ARA Launches National Affordable Housing Group

Houston–Atlanta-headquartered Apartment Realty Advisors (ARA) recently launched its National Affordable Housing Group, which will be based in Houston, with satellite offices in New Orleans and Atlanta.ARA’s Cliff McDaniel and the recently recruited Dave Fournier, former managing director of Holliday Fenoglio Fowler’s (HFF) tax credit housing group in Atlanta, will head the ARA National Affordable Housing Group.This group is based out of the Houston office because McDaniel is based in that office and he has been ARA’s de facto affordable housing broker since ARA’s inception.  “It seemed logical to keep the group based in Houston once the decision was made to expand and launch a fully dedicated group,” according to ARA. The Houston office also has a substanative support group in place in terms of research, administrative and analytical services, the company says.“Tax affordable housing brokerage is a highly complex process requiring extensive knowledge of general partner and limited partner agreements, land use restriction agreements, extended use agreements, surety bonding and revenue waterfall agreements among other things,” says Fournier. “Having this support team in place at the outset ensures a seamless and immediate ramp-up of the practice group.”Fournier is a tax credit housing broker, who has been involved in the sale of $1 billion in assets for major corporate, institutional and private owners. Additionally, Fournier was among the first in the industry to market Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) properties. “ARA’s national footprint, combined with their commitment to build a practice group solely dedicated to this arena, speaks to their vision and attention to the requirements of their clients and to the changing landscape of the market itself,” says Fournier.