Caitlin Jones • 1 min read
Tax Credit Advisor, January 2010: The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has posted a report showing the activity as of 12/5/09 by 25 reporting state housing credit agencies under the Tax Credit Assistance Program.
Caitlin Jones • 1 min read
Tax Credit Advisor, January 2010:
Massachusetts Gov. Patrick Deval recently signed a new law designed to preserve government-assisted “expiring use” rental properties in the state as affordable housing. He also announced the roll-out of a new $150 million loan fund to help finance preservation transactions.
Caitlin Jones • 6 min read
By A. J. Johnson
Tax Credit Advisor, January 2010: When developing or managing a low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) property, it’s critical to be familiar with the program’s “student rules” as set out in the federal tax code and in Internal Revenue Service regulations and guidance. Otherwise, owners risk the loss or recapture of housing credits.
Caitlin Jones • 5 min read
Tax Credit Advisor, January 2010: There are two common approaches to making an old building eligible for the federal historic rehabilitation tax credit. One is to get it listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a certified historic structure. The other is to get it approved as a “contributing” building in a designated historic district.
Caitlin Jones • 5 min read
By David A. Smith, CAS Financial Advisory Services
Tax Credit Advisor, January 2010: When presented with a proposed green improvements program, those with fiscal decision responsibility – CFOs, property management heads, owners, and even regulators – find themselves reading the report much like restaurant diners presented with the antiquated “Ladies Menu” that lists dishes without prices. Everything’s tempting, but what does anything cost?
Caitlin Jones • 4 min read
Tax Credit Advisor, December 2009: State agencies have awarded nearly $4.2 billion in federal stimulus act funds so far to jumpstart stalled low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) projects, according to data collected by a Tax Credit Advisor survey that shows the enormous housing production from the new Tax Credit Assistance Program (TCAP) and Section 1602 credit exchange program.
Caitlin Jones • 2 min read
Tax Credit Advisor, December 2009:
U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) recently introduced a bill (S. 1761) to extend by one year, through 2011, the placed-in-service deadline for projects in the GO Zone, Rita GO Zone, and Wilma GO Zone receiving special disaster area low-income housing tax credits under the Gulf Opportunity (GO) Zone Act of 2005.
Caitlin Jones • 4 min read
Tax Credit Advisor, December 2009: In many ways, an affordable housing developer is a surgeon. In poor urban neighborhoods, making use of partnerships and government resources, the developer removes part of a neighborhood’s ills and inserts a healthy new organism – mixed-income housing development paired with resident services.
Caitlin Jones • 6 min read
Tax Credit Advisor, December 2009: One by one, a growing number of developers are getting their new low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) deals funded and closed. Often it’s a convoluted, lengthy, and less than pretty process, but sponsors are finding success nonetheless.
Caitlin Jones • 1 min read
Tax Credit Advisor, December 2009: The Internal Revenue Service has clarified the treatment and other aspects of Section 1603 federal energy grants, in a new guidance (Chief Counsel Advice 200943029).
Caitlin Jones • 7 min read
Tax Credit Advisor, December 2009: Even as the market for low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) remains slack, the zoning and land use environments for affordable housing are improving in areas throughout the country, thanks to a series of lawsuits brought under the federal Fair Housing Act (FHA) and related laws. These cases suggest that the FHA is an indispensable tool in the affordable housing toolbox, and that syndicators, investors and developers ignore this tool at their peril.
Caitlin Jones • 5 min read
Tax Credit Advisor, December 2009: The U.S. Treasury Department’s disapproval of Fannie Mae’s proposed sale of a chunk of its existing low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) investments prolongs concerns about the “elephant in the room” – namely what is going to happen to the large volume of housing credit investments held by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and how might any sale or sales impact the LIHTC equity market. Those questions appear likely to remain unanswered for a period of time.