing a critical need for a particularly vulnerable population. The development consists of 32 studio and 11 one-bedroom apartments located on floors 2-4, above the first-floor commercial space. Eight units are affordable to tenants at or below 50 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI). The development is named after Ruth Ellis, a pioneering LGBTQ+ Detroit citizen who offered shelter and support to the city’s LGBTQ+ population. 

Communal amenities feature a resource library, technology center, community kitchen, salon and art studio. On-site supportive services are run through Henry Ford Health and include primary care, mental health counseling, comprehensive sexual health services, PrEP and HIV treatment, gender-affirming hormone therapies and more. Despite the critical focus and tailored services for LGBTQ+ youth, all prospective residents looking for a home are welcomed, even if they are not members of the LGBTQ+ community.

National Equity Fund invested $13.8 million of LIHTC equity in the Ruth Ellis Clairmount Center in partnership with sponsors Full Circle Communities Inc. and the Ruth Ellis Center.

Willkommen Zuhause is a combination of historic renovation and scattered­-site new construction of 56 high-impact affordable housing units in the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood in Cincinnati, Ohio. The development includes 20 disbursed buildings (10 of which are part of Zuhause, the LIHTC portion of the project) in the center of a bustling, historic urban community directly north of the central business district. As much of the community was developed in the late 1800s, a major focus in creating this new development was preserving historic elements and features while implementing new energy-efficient MEP systems, flooring and appliances.

Located in a high-cost historic neighborhood with rapidly rising rental costs, Willkommen Zuhause has created affordable, workforce and market-rate housing, providing units between 50 and 70 percent Area Median Income (AMI). As a scattered site development, Willkommen Zuhause connects previously developed points in the community to promote walkability, commercial activity and safety by bringing previously vacant buildings and lots into productive use. Additionally, the  central location allows for residents to take advantage of important community necessities such as grocery stores, health care facilities, schools and public transportation.

Willkommen Zuhause creates affordable living opportunities for an unserved workforce market in a dense, historic urban community with a high cost of living. The development's apartments are co-located in buildings across the hall and adjacent to market-rate units with market-rate finishes to create a truly mixed-income building.

First constructed in 1971, the Waterstone Apartments were acquired under the NEF Preservation loan program in 2021. The 354 apartments are reserved for households earning at 80 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI). This community has been transferred to a HUD Section 8 Housing Assistance Payment (“HAP”) contract. Most of the common areas have been upgraded and renovated and 163 units are being fully renovated and 96 partially renovated. The sponsor, Lincoln Avenue Capital, plans to continue to renovate units as they are vacated.

The Waterstone Apartments are located in Chatsworth, California, close to the San Fernando Valley, which is famous as being home to Warner Bros. Studio, Walt Disney Studios, and the Universal Studios Hollywood theme park. This community provides an affordable place to live for those who work in the surrounding area.

Lincoln Avenue Capital is the NEF Preservation Program's most prolific sponsor with approximately 75 properties acquired to date. This acquisition received a $99.3 million loan from NEF with a 5-year term.

Dwell at Greenridge, first constructed in 1980, was acquired under the NEF Preservation loan program in 2021. This development was renovated prior to acquisition in 2020 with each of the 256 units undergoing $16,000 in upgrades. To make this development of 17 buildings affordable, 103 units are restricted at 60 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI), 90 units at 80 percent AMI, and the remaining 63 units are unrestricted. 

Located in North Charleston, SC, Dwell at Greenridge is close to two major roadways, and grocery stores, services, and schools are accessible within three miles of the community. The renovation includes installing stone countertops, replacing appliances, and installing new flooring. Dwell at Greenridge serves the community by providing a safe, stable, and affordable place to call home for nearly 200 households. 

Lincoln Avenue Capital LLC developed this property, and the five-year loan amount from NEF was nearly $44.5 million. 

Forest and Magnolia are two affordable housing properties in Columbia, South Carolina that were acquired under the NEF Preservation loan program in 2022. There are 322 residential units between 5000 Forest and 42 Magnolia with 65 of the units restricted at 50 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI) and 187 of the units restricted at 80 percent AMI. Amenities in the community include a coffee bar, outdoor fire pit, yard game lawn, tennis courts, and a swimming pool. 

Spain Companies, the sponsor of Forest and Magnolia, has a focus on the South Carolina region to provide quality affordable housing. NEF provided a $71.2 million 5-year loan to preserve these affordable housing properties.

First constructed in 1965, Wellington Creek Apartments are located in the Chicago suburb of Lisle, IL and were acquired by Stone Beam Management using NEF's Workforce/Moderate Income Housing loan program. Comprised of four buildings and one single-family home, 51 out of 101 apartments are restricted to families with incomes at or under 80 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI), which helps make this an affordable place to live for households with moderate incomes.

Settled between two major interstates, Wellington Creek is less than two miles from downtown Lisle, which has a walkable shopping area and a Metra train station with service to downtown Chicago. This community is an ideal place for residents to live in proximity to where they work and job opportunities in the surrounding area and in the city.

Constructed in 2006, Park at Woodland Springs was acquired under the NEF Preservation loan program in 2022. This community is a located in North of Houston and comprised of 23 two-story buildings with 250 residential units. With affordability in mind for the next 15 years, all 250 units are restricted for households with income at or below 60 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI) using low-income housing tax credits (LIHTC).

Park at Woodland Springs represents Community HousingWorks' (CHW), a nationally recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, first acquisition of affordable housing in the state of Texas, expanding CHW's extensive contributions to the preservation and new developments of affordable housing outside of California. This acquisition received a $27.6 million loan from NEF with a 5-year term.

Constructed in 1929 in Staten Island, NY, Seaview Estates resides near the Staten Island Ferry and was substantially renovated in 1999. With 316 multifamily apartments, 43 units are reserved for households earning no more than 70 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI), 150 units are restricted to 90 percent AMI, 88 units to 100 percent AMI, and 33 units to 120 percent AMI. There are 48 units reserved for eligible homeless tenants in need of emergency shelter.

Operating under the City of New York’s Article XI program, which encourages new construction and rehabilitation of affordable housing by Housing Development Fund Corporations. Supportive services will be provided by the Church Avenue Merchant Block Association (CAMBA). CAMBA helps individuals and families facing eviction remain in their homes to ensure children remain in the schools they already attend. A capital improvement plan started prior to the closing at $13,924 per unit and $2,895 per unit was set aside for improvements post-closing.

This development is sponsored by Iris Holdings Group, which specializes in acquisition, rehabilitation, and management of distressed real estate. Seaview Estates has been refinanced with a $75.7 million loan with a five-year term through NEF's Preservation Loan program.