Boston Financial Closes $83M LIHTC Fund for California

Boston Financial Investment Management has closed its LIHTC fund Boston Financial California Fund II with $83 million in commitments. The fund will leverage eight tax credit investments to finance 600 affordable housing units of six multifamily properties and two senior living communities in California. The properties will be located in Gilroy, San Diego, Los Angeles, Oroville, Brawley and Lindsay.

Each property will have an operating budget of $6.2 million and will offer social and economic services, including adult education, health and wellness, job training and placement, tutoring services, and civic involvement initiatives. The combination of supportive housing—which will serve people making below 60% of the area median income—and services is integral to Boston Financial’s strategy. According to Tom Pereira, SVP and director of institutional sales at Boston Financial, “We believe that combining permanent supportive housing with robust social services helps foster economic and social well-being and growth.”

The fund is Boston Financial’s first California-focused fund in almost 30 years, and it attracted new investors to the firm. Eight institutional investors contributed to the fund, and four were new relationships. It also included several new developers, including one of the largest nonprofit housing organizations in the western US. The investment will also drive economic growth. The development activity and housing will create approximately 180 permanent and 730 temporary jobs statewide.

California is in grave need of affordable housing development. It is one of the markets with critical supply shortages and where rent growth is outpacing wage growth. The State Legislature has responded over the last several years with new laws and regulations to promote affordable housing development. The State proposed three new housing bills—SB 6, AB 115, and SB 15—to help combat the rampant housing affordability crisis. These bills will drive housing development in the state. The most impactful of the round up is SB 6, the Neighborhood Homes Act, which would allow residential development in commercial and residential-zoned areas, as long as the project is not adjacent to an industrial use.

Luckily, institutional investors are responding to the demand. There have been several major deals in the last year. One example is The Jonathan Rose Companies’ acquisition of the Kings Villages Apartments in Pasadena for $223 million via its The Rose Affordable Housing Preservation Fund V. The property includes 313  LIHTC and HUD-regulated Section 8 and Section 42 LIHTC units.