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It’s rare that a site for a housing development is perfect. Besides the constraints of working with existing lots that are often less than ideal, there are many other factors in play: zoning, soil conditions, solar orientation, ease of entry and access to transportation and amenities, just to name a few. In general, though, there are a few handy tips that can help developers and architects seek out a good site for affordable housing.

When the 117th Congress convenes January 3, bipartisan support will be required to pass any legislation as neither party will have a strong majority in the Senate, panelists at an NH&RA town hall said December 3.

In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, both the CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) and a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)order, imposed moratoriums on eviction from rental housing under most circumstances, at least until December 31, 2020. CDC’s guidance specifically states that preventing evictions “can be an effective public health measure utilized to prevent the spread of [Covid-19],” and that “housing stability helps protect public health because homelessness increases the likelihood of individuals moving into congregate settings, such as homeless shelters, which then puts individuals at higher risk [of] Covid-19.”

Originally authorized by Congress as a part of the Community Renewal Tax Relief Act of 2000, authorization for the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) once again runs out at the end of 2020. The program was initially authorized for five years and has been kept alive by several short-term renewals, which speaks more to Congress’s desire and ability to get anything done than it does to the effectiveness of the program. As we celebrate the program’s 20th anniversary and stare down the barrel of yet another nerve-wracking, year-end reauthorization, we thought it timely to examine the program through both retro- and prospective lenses.

Gregory Minott is an awarding-winning architect and co-founder of DREAM Collaborative, a black-owned design firm in the Boston metro area.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought challenges to the entire economy, particularly to real estate genres that were already in a tenuous situation. New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC) cover a broad array of these asset classes, so one might think the credits, which are issued by the Department of the Treasury and meant to revive distressed areas, will be impacted. Whether or not that happens was the topic at a recent NH&RA panel discussion.

New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC) can be used for a variety of real estate types. They benefit developers building everything from grocery stores to clinics to manufacturing facilities, in areas deemed underserved. They’re bought by financial institutions, who become eligible for a five to six percent tax credit across a seven-year span. They’re syndicated through community development entities (CDEs), which can be either for-profit, nonprofit, or government-run. However, housing developers have somewhat restricted access to this financing tool. While NMTC has been used to build many a mixed-use residential project, the program can be inflexible, particularly regarding the “80/20 rule.”

“If you’re going through hell, keep going,” Winston Churchill is reputed to have advised during the early days of World War II. This advice is equally relevant for the current Covid-19 pandemic as it affects owners, staff and residents of affordable housing buildings and complexes, especially those dedicated to senior living, and truly, the entire population.

With the conclusion of the 2020 elections, Washington is once again embracing a season of change which includes the transition process from the Trump Administration to the Biden Administration as well as from the 116th to the 117th Congress.

Last month, NH&RA hosted an inspired town hall focused on health and sustainability in affordable housing. The panel theme was inspired by a conversation I had with Krista Egger, vice president of National Initiatives at Enterprise Community Partners. Krista had recently updated me on the latest iteration of Enterprise’s Green Communities (EGC) Standard, which is the “gold standard” for affordable housing green building standards. I was intrigued and excited by the new ways the EGC update incorporates resident health into its design strategy.

While the COVID-19 pandemic has hit senior housing so recently that post-COVID design has yet to fully materialize, what seems likely is that new congregate living projects will be more compartmentalized to cordon off seniors and their families and visitors in the public and semi-public areas of their residences.

Late this summer, the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawai’i granted a motion for summary judgment in Michael Tuttle, et al. vs. Front Street Affordable Housing Partners, et al., No. 18-00218 JAO-KJM, 2020 BL 305979, 2020 U.S. Dist Lexis 145071 (D. Haw. Aug. 12, 2020), a case brought by prospective low-income tenants seeking to reinstate an extended use agreement, which was released by the state agency at the end of the Low Income Housing Tax Credit compliance period following an owner’s request for a qualified contract. While a federal district court decision has limited precedential value, the decision is instructive for state allocating agencies, practitioners and LIHTC transaction participants, given the scarcity of cases involving qualified contracts since the enactment of Section 42(h)(6)(E)(i)(II).