Walker & Dunlop to Raise $400M for Affordable Housing on Church Land
More than 2,000 mixed-income units could come online on the West Coast.
Logos Faith Development has tapped Walker & Dunlop as its financial advisor to secure $400 million in debt and equity capital for the development of more than 2,000 affordable housing units.
Currently in various stages of planning and permitting, the residences will rise on church-owned land throughout urban neighborhoods on the West Coast. According to Logos, churches own 20 percent of the land in the U.S.
Walker & Dunlop Senior Director Chris Montes leads the finance team that will identify, structure and negotiate the required debt and equity for the mixed-income projects. The developments are bound to include workforce, affordable and social impact housing.
The news comes on the backdrop of California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s “Yes In God’s Backyard” bill, which allows religious or independent institutions of higher education to build housing developments on their property by right. Newsom signed the bill in 2023.
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According to a 2020 study by the Terner Center for Housing Innovation, roughly 40,000 acres of church land could be potentially developable across the Golden State. In San Diego County alone, faith communities own 4,675 acres of land, according to yigby.org. The city plans to build 3,000 units on church land by 2025.
YIGBY is keen on modular housing thanks to the low construction costs and the swiftness of construction. The group said that the required government approvals may be obtained directly from the manufacturing plant and construction takes no more than 10 days.
Logos’ church-focused partnerships
The developer also partnered with Grant Housing and Economic Development Corp. to build affordable housing projects in California, Oregon and Colorado. In addition, the duo proposed a $24 million grant, in partnership with Livable Communities Initiative, to develop 260 units across eight projects in California.
In Oregon, Logos teamed up with the First African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church—the oldest Black church in the state. As of 2023, the partnership was eyeing the demolition of a historic church in Portland, Ore. Multiple structures could rise in its stead, including a multifamily community.
