Bridge Investment Group Raises $1.7B for Affordable Fund

Image by Wiktor Karkocha via Unsplash

Real estate investment manager Bridge Investment Group has completed fundraising for Bridge Workforce and Affordable Housing Fund II. Having raised $1.74 billion in equity commitments, Bridge is ahead of its goal to reach $1.5 billion in commitments.

The fund’s objective is building, preserving and rehabilitating primarily non-government subsidized housing, where a minimum of 51 percent of residents earn less than 80 percent of Area Median Income. Preserving such housing helps begin to address the goal of serving a large and priced-out segment of “missing middle” renters in the U.S.

In a prepared statement, Bridge Investment Group officials noted the country’s current affordable housing crisis forces approximately 10.5 million households to pay more than 50 percent of their annual incomes on housing.

Approximately 82 percent of Bridge’s workforce and affordable housing residents earn less than 80 percent of AMI. More than 96 percent of them are not cost-burdened. That term generally refers to spending more than 30 percent of income on rent.

Social programs

The prepared statement also noted that each of the company’s workforce and affordable housing properties incorporates dedicated on-site community and social programs focused on quality-of-life-boosting services. That enables Bridge to serve an oft-overlooked U.S. population segment, while seeking more equitable outcomes.

The company anticipates committing more than $40 million as part of its Bridge Community Enhancement Initiative to fund Bridge to Education, Bridging the Gap to Financial Wellness and Bridge to Healthy Communities. Preschool and after-school programs, as well as adult education and on-site health equity programming, help foster a sense of community and empowerment and generate energy, company officials said.

Last week, Bridge Investment Group acquired a 344-unit Las Vegas, Nev. apartment community called Monterra.