While we are very proud of the communities our partners have created, we've realized that the success of these developments ultimately rests on the social systems that they offer. For our financing to have an impact on those who live in these communities, it made sense to support essential social services. That's why we began our Social Purpose Grant program in 2008; since then, we have awarded grants for purposes that range from creating a children's museum to funding an electronic library.

In 2014, for instance, we worked with the Philadelphia nonprofit Project HOME to finance Francis House of Peace, a 94-unit community for persons who have experienced homelessness or who are at risk of homelessness. The building earned LEED Silver certification from the US Green Building Council and features an exercise room, library, administrative offices and two terraces with city views in addition to its apartments. The building itself is gorgeous, but it's what goes on inside that touches me.

Project HOME provides a comprehensive tenant services plan for residents based on access to Project HOME's wide range of social programs. This includes educational programs and computer classes, medical and behavioral health services and job training and placement through Project HOME's employment services department. We provided a $100,000 Social Purpose Grant over 10 years to help support these programs.

When you hear people who have been helped by Project HOME, you cannot help but think that this nurturing environment is what it takes to turn a beautiful building into a life-changing experience.

To cite another example, we provided a $500,000, 10-year grant to the nonprofit New Hope Housing to help fund an on-site case manager at Rittenhouse, the latest of its single-room occupancy communities in the Houston area. These services include case management, access to mental health care, and financial management and life skills classes. New Hope Housing was initially formed in 1993 to serve adults living alone on very modest incomes.

Also a LEED Platinum development, Rittenhouse won a number of awards including the Urban Land Institute 2015 Houston Development of Distinction Award or Not-for Profit Affordable Housing. Among other amenities, it features a courtyard with covered patio and a large lobby with 24-hour front desk staff.

Visiting this outstanding property for the first time, we were really surprised to find out that New Hope had named its community room after Capital One to commemorate our partnership. What an honor!

We certainly have some incredible partners, and have learned something new from each of the roughly 30 new developments we are involved with each year. We try to take those learnings and pay them forward, so that the next development is quicker to build, easier to operate and more productive for the lives of its residents.

I won't tell you that our Social Purpose Grant is a universal solution, or that it fully plugs the gaps that can be left by reductions in federal programs. But we have learned that, a little extra money in the right hands can turn a building into an engine of opportunity.

I won't tell you that our Social Purpose Grant is a universal solution, or that it fully plugs the gaps that can be left by reductions in federal programs. But we have learned that, a little extra money in the right hands can turn a building into an engine of opportunity.

I won't tell you that our Social Purpose Grant is a universal solution, or that it fully plugs the gaps that can be left by reductions in federal programs. But we have learned that, a little extra money in the right hands can turn a building into an engine of opportunity.

Laura Bailey is senior vice president, community finance, at Capital One. She may be contacted at [email protected]. The views expressed here are the author's own.

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Talk to young engineers these days, and you're likely to hear them refer to sociotechnical systems, instead of the more traditional term, infrastructure. This new phrase is a bit cumbersome, but it's a useful reminder that the success of a development rests as much on social context as on bricks and mortar.

As a banker, I think that there is a lesson to be learned here. Since Capital One began its Community Finance Group in 2006, we have worked with scores of nonprofits to provide affordable housing options for thousands of people across the country. We are currently providing $1.5 billion in capital each year.

While we are very proud of the communities our partners have created, we've realized that the success of these developments ultimately rests on the social systems that they offer. For our financing to have an impact on those who live in these communities, it made sense to support essential social services. That's why we began our Social Purpose Grant program in 2008; since then, we have awarded grants for purposes that range from creating a children's museum to funding an electronic library.

In 2014, for instance, we worked with the Philadelphia nonprofit Project HOME to finance Francis House of Peace, a 94-unit community for persons who have experienced homelessness or who are at risk of homelessness. The building earned LEED Silver certification from the US Green Building Council and features an exercise room, library, administrative offices and two terraces with city views in addition to its apartments. The building itself is gorgeous, but it's what goes on inside that touches me.

Project HOME provides a comprehensive tenant services plan for residents based on access to Project HOME's wide range of social programs. This includes educational programs and computer classes, medical and behavioral health services and job training and placement through Project HOME's employment services department. We provided a $100,000 Social Purpose Grant over 10 years to help support these programs.

When you hear people who have been helped by Project HOME, you cannot help but think that this nurturing environment is what it takes to turn a beautiful building into a life-changing experience.

To cite another example, we provided a $500,000, 10-year grant to the nonprofit New Hope Housing to help fund an on-site case manager at Rittenhouse, the latest of its single-room occupancy communities in the Houston area. These services include case management, access to mental health care, and financial management and life skills classes. New Hope Housing was initially formed in 1993 to serve adults living alone on very modest incomes.

Also a LEED Platinum development, Rittenhouse won a number of awards including the Urban Land Institute 2015 Houston Development of Distinction Award or Not-for Profit Affordable Housing. Among other amenities, it features a courtyard with covered patio and a large lobby with 24-hour front desk staff.

Visiting this outstanding property for the first time, we were really surprised to find out that New Hope had named its community room after Capital One to commemorate our partnership. What an honor!

We certainly have some incredible partners, and have learned something new from each of the roughly 30 new developments we are involved with each year. We try to take those learnings and pay them forward, so that the next development is quicker to build, easier to operate and more productive for the lives of its residents.

I won't tell you that our Social Purpose Grant is a universal solution, or that it fully plugs the gaps that can be left by reductions in federal programs. But we have learned that, a little extra money in the right hands can turn a building into an engine of opportunity.

I won't tell you that our Social Purpose Grant is a universal solution, or that it fully plugs the gaps that can be left by reductions in federal programs. But we have learned that, a little extra money in the right hands can turn a building into an engine of opportunity.

I won't tell you that our Social Purpose Grant is a universal solution, or that it fully plugs the gaps that can be left by reductions in federal programs. But we have learned that, a little extra money in the right hands can turn a building into an engine of opportunity.

Laura Bailey is senior vice president, community finance, at Capital One. She may be contacted at [email protected]. The views expressed here are the author's own.