Greystone, Winterwood Reopen KY Affordable Housing
Following a complex statewide pooled tax-exempt bond transaction totaling $65 million, the companies reopened 18 remodeled affordable housing communities across 14 counties.
By Laura Calugar
Greystone Affordable Development and Winterwood Inc. celebrated the grand reopening of 563 restored units spread across 18 communities in 14 counties in Kentucky. The $65 million recapitalization and rehabilitation transaction was comprised of aging and at-risk affordable multifamily housing units. All properties are part of the USDA Rural Development Section 515 program, which provides affordable housing in the rural U.S.
The Brayton Apartments in Lawrenceburg, Ky.
Renovation work for all properties was completed in 12 months and cost approximately $33,650 in improvements per unit. Upgrades included new HVAC systems, plumbing, more efficient kitchen appliances and aesthetic updates to both interiors and exteriors. Brayton Apartments in Lawrenceburg, Ky., (pictured) is an example of one of the properties renovated.
Apart from Winterwood Inc., Greystone’s team worked with USDA’s Rural Housing Service, the Kentucky Housing Corp. and Community Affordable Housing Equity Corp. (CAHEC) to coordinate and secure the financing needed to acquire and rehabilitate the properties. Greystone also used energy incentives and rebates available through the Louisville Gas and Electric Co. and the Kentucky Utilities Co. for 253 units in the portfolio to achieve an energy efficiency improvement of more than 30 percent per unit.
“We must continue to encourage our policymakers to recognize the importance of federal and state programs that support the preservation and financing of this critical affordable housing in rural areas of the United States, and continually advocate for the importance of the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program,” said Greystone Affordable Development President & CEO Tanya Eastwood, in a prepared statement.
All properties in the portfolio, which range from 12 to 60 units, leveraged the Multifamily Preservation and Revitalization (MPR) Program through the USDA. The MPR Program is a loan restructuring tool that provided debt with favorable financing, contributing to an overall rent decrease of $22 per unit across the portfolio.
Image courtesy of Winterwood website
