WNC Closes on $100M LIHTC Fund
WNC & Associates, an investor in urban renewal and affordable housing projects, has closed WNC Institutional Tax Credit Fund 35.
By Dees Stribling, Contributing Editor
Irvine, Calif.—WNC & Associates Inc. (WNC), an investor in urban renewal and affordable housing projects, has closed WNC Institutional Tax Credit Fund 35. The $100 million multi-investor Low Income Housing Tax Credit fund will finance 18 affordable housing properties, totaling 1,134 units, says WNC.
The 18-property portfolio includes 12 properties for families and six properties for seniors located in 11 states. Nine properties are newly constructed, while nine others are rehab projects. Total development costs are about $155 million.
According to Wilfred Cooper Jr., president and CEO of WNC, the partner WNC partnered with 18 different developer teams for the fund, nine of which were repeat relationships. He says that the company’s long experience in the business allows it to persevere “in this competitive market through partnerships with a broad network of new and repeat developers throughout the U.S.”
Cooper further tells MHN that “developing affordable housing has and will continue to come under pressure due to budgetary constraints at the federal, state and local level. Despite the oversupply in the single family market, demand for affordable rental housing far outstrips supply and we expect this imbalance to grow.”
The need is permanent, Cooper adds. “There is a huge segment of the population—families, seniors and single parents—who aren’t candidates to own a home and can’t afford a decent place to live. This is why programs that encourage private sector investment in affordable rentals, such as the federal low income housing tax credit, are so important.”
The fund closed with seven institutional investors, including five regional and national banks and two national insurance companies. WNC has closed a total of 200 affordable funds since its founding in 1971.
The firm is currently on track to close its next national fund in July 2012. The company offers national and state multi-investor funds, private label funds and NMTC funds.
