AH914 Symposium: Building on Strength: Invigorating Business Models for Affordable Rental Housing in the New EraIn today’s environment, housing providers are looking for innovative ways to do business and to continue to deliver much-needed affordable housing. These providers are exploring efficiencies in their existing practices, as well as investigating new business strategies. In short, they are looking at ways to invigorate their business models. Changing demographics and economic pressures lead most experts to predict rising demand for rental housing, especially at the affordable end of the market. However, the economic reality of the severe recession – resulting in Federal, state and local budget cuts that reduce the availability of program resources – is placing strains on the affordable housing industry. Success in the future may mean that the nonprofits working in housing and community development will need to adjust their business models to achieve long-term sustainability, and to expand their provision of affordable homes essential to their communities. Understanding the business model of the nonprofit itself, rather than taking a property-by-property approach, is critical to this sustainability. To be viable entities in meeting the affordable housing needs of the country, nonprofits need to explore: new business partners (e.g. Public Housing Authorities); diverse capital strategies (e.g. “impact investment”); revenue diversification (e.g. fee-for-service); efficiencies in services and construction (e.g. consolidation of back room functions); varied product mix (e.g. more mixed-income properties); and optimizing portfolio cash flow to generate resources to support the organization’s mission. Join practitioners in the field along with public sector and private sector leaders who are implementing innovative business models for successful affordable rental housing. The day-long symposium will offer a format for active engagement in a series of hands-on breakout sessions on the specific models, and plenary discussions with national leaders. This symposium will dig into specific examples of how nonprofits of various sizes and market areas are adjusting and innovating to sustain and grow the numbers of people they can serve. It will present real-life examples of doing business in new ways around resources and partners to meet the continuing demand for quality affordable rental homes and to build strong communities. It will focus on practical solutions to the capital gaps in affordable rental housing development by highlighting examples of organizations developing new partnerships, new types of real estate transactions, and new business models. The symposium will be practical and tactical. It will principally focus on methods that are working, rather than on policy. It will give attendees strategies to work within their own communities, and provide them with a web of contacts to help fashion adjustments to their current business models, or implement new business models. The symposium will spotlight the activities of nonprofits that are breaking new ground and implementing affordable rental housing development models that require less traditional subsidy (HOME and CDBG) than in the past by successfully addressing: 1. Efficiencies through collaboration - in today’s increasingly complex business climate, collaboration is necessary to effectively compete 2. Engagement of new partners – i.e. Public Housing Authorities and private developers 3. Ways to access new capital - new relationships with mainstream financial institutions and other businesses 4. Creation of new revenue streams – looking at fee-for-service opportunities in the provision of turnkey or ongoing program services 5. Diversification – development of apartments to serve a variety of housing needsCourse length: 1 Days Tuition: $ 220 Course counts toward a professional certificate: No |
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