Community Affairs:
Article Archive > Maryland
Supporting Affordable Housing through Tax Credit Syndication
Community Affordable Housing Equity Corp (CAHEC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit
low-income housing tax credit syndicator serving Alabama, the District of
Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina,
Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. CAHEC works to create and maintain
affordable rental and ownership housing in the areas it serves. Since its
creation in 1992, CAHEC has developed more than 7,300 units of affordable
housing. CAHEC also provides a number of supportive programs designed to assist
the residents of the developments it has helped to finance.
As a tax credit syndicator, CAHEC structures equity funds using investors'
capital. CAHEC's most recent fund is the South Carolina Preservation Fund II LP
(SCPF II). SCPF II is a $32 million equity fund designed to preserve and
renovate a portfolio of older, multifamily housing properties in South
Carolina. The targeted portfolio includes 41 properties with a total of 1,548
units. Although all investments in SCPF II were fully subscribed in 2008, banks
can invest in other CAHEC equity funds as they are developed. To learn more,
visit their
Web site or e-mail Dana Boole or
call (919) 788-1803.
[Community Developments Investments
, Spring 2009]
Small Loans, Big Returns
Ways to Work (WtW) is a nonprofit, community development financial institution
that helps lower-income people. WtW is designed to help borrowers attain
financial independence and advance economically by having money to purchase
dependable used cars to get to work or school. Since 1996, WtW has originated
nearly 12,000 loans for more than $31 million and the average auto loan amounts
to an average $3,400. Results of a 2006 WtW evaluation indicate that borrowers
reported an average increase of 41 percent in their take-home pay. In addition,
67 percent of WtW borrowers report that they have used conventional financial
services subsequent to receiving their WtW loans.
Headquartered in Milwaukee, WtW makes its loans from 43 offices in 21 states:
California, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland,
Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon,
Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin.
WtW offices are located in social service agencies affiliated with the Alliance
of Children and Families (ACF). ACF agencies screen and provide financial
education to borrowers and service the loans. WtW local offices provide
financial education to more than three persons for every individual who
receives a loan. Investors in WtW include several national foundations, the
Community Development Financial Institution Fund of the U.S. Treasury
Department, local United Way offices, and financial institutions. Banks can be
involved by investing in the national WtW loan fund, by referring to local WtW
offices prospective borrowers who do not meet conventional credit criteria, by
participating in local WtW loan committees, and by providing grants and in-kind
donations to WtW.
For more information, contact President Jeff Faulkner at (414) 359-1448 ext. 2,
e-mail him, or visit his
Web site.
[Community Developments Investments, Fall 2008]
Baltimore Redevelopment Efforts Get $50 Million Boost
Harbor Bankshares Corporation recently received a $50 million new markets tax
credit allocation to enhance community development loan funds supporting
revitalization and reinvestment in the city of Baltimore. The new investment
funds will benefit both affordable housing development and small business
financing, including a partnership with Fannie Mae to construct owner-occupied
housing in targeted low-income communities and a commercial loan fund to help
finance large scale mixed-use projects. Harbor Bankshares indicates that the
flexibility of the tax credit program will allow it to expand its product mix
to include loans with longer amortization periods, longer interest-only
periods, and higher loan-to-value ratios.
For more information, contact William Rice of Harbor Bankshares at (410)
675-5722.
[Published in News from the Districts, Community Developments Investments
, Fall 2004]
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