Mark Fogarty Author Archives

Tax issues are going to be a mixed bag this year, with some positive changes, like the four percent Low Income Housing Tax Credit floor, and others that are not so positive. But there’s one thing that a lot of industry observers agree on—the need for guidance from the Internal Revenue Service.

Affordable housing developments are never easy. But acquiring and rehabbing a 23-year-old project in Houston gave Vesta Corporation a few more hoops to jump through than just fixing old roofs and redoing faulty water lines. In addition to the nuts and bolts of this comprehensive $30 million renovation, the developer found the state housing agency wanted to see some non-construction improvements as well, like better educational opportunities for residents and a reduction of crime and blight in the neighborhood.

A.O. Flats, a Greater Boston housing development that takes its name from two local landmarks (A for Arborway from the Arnold Arboretum and O for Orange from the Orange transit line), itself will be a blend of two types of residences. Both affordable and workforce housing residents are putting down roots in the Boston neighborhood of Jamaica Plain just a short commuter ride from center city.

Not many buildings have their own rail system, much less one that runs across the ceiling. And very few have conference rooms where you can look out and see elephants and giraffes from the windows. But Zoo Atlanta’s Savanna Hall has both.

Income averaging has achieved tax credit eligibility for all 135 units, including workforce housing units at up to 80 percent of area median income (AMI), at a development set to rise from a Boston trolley parking lot.

The Federal Housing Administration’s Multifamily Housing Accelerated Processing Guide is updated periodically every few years. The 2020 MAP Guide update, set to go into effect on March 18, weighs in at 903 pages and is full of new guidance—some positive, some not so positive—for borrowers and lenders wanting to use FHA’s multifamily programs.

Wexford Science + Technology has taken an old power plant formerly called the Dynamo House and developed a historic rehab that is turning into a dynamo of its own, one that is transforming a whole section of Providence, RI into a knowledge and medical hub.

The long arm of the COVID pandemic is not only disrupting 2020 performance in the tax credit industry, but it may have a further impact even after the virus is brought under control.

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.

The historic rehab of the YWCA Central Massachusetts will not only improve its traditionally extensive array of services for women and their children, but it is being built by a woman-led construction management team as well.

The state of Vermont is on track to see its first New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) deal that will finance homeownership-only units. And that first project, planned to be developed by a local community land trust, will target an unusual and specialized population: refugees who have been resettled into the state’s largest city, Burlington.

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.