Lender Adds Low-Income Housing Finance Expert

SEATTLE-HomeStreet Capital is venturing into new areas of affordable housing finance now that it has added a specialist to its ranks. Eric Brown, most recently community development manager for Fannie Mae’s American Communities Fund, recently joined the firm as vice president and manager of community lending, a new position within the locally based company. A longtime multifamily and commercial real estate lender, HomeStreet Capital is the income property division of HomeStreet Bank and a member of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Seattle. Brown tells GlobeSt.com that his experience allows affordable housing developers to structure deals with HomeStreet Capital that they could not do in the past. For example, Brown says HomeStreet Capital is now offering construction lending on 4% and 9% LIHTC projects and also can bridge tax credit investor proceeds. In association with such deals, Brown says HomeStreet Capital can now also credit enhance tax exempt bonds that are sold publicly or be a direct investor in those bonds on both a short- and long-term basis. Previously, Brown says most of HomeStreet Capital focused primarily in permanent financing.Brown’s experience in the field includes public sector programs, bond finance, equity investment, construction lending, credit enhancement and real estate development. HomeStreet’s income property lending director Pat Leach says Brown has an extraordinary understanding of the specialized financing requirements and available resources for affordable housing, including Low Income Housing Tax Credits, tax-exempt bonds and other public and private financing sources.At Fannie Mae’s American Communities Fund, Brown worked with the public sector, financial institutions and developers to arrange financing for affordable housing and community development projects. Prior to that, he served as executive director for St. Andrew’s Housing Group, and as a housing developer for Common Ground.