First Citizens Bank Invests $1M in The Neighborhood Developers to Boost Affordable Housing Efforts
Contacts:
Judith Garcia, The Neighborhood Developers, jgarcia@tndinc.org
Nancy Turner, Opportunity Communities, nturner@oppcommunities.org
Opportunity Communities (OppCo) is thrilled to announce that First Citizens Bank has invested $1 million through an Equity Equivalent Investment (“EQ2”) to support The Neighborhood Developers’ anti-displacement strategy. The funds will be managed by OppCo as part of the OppCo Housing Accelerator Fund, a new revolving loan fund that accelerates the capacity of community developers to fund affordable housing production and preservation by offering them access to predevelopment and acquisition financing at favorable rates.
“Community developers can’t keep up with the demand for affordable housing with rising prices in Greater Boston,” said Kathy McGilvray, OppCo’s CEO. “Many multifamily properties now sell at prices that can only be justified by 25% or higher rent increases, causing displacement in the communities that our member-CDCs serve. This fund provides low-cost capital to support CDCs to advance their affordable housing production and preservation efforts.”
“First Citizens Bank recognizes the urgent need for affordable housing units in Massachusetts, and we are dedicated to investing in their financing through our CDFI/CDC partners,” said Fiona Hsu, Head of Community Development Finance for First Citizens Bank. “We are pleased to partner with OppCo with the shared goal of building sustainable, long-term, thriving communities in the towns and cities that we serve.”
The Neighborhood Developers, an OppCo CDC member, is using the fund to execute its anti-displacement strategy of acquiring, upgrading, and permanently preserving multifamily properties as affordable, energy-efficient, and healthy homes. TND has already acquired 64 homes, with plans for an additional 27 planned for purchase in the coming months. Longer-term, TND will work to permanently preserve the newly acquired homes as deed-restricted quality affordable homes. Founded in 1978, TND promotes housing and economic opportunity and quality of life in Chelsea, Revere, and Everett.
About Opportunity Communities:
OppCo is an innovative nonprofit that enables local community development corporations to remain rooted in community, while accruing the benefits of scale. OppCo’s strengthens the capacity, efficiency, and performance of member CDCs by providing strategic guidance, talent, and programming to members to support upward economic mobility and housing equity among people of low-incomes and within communities of color. Learn more about our model.
About First Citizens Bank:
First Citizens Bank helps personal, business, commercial and wealth clients build financial strength that lasts. Headquartered in Raleigh, N.C., First Citizens has built a unique legacy of strength, stability and long-term thinking that has spanned generations. First Citizens offers an array of general banking services including branches and offices nationwide; commercial banking expertise delivering best-in-class lending, leasing and other financial services coast to coast; innovation banking serving businesses at every stage; and a nationwide direct bank. Parent company First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ: FCNCA) is a top 20 U.S. financial institution with more than $200 billion in assets and a member of the Fortune 500™. Discover more at firstcitizens.com.
